Looks Like We Made It :-)

Isn't it great to hear about marriages that have lasted through the years?  I think about those couples who have made it for 40, 50 and 60 years and think, "I have so much more left to experience in my own marriage."  It makes me think, "If they made it, we can make it too!"

I want a long marriage.

Today, Beverly and I celebrated 20 years of marriage.  We married young - age 20 - after courting for nearly 5 years. 

It seems more and more that long marriages are becoming less and less common.  I wonder if Kaitlyn and our future grandchildren will witness as many marriages that have lasted 40, 50,and 60 years....like we have.

I wear a wedding ring on my left hand.  It hasn't been off my finger in many, many years.  I do remember taking it off when it broke in half and I had to have it fixed.  When you look at it closely you will see nicks, scrapes and dings.  Those nicks, scrapes and dings symbolize the joy and pain from our years of marriage.  They represent struggles, hopes, dreams and promises.  Occasionally I take my ring in and have it cleaned and polished, but honestly, I prefer it to look like 20 years of marriage we've built.

The rings we exchanged on our wedding day represent so much more than a ceremony of marriage.  Our rings represent the family we've built.  At first just Beverly and I, a young couple in love, then came Kaitlyn and all the struggles that marriages and families endure.

• My ring reminds me that all the tough times were worth it.
• My ring reminds me I can hold her hand anytime, because she is mine.
• My ring reminds me that we're a team and that we work better together than apart.
• My ring reminds me that I'm totally committed to her and she's committed to me.

The value of my ring, purchased at Service Merchandise in

1991 when we were barely scraping by financially, was $99.

I paid $45 dollars to have it fixed when it broke.

Constantly having it on my hand to remind me that I'm the luckiest man in the world....PRICELESS.