Reason #877
We celebrated my grandmother's birthday tonight. I am always grateful for another year with family! Every birthday is certainly a blessing, and we've been fortunate to celebrate many.
A couple of months ago, my grandmother lost her wedding ring. She searched high and low for it, but it has yet to be found. Well, it may have been found but by someone else. Anyway, losing a wedding ring is a pretty devastating thing for a lot of reasons. Mostly, it's the sentimental value. That's the one piece of jewelry that really makes a statement. It tells people a significant piece of information about you without them having to ask. When you wear a wedding ring the world knows you are taken, and that's a feeling that is irreplaceable.
After dinner, Grandmother sat down to open her gifts. My family is in the card giving business, and not only that, we're all into note writing. My mom strategically organized the cards for her to open, and Grandmother read through each card with care. She got to the last card, and I figured it had to be something big since it was on the bottom. Inside was a "coupon" from my granddad. It read "good for a new wedding band set." She was surprised, and I was impressed at his romantic gesture. Every woman needs a wedding ring, and I thought it was the perfect gift.
My grandparents have been married for over 60 years now. Obviously, they're good and married. They don't need to wear wedding rings to prove it. But no matter how long you've been married, you want people to know, right? After all, they are a part of you. Two become one. And so a wedding ring says a lot. A wedding ring means a lot. And I thought about my marriage to Aaron. My one year compared to their 60 years. I thought about my wedding ring, about what it really, really, really means, and I realized how fortunate I am to have a husband who, even if he didn't wear a wedding ring, would still obviously be married.
We spent the majority of our time together this week while in Guatemala. Occasionally, we'd split up to do different things, but we were never apart for too long. The first night we were there, I sat next to a girl I had briefly met the day before. She was about my age, and I only knew her name. We started talking and I began to ask her questions about what she did and where she was from. When I was done with the usual get to know you questions she said, "Now your husband was telling me that you work for a bank." It is sentences like those that make me appreciate Aaron so much. Most people probably wouldn't think a thing about that sentence. Most people wouldn't bat an eye at such a statement. But anyone that meets Aaron, no matter what gender they are, what they look like, or how old they are, finds out he is married to me within the first few minutes of introductions. He is quick to tell everyone about me, to let them know we're married, and I couldn't be more grateful for a husband who is proud to let the world know that I am his.
My granddad feels the same way, too. Everyone that knows him knows he is married. Everyone that knows my grandmother knows she is married. But he wants the people who don't know her to know that piece of information as well. To know she is off the market, and so is he. And what a blessing it is to have a husband like that. A husband who never ever takes off his wedding band or drops the role he has committed to. A husband who claims you as his own and announces it to the world with pride and joy through his word and actions. A husband who lives a life so that there are no questions asked. Who meant 'til death do us part' when he slid that ring on your finger, and death is the only thing that will ever take that ring off.
Good men run in my family, and I praise the Lord that He has been faithful to add them. For men of honor, integrity, and morality. Thank you for valuing us. Thank you for sticking through life with us. And whether or not we end up with the wedding ring we started out with isn't near as important as the fact that we get to end up with you!
#877 - For the blessing of being obviously married.
"Give honor to marriage, and remain faithful to one another in marriage." - Hebrews 13:4
A couple of months ago, my grandmother lost her wedding ring. She searched high and low for it, but it has yet to be found. Well, it may have been found but by someone else. Anyway, losing a wedding ring is a pretty devastating thing for a lot of reasons. Mostly, it's the sentimental value. That's the one piece of jewelry that really makes a statement. It tells people a significant piece of information about you without them having to ask. When you wear a wedding ring the world knows you are taken, and that's a feeling that is irreplaceable.
After dinner, Grandmother sat down to open her gifts. My family is in the card giving business, and not only that, we're all into note writing. My mom strategically organized the cards for her to open, and Grandmother read through each card with care. She got to the last card, and I figured it had to be something big since it was on the bottom. Inside was a "coupon" from my granddad. It read "good for a new wedding band set." She was surprised, and I was impressed at his romantic gesture. Every woman needs a wedding ring, and I thought it was the perfect gift.
My grandparents have been married for over 60 years now. Obviously, they're good and married. They don't need to wear wedding rings to prove it. But no matter how long you've been married, you want people to know, right? After all, they are a part of you. Two become one. And so a wedding ring says a lot. A wedding ring means a lot. And I thought about my marriage to Aaron. My one year compared to their 60 years. I thought about my wedding ring, about what it really, really, really means, and I realized how fortunate I am to have a husband who, even if he didn't wear a wedding ring, would still obviously be married.
We spent the majority of our time together this week while in Guatemala. Occasionally, we'd split up to do different things, but we were never apart for too long. The first night we were there, I sat next to a girl I had briefly met the day before. She was about my age, and I only knew her name. We started talking and I began to ask her questions about what she did and where she was from. When I was done with the usual get to know you questions she said, "Now your husband was telling me that you work for a bank." It is sentences like those that make me appreciate Aaron so much. Most people probably wouldn't think a thing about that sentence. Most people wouldn't bat an eye at such a statement. But anyone that meets Aaron, no matter what gender they are, what they look like, or how old they are, finds out he is married to me within the first few minutes of introductions. He is quick to tell everyone about me, to let them know we're married, and I couldn't be more grateful for a husband who is proud to let the world know that I am his.
My granddad feels the same way, too. Everyone that knows him knows he is married. Everyone that knows my grandmother knows she is married. But he wants the people who don't know her to know that piece of information as well. To know she is off the market, and so is he. And what a blessing it is to have a husband like that. A husband who never ever takes off his wedding band or drops the role he has committed to. A husband who claims you as his own and announces it to the world with pride and joy through his word and actions. A husband who lives a life so that there are no questions asked. Who meant 'til death do us part' when he slid that ring on your finger, and death is the only thing that will ever take that ring off.
Good men run in my family, and I praise the Lord that He has been faithful to add them. For men of honor, integrity, and morality. Thank you for valuing us. Thank you for sticking through life with us. And whether or not we end up with the wedding ring we started out with isn't near as important as the fact that we get to end up with you!
#877 - For the blessing of being obviously married.
"Give honor to marriage, and remain faithful to one another in marriage." - Hebrews 13:4