It was summertime, 20 years ago that I met a scrawny Oklahoma boy while working for some friends at a fry stand on a carnival strip in Michigan. By the end of that summer I had promised to marry him. It took two years for him to ask my father for my hand; yet when he did my father had one statement for him: “As long as it’s forever. ” That’s all my dad needed to know. He already knew Joe was a decent fella, and he knew that we loved one another.
16 years ago today we were married in a blooming apple orchard in Wisconsin. My hair hurt, my makeup was awful, my dress was many sizes too big and held together with stickpins, but those things weren’t important. That day, I vowed before God and my loved ones to love my husband until death do us part. We’re not at all the same people we were on that day and marriage has not been everything I expected it to be. In all honesty, it’s been so much bigger than I imagined. The blessing of a happy marriage is an amazing gift. I’ll love you till my dying breath, Aaron Joseph. Thank you for 20 years.
It was summertime, 20 years ago that I met a scrawny Oklahoma boy while working for some friends at a fry stand on a carnival strip in Michigan. By the end of that summer I had promised to marry him. It took two years for him to ask my father for my hand; yet when he did my father had one statement for him: “As long as it’s forever. ” That’s all my dad needed to know. He already knew Joe was a decent fella, and he knew that we loved one another. 
16 years ago today we were married in a blooming apple orchard in Wisconsin. My hair hurt, my makeup was awful, my dress was many sizes too big and held together with stickpins, but those things weren’t important. That day, I vowed before God and my loved ones to love my husband until death do us part. We’re not at all the same people we were on that day and marriage has not been everything I expected it to be. In all honesty, it’s been so much bigger than I imagined. The blessing of a happy marriage is an amazing gift. I’ll love you till my dying breath, Aaron Joseph. Thank you for 20 years.
When you make a conscious decision to marry "the love of your life" and you both really believe that it is a lifelong commitment, life together is sooooo much easier. I didn't say EASY!!! But it is easier to know that this is a relationship you can count on, no matter what. I do think, though, that unless you both count on God as your counselor, your consoler, your conformer ( the one who shapes you), you can be in big trouble. It takes two with the help of God to make a marriage work. When you accept those parameters, the blessings flow. The amazing part is that at times, things that seem like problems, obstacles, and impossibilities become wonderful opportunities for growth and intimacy when God is your partner. Only the Almighty can help each of us see our lifemates as the beautiful persons He has created them to be. It is sooooo much easier than "looking for a way out" or "giving up" on a "lost love." But it does take two plus God....if His guidance and nourishment is not accepted by BOTH man and wife,and unequal commitment can lead to much sadness. I am so pleased to hear that others have found true blessings in their marriages.
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