My Time with Kris

I experienced the greatest joy and the greatest pain of my life during the two years I spent with Kris. She taught me that I was fully capable of loving deeply and unconditionally, that I was fully capable of making a lifelong commitment to another person, and that I was able to give freely of myself to my relationship. And then she taught me that no matter how much of myself I commit to the relationship, there will always be some things that I can't overcome.

Vocal members of Kris' family disapproved of me, and they made no secret of their desire that the marriage fail. I would call acting on that desire unloving and irresponsible, but it would not be right for me to judge them against my own values.

Before we were married, Kris and I vacationed in Albuquerque and visited my brother Joe and his family. On the way home, we stopped off at Arches National Park. The device in this photo provides line-of-sight direction to a number of interesting geologic formations within the park. It's pretty simple, really. Rotate the tube until it fits into a specific notch in the shroud, then look through it. The notch sets direction and elevation so that you will see the geologic formation identified on the shroud when you look through the tube. It's kinda like looking through a telescope, but without the lenses.

Everybody should have their picture made at Wilson Arch at least once. It may be the most photographed geologic formation in the world that is not in a park. In fact, Wilson Arch is on the highway between Moab and Monticello, Utah, and its only facilities are a sign and a trash can. At some times of the year, the state sets a portable toilet up, but it's only a couple of miles down the road to a permanent rest area. Other natural arches in the sandstone are visible from the highway, but only Wilson Arch is close enough to the road to be an attraction.

Kris and I flew to Dallas in September and drove a rented car up to a resort in Oklahoma for a reunion with my college fraternity brothers. Kris connected with Melody Kincade, who remained her friend until the final madness caused Kristinia to reject any and all things associated with me. Melody is in the back row, second from the right, and her husband Chuck is at the far right, in the white shirt with blue accents. Shortly after we returned from the reunion, Kris began moving in with me.

We entertained my daughter Wynne and her husband Garret at Christmas. This huge package disguised a digital camera amid many pages of wadded-up newspaper. We tried to cook a Christmas goose using instructions we found on the Internet, but we failed miserably. (Well, maybe the biggest failure was my attempt at carving our cooked goose.) Even with the botched dinner, it was still the best Christmas I have had in many years.

Kris and I married on March 19, after driving to Lewiston, Idaho. This photo was taken by Kent Merica, the Nez Perce County magistrate who performed the ceremony. We stopped at the excellent Patit Creek Restaurant in Dayton for dinner on the way home. In retrospect, I can honestly say it was the happiest day of my life.

After a short honeymoon on the Olympic peninsula and the Washington coast, we hired a guide and floated the Yakima River canyon between Ellensburg and Yakima. Driving the canyon along the river is always enjoyable, but floating the river in a boat brings on a completely different kind of peace--especially if somebody else is responsible for keeping the boat out of trouble. Nobody caught any fish, but it was still a very pleasant afternoon on the water.

We took another vacation trip to Albuquerque in October. Kris was part of the family this time, and Joe's small children Patrick and Ali took to her as Aunt Kristie immediately. I wish Kris' family had accepted me as willingly as my family accepted her.

We got a puppy in March as our anniversary gift to each other. This is Jake, and he quickly became the darling of the house. Unfortunately, Kris transferred much of her love for me onto Jake, and we lost the goodness that we had had. Kris took him with her when she left, and I never saw him again.