About a month ago my husband and I celebrated 11 years of marriage. I look at my parents who have been married over 30 years and my grandparents who have been married over 50 years and I marvel and thank God for the heritage of loving and committed marriages that I come from. I know that being married 11 years IS a big deal these days and I am thankful and in awe of what I have, the love of a good man. Although when I think about it, this feels like an understatement.
My husband who loves me unconditionally through the good and the bad, who works tirelessly to support our family, who loves and plays with our children, who is strong in his faith, who is loyal, committed and above all else self-sacrificing. To call him a good man is an understatement, because to me; he is great!
Marriage is a lot of give and take and we have learned a lot over the years. We still miscommunicate quite frequently and often are stressed with the responsibility of caring for our two sons. We have had many disagreements over the years but have always worked through them. I am not trying to give the impression that our marriage is peaches and cream, because it is not. It is a lot of daily hard work and grace.
On reflecting over our 11 years of marriage the one thing that I am most thankful for is the experiences I have had along side my husband. I am a Lancaster county girl born and raised in this fertile farming community. And I will be honest, I love it here and could easily raise my children and live here the rest of my life. This sentiment is said much to my husband's chagrin, although I think he is enjoying the beauty of where we are currently living. There is nothing like looking out the window and seeing rolling, lush, green fields.
But since I've known my husband my horizons have been broadened. I have lived halfway across the country for several years, we have traveled to many different countries and I have now been on 4 continents. I do have a sense of adventure, but nothing close to my husband. It has been so good for him to push me to have these experiences and broaden my world view. I can no longer sit in my comfy, American home and be unaware of the needs of billions of people across the globe. These experiences we have had, have shaped and molded us in to the people we are today. We are both more compassionate, loving and deeply in awe of our creator.
I think what turns the love of a good man in to the love of a great man is when it is unconditional. No matter what has happened in our lives over the last 11 years unconditional love has remained, and this is what makes him GREAT! And this is what makes me say I look forward to another 50 years with this great man! For those who aren't married don't settle for good, hold out for great.
No comments:
Post a Comment