Why I Need My Best Friend (And He Needs Me)

It's an unbelievably beautiful experience to live with your best friend. To know them better than anyone else. To trust them more than anyone else. To entrust them with more than you could ever have imagined entrusting anyone with anything. To believe in them and love them even when things are harder than hard. To rejoice with them when things are more magnificent than you could have ever dreamed.

He takes care of me even when he doesn't have to. Some might refer to this as 'spoiling', but spoiling makes me think of vegetables covered in mold, so let's not go there. My best friend knows when I need gentle kind words, but also when I need a kick in the pants. Usually it's a kick in the pants. He tailors his day around making me smile and feel safe, even though I didn't ask him to do any of this.

He praises me for achievements & encourages me.
You see, I like working out. But since I married my best friend, I've been going crazy with workouts- not because I suddenly have all this energy, free time, and human growth hormones. No. It's because I have someone who praises me when I accomplish what I set out to do and encourages me to keep getting better. However, it's not just about workouts. This applies to cleaning the house, making breakfast, teaching martial arts, the way I interact with others, etc etc. My best friend keeps me improving because I want to make him proud.

He works hard for not just himself, but both of us.
Be it sick or healthy, my best friend puts forth his best efforts because he is not just working for himself, but for me as well. He works because he loves me. Together, we are building our future.

He makes me happy even when things are hard.
This first year of marriage has involved moving so many times, uncertainty for the future, where we will be even 3 months from now, and so much more. His sense of humor, faith, and passion for being optimistic and hilarious at all times is a thousand times more brilliant than anything that glitters.

He is a visionary like me.
He doesn't view marriage as a union that involves squabbles, poverty, 10 zillion babies right off the pop, a diamond ring, and a box of polaroids from the wedding to be hung wall to wall. He challenges my thinking about everything and makes me realize so many things in our culture don't have to be the way they are. My best friend believes in being different. So do I.

I need my best friend. He needs me. And that's what is so beautiful about marriage.