Tag Archives: first contact

What Words Can Do

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Today is the anniversary of the first time I contacted my wife by email (I sent it on the first of April, she received it on the second. We celebrate this by me componsing and sending her a poem last thing at night on the first, with the promise that she won’t read it until the next morning. Here is this year’s poem:

What Words Can Do

I used to think that artful words were just a waste of breath,
Get straight to the point or you’ll just bore me half to death;
But then the day came when I tried to learn the gentle dance
Of subtle hints and nuances that constitute romance.

I discovered words alone allowed me to connect
To a thoughtful, kind, warm, and engaging intellect.
Your sense of humor broke my walls, our shared pain drew me in,
Suddenly I saw the point of my old suffering:

It opened up a friendship deeper than I dared to hope,
As I tried to walk my way along the grand tightrope
Of pushing to grow closer without scaring you away,
Somehow I didn’t squander what we celebrate this day.

A Certain Precious Magic

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Today is the 22nd anniversary of the first time I contacted the girl who became my wife. Here is the song I wrote and sung for the occasion last night.

There’s a certain precious magic in communication
When distant souls discover they are close;
Two lonely hearts that have their homes in separated nations
Take a chance, and thus a friendship grows.

That friendship can plants seeds of love that sprout and grow and bloom,
And multiply the joys and stakes of life,
Until the two stand side by side as blushing bride and groom,
Forever to be joined as man and wife.

I’m so glad I started down this path that led me to your heart
And grew my soul immensely on the way,
So I’ll do my utmost to always play my part
In blessing you, my treasure, every day.

Communication

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Today is the twenty-first anniversary of the first time I contacted my wife. Here is this year’s poem:

Communication

Communication is so cheap, and yet it brings so much;
How greatly we’re enriched by another human’s touch.
One and twenty years ago, we took our first small steps,
When words were typed and sent with faintest hope in their effect.

Yet as the back and forth went on, a deep connection grew;
An unexpected friendship, something beautiful and true,
That served as the foundation for a life we both now share,
So bountiful and loving that our old selves can’t compare.

The lesson to be taken is to reach out and connect;
The worst thing that can happen is that they will just reject
Your offer of communication, friendship or support,
In which case you’re no poorer, in fact you’re only short

The time you would have spent uncertain, torturing yourself,
To formulate the perfect words to cast the perfect spell
And win them over to your side as friends or something more,
When all that’s really needed is to open up the door

With honesty and openness, being true to who you are;
Few healthy people really want a puffed-up movie star.
Luckily for me you liked the things I had to say,
And who I was inside didn’t frighten you away.

I learned to share my deepest thoughts, my passions and my fears,
Building up a trust that’s served us well so many years,
So let’s keep talking, sharing, as we build our family,
Our lives woven together as a wondrous tapestry.

Two Decades Since My Quest Began

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It has been twenty years since I first contacted the girl who became my wife. Here is the song I wrote and sung for her today to commemorate the occasion.

When I see the ways we’ve changed,
The things that we’ve gone through,
The treasure that you are to me,
The joy I bring to you;

I still fail and let you down,
I’m not all that I should be;
Sometimes I find it hard to grasp
That you can still love me.

The Father watches over us,
The Son still leads us on,
The Spirit gives us strength to love
And know that we belong.

Two decades since my quest began
To reach out and connect
To a funny, kind and loving
Female intellect.

But you are so much more than that,
My friend, love, confidant;
He has blessed our lives with so much
More than we could want.

The Father watches over us,
The Son still leads us on,
The Spirit gives us strength to love
And know that we belong.

More Than Just My Best Friend

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Today is the anniversary of the first time I contacted my wife. Here is this years’ poem:

More Than Just My Best Friend

You’re more than just my best friend, the bond that we both share
Is precious as the sunrise and glorious fresh air.
You’ve joined to me for life with your most solemn guarantee
And yet I often fall far short of what my role should be:

I forget the things you treasure, and miss the warning signs
That you’re struggling to cope and I need to invest time
In listening and sharing in the burdens that you bear
And showing in my stumbling ways that I still truly care

Whatever chaos this world sends, together we’ll push through,
I’ll look for little ways to demonstrate I still love you
The many things we can’t control that tempt our hearts to quail
With His strength we’ll overcome, His purpose never fails.

