More than 30 years ago, in response to a personal ad in the August 1992 Ruralite, romance blossomed.
As a truck driver, I had little opportunity to date, let alone find a wife. Since another family member found true love and married a gentleman through Ruralite personals, maybe there was a young lady for me to write to as well.
I began writing to X38—Emily—and was instantly smitten. Emily included a beautiful photo, which I quickly attached to the dash of my semitruck. I dreamed about marrying her.
After nine months of writing, phone calls and flights back and forth, we were happily married in May 1993 in Bonners Ferry, Idaho. After honeymooning on the Oregon Coast, we settled down in Harrisburg, Oregon, to raise a family.
By 2019, the children were grown and on their own, so we sold our house and moved back to north Idaho to be closer to family and friends. We waited four years until the home of our dreams went up for sale—the house my wife grew up in and that her father built. We moved into our house in May 2023, exactly 30 years to the day after we married. It was amazing to see how God answered my prayers for a wonderful wife and, 30 years later, answered our prayers for a house to buy that has so many fond memories for us.
Take it from us: The old-fashioned way of writing letters and waiting for a response is the best way to find a mate. It lets love simmer into something beautiful.