Kristianne and Mark Hurlbert have been married for over 20 years, although the past eight years haven't been an easy ride for either of them: The day before her 35th birthday, Kristianne was diagnosed with avascular necrosis, also known as "bone death," in both of her hips.
It took years for Kristianne to even find a doctor who would treat her and when she did, that meant tons of surgeries and blood transfusions. Eventually Kristianne was in crutches for years on end. She was unable to walk, to work, to cook or clean, to even shower herself.
Everyday tasks became a constant struggle but there was one person who was always there for her: Mark. Still, Kristianne constantly feared that he would leave her.
It wasn't until she recently slipped in the shower that she realized Mark was really never going to abandon her.
That's when she got an idea to nominate him for her local raditio station KDSS's "Angel in Disguise" award. The prize is nominated to someone, "for lifting someone to their feet when their wings were having trouble learning to fly."
She wrote a beautiful letter about Mark's devotion. It reminds me of when WWII Veteran Bill Moore read the long lost love letters his wife had written to him and teared up.
It's truly wonderful to see what real love looks like when it isn't in its puppy dog state, but rather when its been nurtured and tested by time.
Read Kristianne's letter below (ideally with some tissues nearby).
Mark and Kristianne Hurlbert have been married for 20 years. However, they haven't anything close to a vacation in 10 years and for the last 8 years Kristianne has been battling avascular necrosis or "bone death."
Kristianna feared that with her dwindling help, Mark would leave her. But Mark never left, never stopped taking care of her, and never stopped loving her.
It wasn't until recently, when she slipped in the shower and he came to help, that she knew Mark would always be by her side. She wrote him this letter to nominate him for an "Angel in Disguise" award.
"Before I passed out [in the shower], while he was holding me up, I watched my husband begging me not to do this to him again, begging me to stay awake. And I will never forget the look in his eyes. He was so scared, so vulnerable, and at the same time so strong.
It broke my heart, that look in his eyes. I realized he wasn’t going anywhere, he was my angel and he would never leave me— even if I messed up a 'no doctors, no hospital weekend.'”
“I was scared he would get tired or have enough of it. I was scared he would leave, terrified actually of that. He never gave me any reason to feel this way but when your once healthy body goes to heck on you things go through your mind and that was my biggest worry. That was more scary to me than a hundred hip surgeries…
Why is he still here? I had so much physical pain but he had to have so much more emotional pain to watch me go from a once happy, healthy wife to almost dying more than once. And once right in front of him and two of our kids.”
"My angel has given me strength that I didn’t know I had. He has carried me through more than fifteen surgeries and tons of procedures; carried me through the hardest parts of our lives. He has stayed by my side even when I told him to run. He is loyal, loving, and strong. I honestly don’t think I’d be here today now if not for him…
There he was again. Right by my side. I remember the very first time I met his three sisters. They said to me, ‘Thanks for saving our brother.’ But they were wrong. He saved me.”
Wow! See Mark accept his award and hear Kristianne's full letter in the video below!
I think it's clear that when Mark vowed "in sickness and in health," he truly meant it.
Please SHARE if you think Mark's compassion and devotion to his wife is what love really looks like!