Though sometimes we won’t understand, we know that we can trust
That He will work things for our good, He’s merciful and just.
So as we talk and pray and live together each new day
We ask for wisdom that we need to walk the narrow way.

Eighteen Years Ago

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Today is the anniversary of the first time I contacted my wife. My first email was sent on the first of May, and she read it on the second, so at the end of every first of May I email her a poem to be opened on the second. Here is this year’s effort:

Eighteen Years Ago

Eighteen years ago, I sat and struggled to decide
If sending a strange girl a note would start a downward slide,
Or if that step outside my comfort zone,
Into the digital unknown,
Would join me with a gentle soul in whom I could confide.

I trembled at the thought of reaching out and getting burned,
Now looking back I can see the many things I’ve learned:

I’ve learned how to communicate and how to bare my soul,
How to look at my old wounds in ways that make me whole,
How to trust and compromise, how to build a home,
Taking charge of more than just the simple things I own,

Loving you for who you are, not who I hope you’ll be,
While journeying together towards full maturity.
Your imperfections are a joy, as is your sense of fun,
Your warmth and vulnerability are how my heart was won.

So take my hand, let’s venture on into the great unknown,
Following the one who sits upon His rightful throne.
We’ll fall and fail and miss the mark, and let each other down,
Yet He will help us back on track towards our promised crowns.

Armed with grace and mercy, we will overcome the foe,
Who behind his rage and lies knows he can’t overthrow
The Holy One of Israel, the King above all kings,
Who offers us a glory far outweighing troubling things

That we witness in the world, that tempt us to lose hope,
When all we see each day is just the next few feet of slope.
His greatness dwarfs all that we face, His power is supreme;
Hope in him is surer than the mightiest regime.

I’ll hold your hand and comfort you when the days seem bleak,
When illness strikes, or time’s harsh wheels make our arms grow weak.
I said “I do”, I meant it, and I’ll never take it back;
Together we will shine His light to souls lost in the black.

There Was a Girl…

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It’s that time of the year again, the anniversary of the first time I contacted the girl who would become my wife. By tradition, I write her a poem and send it to her by email last thing at night on May the 1st, and she is not allowed to read it until May the 2nd, (since I sent the original fateful email on the first, and she read it on the second). This time, I’ve recorded it as a song, which you can find below:

There Was a Girl

There was a girl whose name brought joy
To a once so lonely boy;
Now that joy is multiplied
That she is at his side.

Now many more does she delight
With her presence, at the sight
Of all she does to bless the lives
Of those close to her heart.

So now upon this special day
With fondness look my way I pray,
Take pride in what we’ve both become,
We two now joined as one.

How to Remember?

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Today is the day I commemorate the first time I contacted my wife (by tradition, I email her a poem last thing at night on the first of May, she reads it on the second; this reflects the fact that I first emailed her on the first, but she discovered the message in her inbox the day after). Here is this year’s effort:

How to Remember?

On this notable occasion
Of our first communication,
I search for inspiration
As for how to celebrate.

‘Twas with hope and consternation
That I sat at my workstation
To compose a salutation
To a possible soul mate.

Like my in-person mumbling,
I penned a note quite fumbling,
And to compound my bumbling,
It contained a broken link.

Your message sent back to me
(whose detailed words elude me)
Said openly and truly
That Alex’s advice stinks.

No angel choir euphoric
Nor wild ride meteoric
Told us this choice historic
Would transform both our lives.

Instead a growing friendship
Unveiling a deep kinship
That grew into a courtship
That to this day still thrives.

More poems telling the the story of the first contact, courtship and subsequent marriage of my wife and I can be found in my first poetry collection, Selected Verse – Faith and Family, the ebook of which is now permanently reduced to 99 cents (or territory equivalent) on amazon

Selected Verse - Faith and Family