Day 16 - 20 Lines in 20 Days

I am so sorry you feel so bad today. It is a lousy way for yo to end a vacation you seemed to be enjoying so much. Smile sweetie, I'll do everything I can to make the rest better for you.

We are officially in the top 5 and the poem hits a few bumps in the road from here. It wasn't my intent by the list/poem had some rules it had to follow. Like a few of the songs HAD to be within the last few days. At this point I think it is only fair to tell you that this "20 Day Poem" wasn't my original intent for our anniversary. I had planned on taking the first tape I ever made you and converting it to a playlist for your MP3 player. So one day I stood in the basement with your tape. I played the whole thing (fast forwarded actually) on that stereo on the table in the back (you never noticed that I didn't put the extension cord away). Wrote down every song and started my quest to find each song. It is the "second" reason I had to buy that album converter thing. However, I realized during the process that there were many songs on that tape that just aren't as fitting as our 20 years warrants. So that idea morphed into the blog entries you have been reading for the past few weeks. Frankly, the new idea was better and more thoughtful anyway.

Today's entry is a result of that tape. As I stood in the basement it is one of two songs I listened to end to end (no fast forwarding). I was so struck by the lyrics and how perfectly they fit our near 20 years together. It is an amazing love song. Sung so powerfully by an amazing voice. If I were to have converted this list into a tape, i think it is also one of the few songs you would actually listen to regularly.

The song is "Just Because" by Anita Baker. Verse after verse of how the love she found changed her life. Verse after verse of how the love she found amazes her. Verse after verse of how much the love she found means to her. The song is simply amazing. Here is an example:

"You're a diamond in my mind, a treasure found
A precious gem to me, you're nice to have around
I'm so glad I took the path that led to this
And it's amazin', loving you, I'm doin' things
I never thought I'd do
I don't know, there ain't no explanation
Of why I'm sharin' love at last this way
I won't try to work out all my reasons
I'll use these words to simply say

I love you just because
I love you just because
Just because I do, my darlin'
Emotions more than words can help me say
I love you, baby, just because you're you"

I don't really need to add much more to this entry than to give you the line that I chose from this song. "Love this strong, it just brings out the passion - I never knew was here in me". It is so true my love. Just Because of you I found a part of me that was never there before. Just Because of you I found true happiness. I don't talk much about the me before you, because frankly it isn't as important as the me after you.

You're the world to me. I love you more than anything in the world.