Many of you may know that Kristen and I have been close friends for many years. I have known her since she was a little girl, and we have always been there for each other through thick and thin. She is a stunning woman, the loves of my life, and someone I cherish dearly. Besides being my friend, Kristen is also my agent. When it comes to my career, she has championed my work and fought for me against all odds. She is my wife’s best friend and someone who has helped me to become the man I am today. More importantly, she has always been there for me emotionally as a friend. Although our relationship has always been special, it has not always been easy. It takes a lot of trust, which I believe we both have and always will have in each other.
Romantic Tensions
Looking back, I can’t believe that just a few years ago, everybody was so surprised by our whirlwind romance. We fell in love at first sight, and it was all quite romantic. We started seeing each other shortly after meeting at Kristen’s 21st birthday party. At the time, everybody was talking about how great it was that two such great friends had found such a special connection. In fact, my dad even went so far as to say that he was proud of us both for being so mature and responsible. While I appreciated the sentiment, at the time I really didn’t feel that way. I felt scared and insecure, especially since this was a whole other world for me. I knew nothing about her family or her friends. Not even her name! She had been keeping this big secret from me, and I didn’t know how to handle it. The truth is, before I even met Kristen, I already had a family. I was close to my grandparents, and they had helped me to become a man. When I first met Kristen, I had to check myself to see if I really wanted to do this. It took some time, but eventually I did, and we’ve been together ever since. We are happy and in love, and I couldn’t ask for anything more.
Family Matters
Since we were kids, Kristen and I have always been close. She is the sister I never had and the best friend I could ever ask for. We grew up together and have known each other our whole lives. She is the person I go to when I need help with anything and the person I trust implicitly. Even after we were married, we still kept in touch through letters. As time went on, our contact increased, and suddenly everybody was writing us letters. At first it was nice, but eventually it became too much. We stopped answering the letters, and only when we ran out of stamps did we realize how much mail we had accrued. I don’t know if it’s just because we’re famous, but people seem to think that we’re better friends now than we’ve ever been before. We just laugh about it because we know it’s true.
Physical Changes
You may also know that Kristen and I have had a rocky road as far as our relationship is concerned. We’ve fought a lot, both physically and verbally. It’s no secret that I have been somewhat of a workaholic; I’ve always had a lot of responsibility at work, especially since my dad’s illness forced him to step in and help out more. In the past, this wouldn’t have been a problem, but the stress of keeping up with work and taking care of my family became too much. We started having problems with sleeping and eating, and I gained a lot of weight. After our second son was born, we decided to get help. We saw a specialist who prescribed me medication, which helped for a little while. Over the years, I’ve tried to wean myself off of the medication, but I always go back on it because, well, my doctor knows me better than anyone else and knows that I’ll never be able to function normally without it. Some of the medication caused my hands to shake, and this scared my wife because she couldn’t read my letters or play cards with me if I had tremors. This, of course, is a source of great embarrassment for me, as I’m sure you can imagine. In the last few years, however, things have changed for the better. We started sleeping again without the aid of medication and were able to reduce our visits to the doctor. Our health is something we’ve started working on together, and we’ve made a lot of progress. My weight is now near what it was before we got married, and my hands aren’t shaking anymore. We are, however, still working on getting off the medication entirely. Like I said, it’s a process. My wife is doing everything in her power to help me get well, and I could not be more grateful.
This is just a small sample of what our bodies have gone through. As you can see, we’ve been through a lot, but we’ve come out stronger on the other side. We’ll continue to work hard and be a positive influence in our sons’ lives. Nobody deserves to be sick or disabled, and I want my boys to feel empowered and help others as much as possible. This is something I’ve learned from my wife and her family, and it’s a lesson I’ll never forget. It’s great to have a family and a wife that you love and trust, but it also means you have more work to do. Being a good husband and a good father takes a lot of effort, and I’m glad I’m up for the challenge.