Happy Birthday, Ang!

In yesterday’s note, I wrote about how most individuals will be with you for a chapter, or maybe a few, of your life. As you’ve experienced, there are a select few who will be an important part of your Pursuit and will be alongside you for most of the chapters of your life.

There is one person in my life that has already been a major part of the chapters of nearly half of my life—that’s crazy to think about, and she will continue to be an important part of the chapters for the rest of my life. That individual is my wife Ang.

And today is Ang’s birthday and I wanted to use today’s note not only to wish her a happy birthday but to also highlight how the Universe brings people into your life who will help you in your Pursuit, if you allow it to. I didn’t fully realize what the Universe was doing back when we met, but as I look back at our story it is not a coincidence we would meet (twice), fall in love,  start a beautiful family, and write an awesome life story.

I love our origin story.

Whenever I usually share how Ang and I met, I typically start with July 4th, 2003, but our story actually starts back in my freshman year at Franklin College. 

Early in my freshman year I met and started hanging out with a girl from Southport High School. This was not Ang, but it was one of Ang’s longest and closest friends dating back to elementary school. Nothing more than a friendship ever emerged with our mutual friend but I was introduced to this brown-eyed brunette through the pictures on her dorm room wall. I remember Ang always stood out in the photos, I’d ask about her, and eventually, our mutual friend arranged for us to meet when Ang was visiting her at Franklin because she and her boyfriend at the time were “on the rocks”.

Our initial introduction was far from magical–my shyness led me to say maybe two words to her. My chance to charm her was wasted and life went on for both of us.

Fast forward to July 4th, 2003. 

My friends and I were in downtown Indianapolis for the holiday celebration. I vividly remember walking down the street and seeing a group of girls walking toward us. As the group got closer I noticed a brunette with curly hair wearing a white tank top and red skirt leading the way and I kid you not, the rest of the group was blurred out. I didn’t see anyone but her. As my group of friends walked past I saw our mutual friend and it quickly clicked who had caught my attention–it was Ang.

This time the Universe, not our mutual friend, had arranged for an introduction to Ang, and once again my shyness led to a missed opportunity. The night ended and although our paths briefly crossed later that evening, I didn’t get a chance to talk to Ang. In the following days, I kept replaying the walk down the street and seeing Ang, and after going back to our mutual friend, I was able to get Ang’s phone number, finally call her, and the rest is history. I didn’t appreciate how the Universe was looking out for me back then–it brought Ang into my life not once but twice to make sure she ended up as a part of my story. The Universe knew I would need her to live my authentic life.

After nearly 20 years together there are obviously tons of stories I could share but I thought I’d share one of my favorites that highlights how the Universe was working its magic. 

Early in our relationship, we’d often finish each other’s sentences or “telepathically” send each other a word. I’d think of a word and “send” it to her just by looking at her and directing my thoughts toward her. I’d always tell her “great minds think alike”...I had no idea the power of what we were doing as I didn’t know about metaphysics back then but in hindsight, we were operating on the same frequency and the law of attraction was working to strengthen our relationship.

I’m thankful the Universe brought Ang and me together and I’m glad I was able to listen to my heart to go back and get her phone number from our mutual friend. I don’t know how many more opportunities I would have had and I can’t imagine what my Pursuit would have been like without Ang. She is the perfect partner as she has supported me in all of my experimentation, pivoting, ideas, and my journey to align my spirit, mind, and body. Not everyone has a spouse who supports all of their endeavors–I would not be able to live my authentic life without Ang.

Not only is she an amazingly supportive spouse, but Ang is also an inspiring entrepreneur as well. She started an all-boys boutique in 2013–a business that everyone, including the brands she was carrying, told her would fail–and continues to thrive as she helps little guys across the country bring style to their lives. With just $10,000 to get started, never paying a cent in interest, and consistently finding great brands and providing an experience unmatched by other boutiques, she’s grown the store to selling an impressive amount of boys’ clothing each year.

And she has done this as we raise three active and amazing young men.

I know this isn’t the typical Daily Note but I wanted to highlight how not everyone you will encounter on your Pursuit will leave after a few chapters of your life. I also wanted to highlight how important it is to be aware of how you feel about the people who come into your life—I could have very easily ignored the constant thoughts of Ang in July of 2003 and we may have never gone on a first date. Your intuition and heart are your greatest guides but it’s up to you to listen to them. 

I also wanted to find a different way to say Happy Birthday to Ang, one that she might not have expected, and let her know how much I love her, how thankful I am for her support, and how I love the authentic life that we have created together.

So, happy birthday Ang. I hope you have a great day—I’m looking forward to yoga and breakfast together–and I know the boys are excited to celebrate you when they get home from school.

See you tomorrow and keep pursuing,

JC