The Most Life-Altering Decision of my 20s

I realized that writing about the "highlights of my 20s" felt really broad.  What exactly constituted a highlight?  The times I felt happiest?  The times I learned the most?  The most life-changing?  When I did something fun?  

Instead of a top ten list like I originally imagined, I decided to go with the top moments in a few smaller categories.  So obviously the most life-altering decision of not just my 20s but my entire life came when at age 21, I said, "Yes," to marrying Keith Harrison Pugh, Jr.  Nothing in my life would be what it is today without him.  There would be no Ella, no James, and I doubt I'd be living in Tuscaloosa.

James climbed up in my lap while I was editing the above picture, and said, "Da-da!  Mama!"  The people in the picture aren't the same people they are today in a lot of ways.  We didn't know what was before us, and we couldn't imagine our life now.  But...maybe KJ could.  I didn't think about the future much then.  I was living in the moment.  As KJ  was to learn, my idea of planning for the future consisted of, "Hey, let's buy a car!" and going out that week and buying it.  His idea would be to think and plan it all out a little farther in advance.  We balance each other out a bit.

The thing that comes to the forefront of my mind about the decision to marry KJ is that I had no idea how good the gift was that I was getting.  It was a decision that I made trusting and believing that it was God's plan for me, and it has been a better plan than I could ever have imagined...if I had actually sat down and imagined what it would be like, that is.  :)  But truly, from the moment my emotionally-overwhelmed 22-year-old self cried on his shoulder at our bed and breakfast over the sheer overwhelmingness of it all on our wedding night, leaving mascara stains all over his white button-up, and he was all graciousness and comfort, I knew I'd somehow gotten way better than I deserved.  (And don't worry, our wedding night did get better from there.  In my defense, it had been a very long and busy day on very little sleep.)  I'm so thankful for the gracious providence that directed my 21-year-old self to say, "Yes."

And I'm thankful I've spent every birthday of my 20s with KJ Pugh.