Celebrate Our Marriage

It all started in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Our shared passion for community and contribution led us to volunteer with "Food Not Bombs" where we joined a committed group of like-minded folks. We gathered each week and cooked food for the homeless, serving it at our local park. I had a spark for Ari back then but he was dating a friend so he wasn't available. We became friends unaware that our connection would develop through decades. At the University of New Mexico campus, Ari ran a coffee cart, and I was a student, working toward residency and admissions into the Art Therapy graduate program. On breaks, I would hang out with girlfriends, drink coffee and watch Ari playing hackie-sack with other cute, hippie guys. Ohh those younger years! We were two friends from California and although I moved back to CA (always a CA girl) and Ari moved to Taos to build Earthships, we stayed in touch. Since holidays always brought us home, we had periodic visits, lunches, and Marin hikes. A little over 10 years into our friendship, we had an "almost moment". We met at the Marin Renaissance Fair after a catch up dinner date. That was a sweet event and Ari even performed a sword fight on stage winning a battle for me (the fair maiden). That's when I started calling him the "Manliest Man of Marin". It was a special day and our friendship deepened. Still, many years later, I visited the Marin Indian Art shows and met Sandy and the gang (the art dealer family). Again another special connection with good times and memory building. And so the story goes, for 17 years, we cycled through good times and special moments. We learned more about each other. We had great connection calls and visits. There was a spark but no fanning of the flames. In 2013 I investigated moving to Mill Valley to support my healing journey. At the same time, Ari was caring for Sandy, his beloved mother. We hadn't connected in about 5 years. On a drive back to Truckee to tie up loose ends, Ari phoned me. I was happy to hear from him. We discovered that finally we would be living in the same town again and both of us were single! And so, the dating commenced. It wasn't planned, although Ari may have a different version. Eventually, we embarked on a 13 year journey into commitment, partnership and marriage. Our biggest accomplishment to date has been our commitment to STAY even when the going gets tough. Always, we come back to conversation, connection and love. We call ourselves the yin/yang couple (complete opposites most of the time) - yet, it works for us. We are so lucky to have each other. We are 30 years in the making and just getting started. Thank you for sharing your lives with us and witnessing our journey. We so look forward to celebrating with you.