The Quiet Place -- Oil on Canvas: 24x30

Unlike the stereotypical hapless husband, I do not forget my wedding anniversary, and I am happy to celebrate that momentous event today with my wife of 27 years, Carolyn.

We have been through a lot together -- a bicycle trip through Venezuela and Colombia, during which time we lived in a roofed over alley in the Andes highlands; the birth (two at home) and the raising of four incredible children, all of whom we homeschooled; the building of our modified timberframe house and the living in the barn (six of us) while we built; the foray into grandparenthood; the building of our fine art painting business.

When we first started dating, we were so wretchedly poor that the only way we could afford to go out was to take long, long walks in the countryside. We kept up those walks as the children joined us -- first in a double racing stroller, then on bicycles. Now, on our country property, we take three one-mile rounds everyday, discussing everything from painting to politics.

Although we can now afford more than one cup of all-you-can-drink coffee between the two of us, we treasure the time we spend walking, and talking, together, and are grateful for those days in which we couldn't afford to do anything else.

Original Oil Painting by Steve Henderson of Steve Henderson Fine Art