To commemorate the 13th anniversary of her marriage to late navy SEAL Chris Kyle, his widow, Taya, took to Facebook this week to pen a now viral love letter.
“Today, I have a choice. I can bury myself under the covers and acknowledge the pain of missing you and mourn the future anniversaries without you,” Taya Kyle wrote. “Or, I can celebrate never having a day without you in my heart because you loved me enough to leave me a lifetime of memories and beauty.”
Fatally shot at a Texas gun range in 2013, Kyle was recently portrayed by actor Bradley Cooper in the Clint Eastwood directed biopic American Sniper. The film helped viewers connect with the legacy of the larger than life figure, but his loving bride celebrates him in a more intimate way, especially this week.
“Today, I am thinking of our new relationship, when you rented a boutique hotel room in San Diego and surprised me with 2 dozen long stem pink roses when we arrived,” Taya continued. “You got us tickets to a local improv type play. I knew then I was the luckiest girl in the world to be with tough, romantic, loving you.”
“I am thinking of November 2012 when you sent me a dozen long stem red roses with a card that said ‘Just Because’ and how you had them delivered even though we were home together that day. You just wanted to surprise me. You did and it made my day like you made so many others,” she recalled.
In closing, Taya wrote to Chris that he will remain the love of her life and her muse for a better tomorrow: “And if I didn’t tell you enough in life, then let me tell you today… YOU Chris Kyle, are IT for me. YOU are the package deal who makes hanging on worth it.”
“I loved you yesterday, I love you now, and I will love you all the days of my life,” she wrote.
Read the full letter here.