The importance of the other one

It began
in high school.
"I hate you" were some of the first words
Only to be repeated back as if you were a mirror.

We moved on
One with an aspiring poison dart assassin to call her own
One with a somewhat colder mistress who spoke in bits, bytes, and GHz
Or was it MHz at that point?

I lost my assassin
You kept your mistress
One that I would learn to work around.

The winding and tortuous paths crossed
And we found each other in the murky soup of hormones and "indefinite groundings"
And almost lost each
Other to the Beastie Boys and their Girls.

But we made our paths stay together
You sacrificing your weekends to a town that held nothing for the both of us
Continually putting me and your family and friends ahead of your needs
O! Do I feel something serious beginning to develop?

Since then, there has been: 5 marriages, 3 divorces, 1 death, a variety of new and rotating siblings, 9 moves, 1 house, 2 dogs, 2 college degrees, and 4 cats.

You still have your same mistress
I have a new drug
One to rule them all.

That drug committed us both to a life that meant possible change
Every few years.
That drug made previously voiced goals a realization
Only for half of us.

The drug has ravished our lives
But has given us the solidarity to know that
Whatever life throws at us
Our paths are solid enough to laugh at the challenges.

It is mostly because of you

You pushed me when I could no longer pen down the 3 virtues that qualified me to gain entrance

It is your fault that I hold my schooling and goals to higher standards

You are to blame for the support that I get when I am in my fiery pit of ignorance

I hold you responsible for all of those times that my computer was miraculously fixed

And I wonder...

How many other people are as lucky as I am?

Not just lotto lucky, but four-leaf clover lucky!

I chuckle at those that have arguments about Christmas Ham vs. Christmas Turkey
And question why the vows were said
In the first place
Only to be broken at a later date.

Oh other one!
You (and your mistress) are one of the best things that has happened to me!
To those that can't see it, they must be blind
Or shrouded in pessimism.

Thank you for putting faith in my goals
Thank you for putting faith in me
Thank you for understanding
Thank you for putting up with Christmas time
Thank you for making super yummy shrimp
Thank you for re-arranging the bedroom for the eleventeenth time
Thank you for helping my family
Thank you for making family important
Thank you for loving me.
(Oh, and my stupid wireless access point is all fuggered up)