Marriage

This summer has been so busy and so fun. It wouldn't feel like a true summer if there weren't some weddings thrown into the mix though, right? Tom has been a groomsman in two of the weddings this summer. I love sitting in the church right before the wedding starts. It brings back the anticipation I had on my wedding day over four years ago. The excitement, the emotions, months of planning for this one special day. I enjoy weddings so much more now that I am married because I understand what it means to be a married couple. When you are up at the altar with your soon to be spouse, you are excited. You aren't thinking about all of the challenges that are headed your way,  you are living in the moment, in your fairytale. 


On these couple's wedding day, as I listen to them say their vows, it gives me the goosebumps. "For better or for worse...all the days of my life...until death parts us." Maybe it's because my love for Tom has soared to a completely different level in these last four  years. Maybe it's because I am excited for these couples to experience an awesome kind of love, the kind that Tom and I have. Maybe it's because I have seen my parents stick together during some incredibly trying times. I don't know what it is, but it doesn't matter.  What matters is that there is love. I'll be the first to admit that marriages, or relationships for that matter, are no piece of cake. And when you throw a bundle of kids into the picture, it gets even harder. But it's worth it, it's worth every little bit. 


As I've said before, I've never really dealt with any sort of tragedy in my life before my brother's accident. But his accident has changed my entire outlook on life. I am sure that this happens with other people who lose their loved ones, or who have chronic illnesses, or who cope with cancer, or I suppose really any daily struggle. And I can't help but think while these couples are saying their vows, "will you still love them if they are in a wheelchair, will you sick by their side if they have cancer or develop a chronic illness?" I mean you can't live your life constantly worrying about the "what if's" but when you look at it, that is what these vows are saying. And they hit me a lot harder now. Anyway, a wedding day is beautiful and filled with smiles, friends and family. But a marriage - well, a marriage completes you. At least it completed me (well you think you are complete, and then you have children and that is just the icing on the cake) :-)


On a lighter note, Finn is crawling up the stairs.