Shake Off the Dust

My poor bouquet.

A deep cleaning session resulted in a few treasured finds. One of which was my wedding bouquet. The lavender and blue flowers so caked with dust you could hardly distinguish their color anymore.

Saddened that my precious items had gotten so shuffled around during our rushed move, I coddled the rumpled flowers. With care, I rearranged the crushed leaves.

Then, taking the flowers to the sink, I shook off as much dust as I could and gently washed away the grime.

As I washed the flowers clean, I reminisced about my wedding day,

remembering the flutters that wouldn’t settle in my belly as I waited for those doors to open and the music to float me down the aisle to my husband-to-be.

The memories of those early days washed over me as I examined the damp flowers I now held in my hand. The recollection of our young love forced me to wonder about my marriage today.

Are things like busy days and hectic moves accumulating dust on my love? Had I grown distant, lost in the pile of keepsakes?

Taking a genuine look, I tried to remember the last love-felt thing I had done for my husband. Not something that started out as a sweet gesture and now was just habit and routine.

When was the last time I took pleasure in doing something for him to show him my love and strove to maintain my relationship?

Placing the bouquet in a fresh vase, I put them on my desk where I could look at them every day, putting it in front of me as a reminder that even the strongest love needs nurturing.

I realized I needed to do this with my marriage. I needed to put forth an effort to clear away some of the dust and neglect.

My grandmother once said, “A good marriage doesn’t just happen; it takes work. You have to work hard at it.”

And she was right. Any good relationship takes work.

Determined to work hard on cultivating my marriage, I wondered if I was working on my relationship with God? Was I allowing it to gather dust, just like I did those flowers?

Are my prayers to heaven habitual? Am I just taking for granted that God is there on standby when I need him, but not putting forth the effort to maintain a good relationship with Him?

Saying a prayer of forgiveness for the neglect I had shown my spiritual relationship, I took my Bible off the shelf and wiped the dust from its cover. Tearfully, I placed a kiss on the gold lettering and set it beside my bouquet. I vowed to make more of an effort at my earthly and heavenly love.

It’s not okay to let dust gather on something we once prized above most everything else. Sometimes, we just need to remember why we got married in the first place. Sometimes, we need to remember why we had children and built a home and a life together.

We need to remember our first love. The love we have for God and the love He has for us. Sometimes, we just need reminding to shake off the dust.