I’ve been asked by how I’ve “made” my marriage last for so long… Today is our 44th anniversary. I can remember that day:

• a home wedding at Freddie and Jack Huffman’s house by the University of Houston
• hot and humid, the A/C not keeping up with the demands being placed on it
• a special haircut that did not feel comfortable
• a spruced up 1971 Dodge Dart Sport, bright orange, white seats, white vinyl top
• matching ties for all the guys (which I still own)
• the minister, A.E. Matney, standing at the front of the room (performed mom and dad’s marriage 20 years earlier!)
• dad singing our wedding song selection (I still have the book it came out of) and my sister played the piano
• my brother my best man
• a family friend is our photographer
• family and friends gathering together to help us celebrate on a difficult day before the holiday
• nervous, sweating and excited – all at the same time!

And then, Brenda walks down the stairs and is presented to me by her dad…

On that day we entered a covenant
and declared our undying love
and devotion to each other.
We sealed our agreement with a simple,
“I do…”
A covenant of love that has bound us to each other these 44 years.

Never has there been a time when I wondered, “What am I getting myself in to?” I was 19 and my bride was 18 years old, barely out of high school, we were committing ourselves to each other for the rest of our lives. Back then no one spent a single second giving us counsel. Nothing required by the pastor or minister. No courses, conversations or approval. We only had to have a blood test, and to this day I’m not sure why! (I don’t think it’s required now…) Then apply for a marriage license.

I had an elder aunt that told me I should wait until I was nearly 30, “After all, the person you will be then is different than the person you are now.”

The year my granddad passed away (1987), he and grandmother celebrated their 65th anniversary. He was a little older than I when he married and she was a little younger. Was life easy for them? No! Several world wars, depressions, sicknesses, the death of a child, and a host of other unknown events could have created an opportunity for their marriage to fail. That last year of his life Granddad told me that they would have had nothing in their lives except for Grandmother saving and scrimping like she was famous for. When he wanted a new motor for his boat, she analyzed their finances, and his desire, and determine if they could manage it, or should he just get it repaired. What a partnership they had – not necessarily rosy on all fronts, but it gave me an insight into how their marriage worked.

To my bride’s chagrin (at times) I keep broadcasting that we are aiming for 65 years of marriage. This year it’s only 21 years away! Talk about realizing that our goal came after the death of the one we are following!

Mom and Dad will celebrate 65 years in 2019…her sisters have already passed this number! There’s hope!

In our closet is my tie, the wedding dress long ago was loaned and never returned…Our marriage license and the ceremony locked away…The special car that I wish I had kept ever since? Sold, then traded and who knows its status. That day? A long time ago, but it seems almost like yesterday.

Something to consider when I first wrote this in 2010. We were both born in 1955, and that year we each turned 55. Not very many people will be able to celebrate their births like this. A math statement puts sums it up: (55 + 55 = 110) * 2 = 220 – independently we are simple house current. Joined together we are great potential. Our current numbers just keep showing up has higher and higher!

Thanks to our parents and grandparents on both sides of the family who have shown us the way. Thanks to our kids for showing us young love all over again. Thanks to God for giving us each other.

45 years? Sure. That’s just 365 days away! Here we come!