Twenty-five years ago today, which would have been a Thursday night, John and friends were having a bachelor party (and the less said about that the better!) while my friends and I celebrated more sedately at the family home of one of my bridesmaids. We were married two days later, on August 12, 1989, which means that we are marking our silver anniversary this week.
Yes, we have been married for a quarter of a century. It sounds even longer when you put it that way, but no matter how you put it, it is an accomplishment, and nowadays it seems like a rare one. John and I both have definite ideas about the importance of marriage and commitment and what has to be done to maintain that, and luckily those are issues we agree about strongly. I told John I would probably be writing a “marriage tips” blog post some time this week, and asked him for his input, and I didn’t disagree with anything he said.
Sometimes it seems like it’s been more like half a century, and sometimes it feels like we were married yesterday. No one going in truly understands what “for better, for worse,” really means. Like everyone, we’ve had joy and sorrow, bitter arguments and harmonious agreement. There have been long stretches when we couldn’t stand each other, when love was something we DID, not something we FELT.
You love your kids unconditionally from the moment of their birth. That’s biology. Loving the person you are married to is a decision and a commitment that you must renew every day. You might know that intellectually when you get married, especially if you’ve been lucky enough to undergo some kind of marriage preparation, but you can’t and won’t understand what that’s like until you are in the middle of it.
I vividly remember saying to John, when we had been dating all of six months, that it didn’t seem like enough just to SAY “I love you,” anymore: I wanted to LIVE it. That’s what marriage is, and we didn’t know how hard, or how rewarding, it would be. Those romantic early days were wonderful. I love remembering them. And I’m happy to say that we still like romance and spending time together and that spark has never gone out. But love sustained and nurtured over twenty-five years is stronger and richer and deeper and profound in ways we could not have understood back then.
John and I were only 22 and 23 when we took this life-altering step, when we yoked ourselves together forever. We were young and we didn’t know a lot of things but we knew that we believed in marriage and that no matter what happened we would not break the vows we made.
Just see how young we were:
And we were surrounded by friends who were just as young, almost all of whom are still important parts of our lives:
And of course by family, many of whom are gone now:
Emily and I were talking yesterday about why Catholic wedding ceremonies are supposed to take place inside a church. I’ve been to some lovely outdoor weddings but as I sat this morning at Mass I was thinking how grateful I was that I still attend church every Sunday in the building where my parents were married, where I was baptized, were we were married, where four of our kids were baptized and two have been confirmed. That’s a blessing.
We haven’t decided yet exactly how we will celebrate on Tuesday. There probably won’t be dancing:
But there may be cake!
Wing to Wing, Oar to Oar
Hey, I think you SHOULD dance! As always, such a heartfelt, honest post. Spot on about the ebbs and flows in marriage. Happy, Happy Anniversary, my friend! Here’s to 25 more!
Thank you! I’m thinking the next 25 will be easier. 🙂
Happy Anniversary! Love the post.
Thank you so much!
Happy Anniversary! We can completely understand how 25 years seem to go by in a moment. What a gift from God! We love you!
Thank you, Marilyn. We love you too. 🙂
Happy anniversary! We hit 25 next year ourselves. I completely agree about the commitment and growth of love, through the ups and downs. When you meet the tight person and you’re both ready, there’s a lot to be said for marrying young. I was 23 and Tom was 22. There’s so much you can’t imagine in advance. But with love, and Gods grace, we are stronger together than alone.
Thank you. And I agree with you about marrying young. Once you are sure, why waste time?
You have such a wonderful story together! Congratulations on your blessed marriage!
Thank you!!
Congratulations on this romantic achievement!
Thanks, Krista!
Congratulations on your marriage! I am approaching 15 years myself, and I often look around at my life wondering how I got so lucky. You have a lovely perspective, so here’s to another 25 years of marital bliss! Stopping by from the Skinny Latte Link Up!
Thanks, Whitney, and congratulations to you too!
Live your love. I like that – and it is this which probably has kept your marriage strong for so many years.
Thanks, Colline! I think so too.
Happy Anniversary!
Thanks, Heather!
Happy anniversary! This piece really resonated with me, especially “Loving the person you are married to is a decision and a commitment that you must renew every day.” I shared it on my blog’s FB page. 🙂
Loved this post — and the photos! Thank you for sharing it with me and letting me include it in my Anniversary Round-Up Series!
Thank YOU for letting me be a part of it!