Quiet Celebration

Yesterday was a quiet day, a wordless day, in fact. If you've been cleaved unto your husband for over four decades (more like forever) like I have, words need not be said.

I think he might have murmured an obligatory "Happy anniversary" upon waking up, and I might have slurred back, "Same to you" in a still sleepy yawn. Other than that, it was all, for me, a quietly intense thanksgiving to the God Who blesses us with the grace of forever marriages that stand the test of life-threatening diseases and mind-altering crises.    

I received many email and text greetings plus shout outs on FB, mostly from younger friends and much younger couples—proof that the younger generation celebrate and look out for a lasting relationship.

To commemorate the occasion (meaning, so I don't forget!) I uploaded yesterday on this site images of hearts, which in many cultures, including ours, represent undying love. I exaggerate—it is symbolic of love, not necessarily undying.

I also changed my header  . . .

to something that reminded me of the huge, pale yellow, long-stemmed roses I used to receive before the undying (forgive me, I'll use this adjective liberally as I please today) love was sealed on  paper.

They don't come anymore (Barbara Streisand sings, "You don't bring me flowers anymore”) simply because they were sold in Chicago where the undying love began and bloomed. 

Yes, after the passing of time, what remains are not necessarily words that are formed with a string of letters, but a life that is marked by peace that passeth our mortal understanding.

Years teach us that undying love cannot be defined. It can be shown through flowers, sweet nothings, surprises, or other feel-good gestures planned and splurged on (oh, those were the days of yore), but most significantly, through the wordless act of believing that marriages are, as God meant them to be, "for as long as we both shall live."

Mark 10:9: "Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.”