The Stupid Graduate, that's me...
Proverbs 18:22 Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favour of the LORD.
Last night's graduation was a great time. Yet, right in the middle of it, I had the opportunity to demonstrate my utter carelessness and stupidity. I had the opportunity to brag on my wife Sarah, but I didn't. The Bible says that whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favour (aka grace) of the LORD. But by the grace and favour of God, I am what I am. I needed to tell the whole world that, but I didn't. I'm stupid.
Sarah has been supportive of me through these years. We started Institute with a couple classes 6 years ago. I went full-time 5 years ago, taking one semester off for Joey being born. So, for the past 5 years, Sarah has been there encouraging me to finish (actually, she never cared if I was learning anything, she just wanted me to finish!). She has been by my side through other struggles we've had: being laid off from my job the month after we were married, struggling through very irregular income while trying to run my own business a few years back, and having to deal with creditors and bankruptcy as a result of that business. She has been the greatest help to me during all of that time.
She has given birth to our five wonderful children. 3 of which have been born during my time in institute, and 2 which were just very young when I started. She has been a great mother to them and had to do things with them that I should have done, but was unable to while in classes. She has done all of the work taking care of the children at times when I would be sitting in my office doing my homework, studying, or preparing some lesson.
And then there was this semester... Talk about finishing it off with a bang. Towards the end of last year, the debt that I carried over from the business caught back up to us, and the creditors finally got to the point where they were beginning to garnish my wages - that doesn't do very well on a tight budget! We finally were "forced" into filing bankruptcy. So, we've been dealing with that whole process and all that goes along with it. Then there was the little issue of a computer that was not backed up and half of a thesis that was lost. Needless to say, Sarah gave me as much time as I needed to get that re-written, and believe me, it was a lot of what should have been family time used to finish that. And the biggest difficulty this semester, was the miscarriage. With everything else going on, she had to deal with a physical and emotional trial greater, probably, than any other she has had before. Yet, she let me go on and finish. She still did all the same that she has done.
I should have said all of this last night, but I'm the stupid graduate, remember? As soon as I sat down and Seth got up (immediately praising his wife), I realized how dumb I was. My first thought was this: "I wish I had used notes!" My second thought was this: "How stupid I am, to think that I should have needed notes to remember to talk about Sarah." As Seth was talking, I thought about standing up when he finished and saying something about her then, but I thought it would have been inappropriate to interrupt the ceremony, especially after what Seth had just said and all... More evidence of my stupidity. It would have been very appropriate, but I didn't.
Whoso findeth a wife, findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favour of the LORD. God's grace and favour was bestowed to me in the most incredible way when He gave me my wife. She is a wonderful mother. She shows me love when I do not deserve it. She is kind and patient towards other people. She is compassionate. She has a great voice to sing. She can cook. She can sew. And to top it all off, she's a great kisser!
I love my wife, and I am so thankful for her.
I love you, Sarah.
Proverbs 18:22 Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favour of the LORD.
Last night's graduation was a great time. Yet, right in the middle of it, I had the opportunity to demonstrate my utter carelessness and stupidity. I had the opportunity to brag on my wife Sarah, but I didn't. The Bible says that whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favour (aka grace) of the LORD. But by the grace and favour of God, I am what I am. I needed to tell the whole world that, but I didn't. I'm stupid.
Sarah has been supportive of me through these years. We started Institute with a couple classes 6 years ago. I went full-time 5 years ago, taking one semester off for Joey being born. So, for the past 5 years, Sarah has been there encouraging me to finish (actually, she never cared if I was learning anything, she just wanted me to finish!). She has been by my side through other struggles we've had: being laid off from my job the month after we were married, struggling through very irregular income while trying to run my own business a few years back, and having to deal with creditors and bankruptcy as a result of that business. She has been the greatest help to me during all of that time.
She has given birth to our five wonderful children. 3 of which have been born during my time in institute, and 2 which were just very young when I started. She has been a great mother to them and had to do things with them that I should have done, but was unable to while in classes. She has done all of the work taking care of the children at times when I would be sitting in my office doing my homework, studying, or preparing some lesson.
And then there was this semester... Talk about finishing it off with a bang. Towards the end of last year, the debt that I carried over from the business caught back up to us, and the creditors finally got to the point where they were beginning to garnish my wages - that doesn't do very well on a tight budget! We finally were "forced" into filing bankruptcy. So, we've been dealing with that whole process and all that goes along with it. Then there was the little issue of a computer that was not backed up and half of a thesis that was lost. Needless to say, Sarah gave me as much time as I needed to get that re-written, and believe me, it was a lot of what should have been family time used to finish that. And the biggest difficulty this semester, was the miscarriage. With everything else going on, she had to deal with a physical and emotional trial greater, probably, than any other she has had before. Yet, she let me go on and finish. She still did all the same that she has done.
I should have said all of this last night, but I'm the stupid graduate, remember? As soon as I sat down and Seth got up (immediately praising his wife), I realized how dumb I was. My first thought was this: "I wish I had used notes!" My second thought was this: "How stupid I am, to think that I should have needed notes to remember to talk about Sarah." As Seth was talking, I thought about standing up when he finished and saying something about her then, but I thought it would have been inappropriate to interrupt the ceremony, especially after what Seth had just said and all... More evidence of my stupidity. It would have been very appropriate, but I didn't.
Whoso findeth a wife, findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favour of the LORD. God's grace and favour was bestowed to me in the most incredible way when He gave me my wife. She is a wonderful mother. She shows me love when I do not deserve it. She is kind and patient towards other people. She is compassionate. She has a great voice to sing. She can cook. She can sew. And to top it all off, she's a great kisser!
I love my wife, and I am so thankful for her.
I love you, Sarah.
