Today the 11th anniversary of the day that J and I first met: Granville Island; the Blue Parrot Café.

Strangely moving to consider that, before that moment there was no J in my life. I had never heard her name before, had never even dreamed of her existence. Or perhaps I had dreamed of her in a general way, as a kind of possibility, a potential. Dreamed of her in the abstract, as one does when trying to visualize just who might fill the partner-sized emptiness in one’s life.

Before. And then after.

After, everything was changed in a fundamental way that was not yet obvious to either one of us. Would not be evident until much later on, looking back from After to that time Before.

11 our lucky number: the two 1’s side by side becoming so much more than if simply added to form 2.

Happy Anniversary my love…