My Best Years

Do you yearn for the good ol' days? Do you feel that your best times  are behind you? Or are these your best days right now? Here's my grateful report; a love letter to my wife on the anniversary of our first date..

My Best Years

It's pretty common to hear folks yearnin’
For the “Good Ol’ Days” that have gone by
Or reminiscin’ the “Best Years Of My Life”
By lookin’ back at earlier times with a sigh

Well, my best years started when I met you
My good ol’ days are here and now
Here’s a promise you can take to the bank
I ain’t goin’ nowhere; that’s my vow

Ahh, the mysterious ways of our Lord
Little did I know that on April thirteenth,
My life would be epiphanized by a new friend
By new date one hundred and umpteenth

Sans Souvi Restaurant with detailed plannin’
Get there early and set the stage
How was I to know this would be the start
Of my best life, a new chapter and page

I must have eaten but I've no idea what
While starin' puppy-eyes at adorable you
Then oatmeal cookies dipped in chocolate
The waitress bringin' ‘em out right on cue

Sidewalk strollin' after dinner in a trance
Neither of us wantin' to part
Told you I might as well just surrender
Cuz on that first date you stole my heart

Joy, comfort and peace and calm
Along with the excitement of
A new love and genuine romance
Were knitted on my soul, hand and glove

Life began to be more relaxed
No more searchin' for a date
I quickly began to see with assurance
I had finally arrived at God's fate

Now there was a gentle, feminine vessel
To receive, value and rejoice at my love
You respected and appreciated me
As if I were some gift from above

I had yearned so long for 'The One'
I'd spent my life searchin' for you
Consumed by a compelling drive
When all along God knew!

He had sent us each through the fire
Tempering us both to be prepared
Forged by many heartbreaking experiences
To cling to the "oneness" He had declared

Your love has driven me to be a better man
‘Course I'm still a long trot from the best
But lookin' back over years with you
Your devotion and modeling has aided my quest

Well, it's been many years together now
And I'm fully beginning to own
I've been living the best years of my life
Since that love-seed with you was sown

So thank God and thank you Audie
Finally, I want to declare in the largest font,
These are the best years of my life
There is nothing more on this earth to want

I'm a joyful, blessed and grateful man
Content and excited in my treasured daily trail
I never imagined this contented peace existed
Until you and Jesus lifted the veil

So here’s a re-commitment, my love,
A renewed vow if you will
My ‘yes is yes’, to love, cherish and adore
Just who you are, beyond when time stands still

by Rik Goodell

© 2023 All rights reserved