Mother’s Day Ode to my Partner

This photo could speak volumes for me. The amazing woman in this picture is Tanae Nelson, and we got married almost 16 years ago. In those nearly 16 years we have had crazy adventures to South America and Europe. We spent countless nights sleeping on the ground, in tents and generally vagabonding around the western US. We shared pow days and icy days as we snowboarded and grew together. She worked while I went to school. We got a dog, then we had kids.Adding kids to the equation changed things. Tanae became a mom, and she excelled at it. Perfect, no, but incredible, yes! She handles the stresses of family life with grace and serenity. She is way better at being a parent than me.Tanae as a mom and my own mother, have a lot in common. Both have been unrelenting in their support of my and my efforts to achieve my dreams. Both have laid awake at night wondering if I'm ok as I run, climb, or whatever on some trip on the other side of the planet. Both have made my life better as they love and nurture me. Moms sure are awesome, and really should be celebrated everyday, not just on Mother's Day.The reason I shared the picture at the top of this post is the reminder of the adventurous woman I fell I love with and have loved for over a decade. It's not easy to keep a relationship functional, and we had had our fair share of tough times. But this, this moment of Tanae riding a camel in Namibia, a trip she took solo to meet her friend, reminds me that regardless of how hard it is to make it through the day, that this amazing soul has my back and I have hers. And well, that means we can make it though any day.