Here’s a question I get asked from time to time: why, when I write, do I always refer to my beautiful wife as “my beautiful wife”?

And it is something I do deliberately: Here’s an example from Hacker News in 2010; here’s an example from my ‘About Jacob Aldridge’ page; and here’s a recent tweet.

Agree with @tferriss that the opposite of Happiness isn’t Sadness, it’s Boredom. Proud of my beautiful wife who is living that maxim.

— Jacob Aldridge (@jacobaldridge) August 18, 2014

It started, not surprisingly, just after we were married in 2008. Instead of referring to Harmony as my girlfriend, partner, or fiance, I was able to start documenting our new legal status. But I was mindful of the cliches that surround wives in the written word – think Rodney Dangerfield’s comment “Take my wife … please!”

I didn’t want my writing to be a cliche, and I also viewed it as an opportunity to ensure I never took my beautiful wife for granted. If I have to declare how beautiful I find her every single time I write about her, it reminds me of her beauty and her love. Heck, after 6 years it probably counts as my most enduring positive affirmation!

I know, from a reading perspective, that it catches the eye – and not necessarily in a good way. No doubt there are a few examples where I haven’t maintained the convention, sometimes as a slip and sometimes to avoid confusion (I want to make it clear that I love my wife and she is beautiful; not that I love my wife only because she is beautiful).

Next week marks 6 years that we’ve been married – and with apologies to all of our other friends, it still ranks as the best wedding ever. Happy Anniversary my darling, my Harmony, my beautiful wife.

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