To my husband, my best friend, my soulmate...Jack, I love you more than words can say. Even though we are thousands of miles apart right now, my heart is there with you, and I know yours is here with me. Since we can't be together this Valentine's Day, this is my tribute to you...to our love, to our marriage, to our future. You are the bravest man I know.

"Greater love has no man than he who will lay down his life for his friends." -- John 15:13

Never have I been more proud of you than I am right now. I am humbled to call you my husband, my hero, my friend. You are, literally, my knight in shining armor. Though our path might seem uncertain now, since we don't really know when you will return home to me, I know that God will look after you and keep you safe until we can be together again. Keep your head up, my brave one. It brings me great comfort to know that somewhere right now, you are under the same sky as I, gazing up at the same stars. Our hearts are connected always. Be safe and know that every moment that passes brings you one step closer to coming home to me. I love you.

Our Story

I first met Jack about two and a half years ago. I was browsing through a bookstore when we both reached for the same book -- "The Notebook" by Nicholas Sparks. We laughed and I made some silly comment about a man being willing to read that book, since it is obviously a very romantic story (Not usually a guy's cup of tea!) We had the most amazing conversation...but for whatever reason, we didn't exchange phone numbers. I thought about him for months afterwards, and kept returning to the bookstore, hoping to see him, but I never did.

Then one day, I decided on a whim to go see the big-screen version of "The Notebook" by myself. This was literally the very first time I ever went to a movie alone. When I got into the theater and took my seat, I glanced over at the person sitting a few seats down from me (also alone) and couldn't believe my eyes. It was JACK! He looked over and saw me staring at him and did a double take similar to the one I did. All we could do was laugh. We started dating after that fateful day, and the rest is history.

We were married last September, and each day with Jack is the happiest day of my life. He really is my soulmate. And, needless to say, our favorite film is "The Notebook!"