When I Knew

My sister asked me, "When did you know you were in love with Josh and that you were going to marry him?"

I was 16 when this boy walked into church. He was wearing a Cross Country t-shirt, Lee jeans, a pair of well loved running shoes and he was sporting a flat top hair cut. I told my friend, Lindsey, "I'm going to marry that guy."

I didn't know his name. I'd never seen him before. All I knew from the moment I saw him was that he had no fashion sense whatsoever but he made my heart skip a beat and I wanted to marry him.

It would be another month or so before we were introduced. Linds and I were trying to think of what his name could be. I told her I thought he looked like a "Josh" and sure enough, wouldn't ya know it!

Lindsey was dating a guy named David at the time. He was a couple years older than we were and he said Josh was in his Sunday school class, so he'd introduce us.

We started dating, sorta, shortly after. I was sooo into him and he was sooo not into me. So, after a few months of hanging out, it fizzled. I've never cried so hard in my life. Not ever. I was only 16 but I was in love with him and I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him.

A few months of pity parties would go by and of course I had random crushes at school but I wanted Josh.

One day in May, I was in my room, and my mom came in to tell me that Josh was at the door.

"And he's wearing spandex." She said.

I go to the door and sure enough, there he is, in all his road bike, spandex glory. It was a sight, I tell you.

He asked if I wanted to go for a bike ride. And I remember having to remind myself to breathe. He was everything, everything to me.

After that bike ride we started hanging out again. I turned 17 in June, school let out and we started hanging out even more. We'd talk about marriage but not in the sense that it would be each other we were marrying. But I knew he was the one.

In August, he told me he loved me. Told me were going to get married. He said that on our bike ride in May, after he left my house to ride home, the Lord told him, "that's the girl you're going to marry."

In December we got engaged. And in July of 1998, a month after my 18th birthday, we got married.

So, Erica, there's a really long answer to your questions.