‘I was carrying VHS tapes when I noticed a boy staring at me curiously. ‘Umm..’ he finally said, ‘Is there a reason you don’t just carry the whole box?’: Woman recalls first time meeting husband

“It was 1988, and I was working after school at my family’s little mom-and-pop video store.

My mother had instructed me to ‘train the new kid’ she recently hired, who was starting that afternoon.

I’m sure I rolled my eyes at this task, because that’s just the kind of teenage girl I was.

I was retrieving VHS tapes from the drop box at the front of the store, and carrying them four at a time to the inventory shelves in the back, when the new boy walked in.

He was tall, with a wild mop of curly hair. Something about him seemed…familiar.

We introduced ourselves, and as I continued carrying the VHS tapes a few at a time across the store, I noticed him staring at me curiously.

‘Umm…’ he finally said, ‘Is there a reason you don’t just carry the whole box to the back?’

I stopped in my tracks. OMG. I was a moron.

Why DIDN’T I just carry the whole box?? It had just never occurred to me.

So embarrassing. I laughed and looked at this boy like he was some kind of genius.

That was the first of many laughs we would share at the video store. And I knew I liked him on that very first day.

What I didn’t know is my future son would be his little clone.

I didn’t know my daughters would have his thick, wavy hair.

I didn’t know he would be my saving grace through the loss of beloved family members.

I didn’t know he would be the one by my side through three excruciating pregnancies that left me bedridden for months on end.

I didn’t know we would travel the world together.

I didn’t know he would be the one supporting me through every crazy idea I’ve ever had.

I didn’t know he would still be my best friend 32 years later.

And I didn’t know today we would be celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary in the midst of a worldwide pandemic.

Has it been perfect these last 25 years? Of course not. Relationships never are.

I want to kill him when he snores, and he literally can’t find anything that’s right in front of his face.

Also, he thinks he’s funnier than me. The nerve. Well, okay, he MIGHT be.

He puts up with my nagging, my absent-mindedness, and my crazy Italian family, who love him dearly.

Yes, I didn’t know a lot of things back in 1988. But I know I picked the right guy.

And that is something I don’t tell him often enough. So to my husband…thank you for all the love and all the laughs – here’s to 25 more.”

This story was submitted to Love What Matters by I Might Be Funny and originally appeared here. You can follow their journey on Facebook and their website. Submit your own story here, and be sure to subscribe to our free email newsletter for our best stories, and YouTube for our best videos.

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