Seventeen years ago, on a sweltering Friday night in Charlotte, NC, two youngsters stood before God and a few hundred friends and family and made promises that they surely didn’t fully understand.

A bride and groom are posing together in front of an altar adorned with lit candles, white flowers, and a large wooden cross.

In some ways it feels like it was just yesterday… until I start thinking about all the intervening events. 17 years later we’ve added three kids, cycled through about half a dozen cats, have a lot less hair, and still play church softball every season. (This year’s team’s infield: two married couples. One husband/wife at short and second; Becky at first and me at third. Such fun… until I start airmailing my throws to first!)

God has been good to us, and we keep learning every day (or at least most days) how to love each other better and become even better friends. Today is our seventh prime number anniversary, and here’s to another 10 or 12 primes before we’re done.

A smiling man wearing sunglasses and a woman with short hair pose closely together outdoors with green trees in the background.