James Van Der Beek’s wife Kimberly is sharing her birthday wishes for the actor as he turns 48.
On Saturday, March 8, Kimberly posted a touching message on Instagram, detailing her hopes for her husband for the year ahead.
Alongside a series of candid photos of James with his wife and one of the couple’s six children, she began: “Happy Birthday @vanderjames. May our hearts continue to dance together for many many many many more more birthdays. You are a treasure. I feel like the luckiest lady in the world to be married to you.”
She continued: “May this year bring you so much laughter, dancing, deepening connection with God, exceptional health and exquisite beauty all around – plus of course – family snuggles, sunrises, sunsets, play and restorative rest.”
Kimberly’s wish for “exceptional health” is seemingly a nod to James’ cancer journey. Back in November, the actor revealed exclusively to PEOPLE that he had been diagnosed with colorectal cancer and was “taking steps to resolve it, with the support of my incredible family.”
“There’s reason for optimism, and I’m feeling good,” he added at the time.
On Saturday, James shared an Instagram post of his own to mark his birthday. In a short video — which he captioned, “What I got from my 48th trip around the sun” — the Varsity Blues star speaks directly to the camera and begins, “It’s my birthday, and it has been the hardest year of my life. And I wanted to share something that I learned with y’all.”
He went on to speak about the ways he used to define himself, first as an actor, then as a husband and then as a father, a title he described as “the ultimate.”
“For a long time, that felt like a really good definition to the question, who am I?” James said of being a dad. “And then this year, I had to look my own mortality in the eye. I had to come nose-to-nose with death. And all of those definitions that I cared so deeply about were stripped from me.”
Kimberly Van Der Beek/Instagram
He explained that while he was away from his home and family for treatment, he could no longer be fully present in his role as husband, father and provider. So he found himself intensely grappling with the question, “What am I?”
“And I meditated and the answer came through: I am worthy of God’s love, simply because I exist,” James shared, noting that he came to “the revelation” with the help of all of the prayers and messages of support he received from fans and therefore wanted to pass it on.
In addition to the support of his fans, James also has had Kimberly by his side. During an interview with Robin Roberts on Good Morning America in December, he opened up about how his wife has supported him in the wake of his difficult diagnosis.
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
“She’s been amazing,” he told Roberts of Kimberly. “She’s really taught me what unconditional love is.”
“I’m someone who has always in the past tried to do everything for everybody and never asked for help myself and this has put me in a position of having to ask for help but having to receive help,” James continued. “And the beautiful blessing of that has been seeing how many people in my life have shown up.”
The actor once again praised his wife for her love and support in a sweet Valentine’s Day post on Instagram on Feb. 14.
“I remember our first #valentinesday… waking up early in that apartment in New York to quietly dec it out with cheap drugstore decorations I’d bought,” James wrote in the caption. “All I wanted to do was take care of you. I never once thought there’d come a time when I’d need you to take care of me. But have you ever.”
“I’d like to say I chose my Valentine wisely. But I didn’t have any choice,” he continued. “I was a goner from the moment you interrupted me mid-sentence telling a friend I was ready to meet the real deal.”
James concluded the heartfelt post: “@vanderkimberly thank you for being on this Earth. Thank you for sticking by me. And thank you for being a guiding light in the lives of everyone lucky enough to know you. I’ll fall for you a million times over. Happy Valentine’s Day.”
Read the full article here
