It’s your typical Sunday afternoon, sitting in their favorite chairs and Dad hands Mom the television remote. Normally, they’d watch one of Dad’s favorite westerns, check the weather, or watch the latest farm news. But not this particular Sunday afternoon.
Dad knew Mom would rather watch one of those sappy Hallmark movies she likes and would need a box of tissues near because they tend to make Mom cry. He never could understand why we women, my mother in particular, like to watch those sappy movies. (You know the ones, the romantic ones where there is always a wedding at the end.)
My mom sits and watches her selected movie with a smile. Her hand rested atop the remote control.
It’s their fifty-first wedding anniversary.
Dad doesn’t know it, but Mom has his favorite meal planned for their special wedding anniversary supper.
It’s just the two of them now. We kids are all out of the house with families of our own. They could go anywhere, choose from a variety of ways to celebrate their wedding anniversary, and they stay home. It’s the one place they feel the most comfortable. It’s the one place they get to spend their time together—alone.
There is great cause to celebrate. They have been married FIFTY-ONE YEARS!
There are not enough marriages left like this anymore.
A marriage takes two people willing to mold into one. We live in such an instant community we no longer have the patience to allow ourselves to mold and shape to our spouses. We want it all now.
For many, we throw out the instructions without bothering to read them because it looks simple enough, right?
Like technology, nurturing your marriage is an evolving process. People change through situations, knowledge, and age. We must always learn from each other, get to know each other again, and stay plugged into each other’s line of communication.
If I have learned anything from my parents over the years, it is that dedication, devotion, and yes sometimes plain stubbornness are what helps make up a good marriage. I pray that one day, my husband and I can celebrate our fifty-first wedding anniversary, too.
You never know, my husband may one day hand me over his video game controller like my dad giving my mom the television remote. Now that would be a true wedding anniversary gift, indeed.
