Surprises in Love

Surprises. This man is always surprising me. With an instant message out of the blue—his screen name popped up as he told me who he was. I, of course already knew... what surprised me was why he'd be talking to me. With so many adventures; big ones across the country, small ones involving trips to get doughnuts. With a ring to start one of our greatest adventures of all. And most especially, with the infinite kindness of his heart.

So this one time, I wanted to surprise him, too.

He believed me when I told him I wanted to do a fall photo shoot. He believed me when I told him I was just nervous because we were running late. This wonderful man even believed me when I told him I wanted to try a cheesy idea I saw on Pinterest where we both had chalkboards and secretively wrote our favorite things about each other...and then turned around at the same time while the photographer captured our reactions. He believed me all the way up until Picture Number Nine, when I finally got to see his genuine, astonished, sweet, sweet surprise.

Surprises—the good ones—have always been some of the best things about love. They keep a relationship exciting, they foster growth, they teach and they build. Love is the perfect balance of familiarity and surprise, and I am so, so blessed to share it with the man I do.

Photo credit: Mia Jankowiak, Mia Murray Photography