Mike . . .
My husband is a software professional who steadily moved up in his field for the last two decades. He's also given me the two most wonderful things in my life: Rebecca and Katie.
Mike was my first reader and his suggestions have been very valuable. Once he saw I was serious about writing and getting published, he has moved heaven and earth to help me realize my dream. There's probably no way I can sufficiently thank him for this, except to make sure he gets equal credit. Whatever success I attain is due largely to the sacrifices he's been willing to make on my behalf. Getting published is difficult enough; doing so without a solid support system has got to be nearly impossible.
In the beginning years of our marriage, Mike had just left the service where he started in his field and was finishing his degree at the local university. By then, he had a full-time job, a wife, and baby daughter, Rebecca. His chosen degree was very difficult and he had to study constantly. We only had one car then, so I dropped him off at work then drove to work myself. Mike had to take the public bus from work to the university for class each day, then rode the bus back to work where I picked him up late at night.
Life was hard then. We were both tired all the time. But it paid off when he graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree. Eight years later, he and his working team submitted a paper to the prestigious World Wide Web Conference (held in Europe that year) and were rewarded with an invitation to present.
Together, we've been able to make Mike's goals a reality, and together we're working on mine. As far as I've been able to tell, that's what marriage is all about. I'm thankful I'm married to someone who is willing to step back a bit so I can move forward because when one of us succeeds, we both do. After all, we're making this journey together. That was part of the deal the day we said, "I do."
There's no Place Like Home
