July 31, 1999 was a hot day in Winter Haven FL. Then 21, Amanda and I would be married that afternoon completely oblivious to the life that was ahead of us. I remember being nervous more than anything, anxious to marry my sweet Amanda. We went on our honeymoon in Gatlinburg TN, then packed up Amanda's 1992 Chevy Cavalier with attached u-haul trailer and made the 21 hour drive from FL to Springfield MO.
We arrived in Springfield in August of 1999 ready for our junior year of college at Baptist Bible College. At the time I worked at Walmart and for the majority of our remaining years in Springfield Amanda worked at BBC in the office or bookstore. Our apt are the time was a small two bedroom apt located near the school, and we lived right across the street from our dear friends Eric and Amanda - although at the time it was just Eric, as they would be married in January of 2000. It was pretty crazy being newly married with Y2K coming. Amanda and I loved our little apt, and were busy with work, church and school. Our apartment was the bottom right, #7D. Located in that small apartment on our first Christmas was a tiny little tree that still holds a special place in my heart. It was not much, but it was special.
Our time in Springfield was was instrumental in our lives. We lived there till 2004 when I graduated from Graduate School. From the first time we moved to Springfield to attend BBC as Freshman who didn't know each other in 1997, till the day we moved, we loved every second of it. We attended the same church the entire seven years, Meadowview Baptist Church in Republic MO, where we cut our teeth in ministry with a bunch of other young kids, including the Shadles who we work with in Ethiopia. Amanda and I ran non stop with full time work, full time school and staying actively involved at church. Looking back I am not sure how we did it, but being in your early twenties helps. We were married for our first five years in Springfield, we moved three times - going from those local apartments to on campus married dorms (free cable and utilities) and then back to those local apartments where we "upgraded" to a townhouse next to our friends Phil and Jess. One regret I had was a when we decided to get a small dog we named Tucker. The dog was cute, although we were not allowed to have a dog where we lived! We tried to hide him for a while, but eventually we had to find a home for Tucker.
On a side note, Amanda was working in the bookstore when 9-11 happened, and I was getting out of class. I remember her telling me about it and not fully grasping what had happened. I walked into the snack shop and saw everyone watching the news. Later that afternoon when I went into work at O"Reilly Automotive everyone was gathered around the radio listening to what had happened. Very little work was done that day, it was a very scary time. Later on that week I hung an America flag over the second story balcony of the married dorms, joining a slew of others who had done the same thing. It was a special sight.
In 2004 I would graduate form Grad School with our eyes fixed on missions. In June of 2004 life would change as we headed over to Ethiopia for a two week trip. From that point on we knew we were headed to Ethiopia as missionaries.
Upon returning we knew we had to do a internship as required by our missions board. Our church in Missouri was very special but did not have the ability to take on a full time intern and become a sending church. Through the missions office we learned of a church in Raleigh NC looking for an intern. The first week of November 2004 we flew to Raleigh to visit the church, and two weeks latter we had loaded up a U-haul and hit the road from Springfield to Raleigh. We arrived in Raleigh on November 15th of 2004, around dinner time. The church provided a small trailer for us to live in for free. Two men from a Sunday school class helped us unload along with one pastor on staff, Grant Staubs. Grant and his wife Michelle would become two of our closest friends.
We didn't know many people when we first arrived in Raleigh, so Amanda and I borrowed the show 24 from someone and would literally race home after work and watch it all night. Our early days were filled with thoughts of what Jack Bauer would do next!
Also of significance was the additions of two small companions in November of 2004. Max & Molly would join our family as six week old puppies, and this coming October they will be 11. They have been loyal over the years, through the good times and the more difficult moments.
I grew up on a farm in Illinois and Amanda grew up in Florida. The farm never leaves you, but Raleigh is home for us. One large reason for this is because of Ava Patricia Dyson, our sweet and beautiful daughter. By 2007 Amanda and I had finished our internship, been approved as missionaries to Ethiopia, and were busy on the road raising support. On a Saturday night while visiting a church for the weekend, we found out Amanda was expecting. It was one of the happiest moments of my life.
In January of 2008 Amanda went to the doctor and was told something was wrong with Ava. I can't remember why now, but I was unable to go to the appointment which is still one of my biggest regrets. On January 25th Ava was born, as beautiful as could be, but she was with Jesus.
2008 was one of the hardest years of our lives but we were grateful for our family and friends who helped us through it. We didn't understand why it happened but God strengthened us during that time, much of faith being grounded in us from our early years at our church in Missouri. Our first Christmas without Ava was one of the hardest moments our our lives. But...
Time and space cannot do justice how Jackson Zane came into our family. Perhaps another time I will focus solely on that. Jackson was our miracle baby who came by way of adoption in June of 2009. I find it challenging not to fill the entire blog up with picture of Jackson who was born a happy blue eyed baby boy on June 22. While Christmas of 2008 was our hardest, Christmas of 2009 was one of the greatest. Jackson still makes us laugh, he has a compassionate spirit about him which I pray God uses greatly.
In 2010 as Jackson was 14 months old we finally packed up 26 totes and headed to Ethiopia. Below is one of the first pictures we took once we arrived. The lessons learned over the last five years and the memories made cannot find its way on this post today. Another day, I will focus entirely on that. I will say that the last five years have been both incredibly hard and incredibly rewarding. Among the hardiest was saying goodbye to our precious friend Hana, while the biggest blessing was welcoming Ermias into our family.
And now here we are. Not really what we expected 16 years ago when we said "I do" but God has been good. We have three beautiful children and are blessed with family and friends who we hold dear to our heart. If you would have told us 16 years ago that in 2015 we would be in Raleigh NC as Amanda was battling kidney issues, we would have been scarred to death. Thankfully though God didn't tell us, but instead He slowly wrote our story, giving us a life filled with joy, sorrow, and adventure.
As we celebrate our sixteen year today, I am reminded why I love my wife so much. She is strong, much stronger in her faith than she realizes. She is a true friend and and a wonderful wife and mother. Her path to motherhood has been truly unique, but through it all she has stood strong in the faith of our Lord. I love her very much and I am honored to be her husband and to be the father of three precious children. I wish that Ermias was with us today, but our prayer is that one day he will be. I also pray that one day God will give us another little girl to raise, something that I want so much for my sweet wife. Amanda's secret desire to play with My Little Pony again cannot be hidden.
Our hearts are so full with those around us, our family and friends, and memories give us great joy. No, I did not expect on a hot July day in 1999 that our lives would unfold like this, but I wouldn't want it any other way.
Amanda, I love you. I am blessed.
