Getting to know ‘us’ … part .1.

This is ‘US” … Richard Taimalie and Kerri Arthur, both 51 years young. You might be asking yourself, now did we come to ‘be’? Well let’s see;
Like so many other couples before us (like you perhaps?), we had been living very different lives prior to our completely, unpredictable, most definitely unapologetically ‘here and now’.
There was a time before ‘US’ that had somehow inexplicably, intricately navigated us through our vastly different lives, to weave us together into the couple we are today. Definitely not abstract in the making … perhaps we were just always meant to be.

We had relationships, marriages, great times and not so great times, makeups and breakups, mistakes and shakeups. But most of all, from lessons learnt, from people loved, and people we love … we have mountains and oceans of memories to treasure, memories we’ve learnt from, memories that make us smile, memories that pull at our hearts so often stopping us in our tracks with overwhelming sadness. Memories that have shaped each day, each month, each year …. Memories that have taught us to appreciate all the craziness, the good crazy, crappy crazy and the ‘how the hell did that happen?’ surprise crazy, that this life has decided to throw at us. Craziness and memories that shape us, teach us and help carry us through all the madness that makes us each uniqulely ‘US’…

From all of the many of life’s lessons and adventures came the ‘best’ kind of wonderful ‘crazy’ of them all. What you ask? Well they are not ‘what’s’ … they are 4 wonderfully independent, uniquely, perfect children!! Kerri’s sons being Lachlan who is 20 years old, James who is 16 years old, and Richard’s daughters being Uma who is 19 and Alva who is 17 years old. They make us inexplicably proud, they are deeply, unconditionally loved, they are valued for each of the amazingly unique, wonderful, crazy, funny, loving, sweet, quirky, WONDERUL individuals they are! They are Uma, Alva, Lachie and James. They are loved. So deeply loved.

Oh and guess what?!! Before our previous lives, before the relationships, marriages, four gorgeous children and different roads travelled along our lives paths .. we knew each other! Now there’s a ‘crazy’ to add to our list! LOL

Yup, in fact we were born in the same town in Dunedin, New Zealand, born in the same hospital, we met when we were about 10 and 11 years old, we went to the same intermediate school and high school … we grew up with many of the same childhood friends who we still have today. When did we reconnect? We only started talking just over a year ago. We had been good old ‘Facebook’ friends for near on five years. Kerri having lived in Melbourne, Australia for 32 years, Richard having lived here in Sweden for nearly 16 years. Now, just to clear something up for all of the ‘know it all’s who have nothing better to do’ … no we did not have a long going or sordid affair!! (LOL Just putting that to ‘rest’ before, someone decides to run with the headline).
Were we looking for love? Absolutely not … but in its own random, or perhaps not so random way, love completely, amazingly, unapologetically 35 years later, found ‘US’.
R&K xx