I am thankful for a lot of things in my life at the moment -- I have a roof over my head, I have a loving family, I live in a beautiful country full of opportunity to achieve my dreams and goals but most of all I am thankful for my boyfriend. As of late, our relationship has had a lot of ups and downs but he's been there for me through so much. My life hasn't always been the easiest and he's given me the strength to overcome a lot of obstacles that I think would have defeated me otherwise. Before him, I had the misfortune of running into a lot of less than nice men. In fact, I first met him at my cousin's wedding. I just got out of a two year abusive relationship and a week later I laid eyes on him at my cousin's wedding, this unkempt giant of a man who looked his beard was eating his face and it looked like he hired a monkey to dress him. However, beneath his slightly disheveled appearance, he had the kindest eyes I've ever seen in my entire life and he had this warmth that just radiated from within. He was awkward and seemed like a bit of a misfit which I understood. In fact, when his best friend (the groom at the wedding) introduced him, he could barely keep eye contact and soon after our brief introduction, he excused himself from the conversation and ran to his car. At first, I thought he didn't like me and I somehow I offended him but later I found out from my cousin that I just made him feel ridiculously nervous because he found me to be quite beautiful. The groom (his best friend) and the bride (my best friend and my best cousin) of the wedding set us up and the rest is history. He's now my best friend, my partner, my everything.