25 years of hope, faith, and love

Twenty-five years ago today was Richard's and my wedding day. We were married at Long Creek United Baptist Church in Prince Edward Island. It was a beautiful late-spring morning: after about three weeks of rain, the sun beamed down on us and blessed our day.

I like this picture of the two of us just coming out of the church after the ceremony. We were so young (26, to be exact). And my glasses were so big.

Our wedding was a relatively simple affair. We had about 80 guests, and Richard and I each had just one attendant. We didn't spend a lot of money or energy on clothes, makeup, and extra frills.  (We did, however, indulge in some chocolate lobsters for table favours at the reception!)  We made sure to focus on things that were important to us -- like music, for instance. Our wedding service included many of our favourite hymns:  "We Praise Thee, O God, Our Redeemer, Creator," "Jesus, Thou Joy of Loving Hearts," "Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee," and "Servant King." The processional music was "Be Thou My Vision," and during the signing of the register the pianist played "How Great Thou Art." Richard's cousin Linda sang a song she had written, entitled "Holding On," which was based on these words from our chosen Scripture passage:

"Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess,

for He who promised is faithful.

And let us consider how we may spur one another on

toward love and good deeds."

Hebrews 10:23-24

Twenty-five years later, Richard has less hair (though not as much less as you might think!), and I wear smaller (but thicker) glasses. And we are no longer so young. We have kids. We've experienced the illnesses and deaths of some close family members in the past several years. Life can be stressful and challenging at times.

Yet I think I can speak for both of us when I say that we are happy. To me, the verses above from Hebrews contain the secret to happiness, and it's nothing original or particularly earth-shattering:  just hope, faith, and love. We took vows on our wedding day, and saying those words was an important thing to do; but I've learned that there's more to life in general -- and marriage in particular --  than saying words. When difficult times come and you can still wake up in the morning and feel hopeful about the day ahead ... when you can trust in the other person's faithfulness and know that you're there for one another no matter what ... when you sacrifice for the other person and go out of your way to serve them, and they do the same for you, out of love ... I think that's a happy marriage.  For me, the important thing about hope, faith, and love is that they're not just words to say or tasks to accomplish:  they're gifts.  And we've been blessed by those gifts.  I'm thankful for that, and I'm thankful to have been married to a great person for 25 years.

Happy anniversary, Rich -- here's to another 25 and beyond.  I love you!