Not too long ago, my husband and I attended the wedding of a dear friend of mine... and well, to tell the truth, she was also a student... and it's been almost two months! See, I started teaching when I was 22. I helped take kids to Disney World before I was old enough to rent a car! So I wasn't much older than the kids. Now that they're out of college even and getting married, I'm having fun watching it all unfold on the ol' Face-tube. MyBook. Twit-space. You know. Social media.
Ah, I remember like it was yesterday. They're both Baylor grads, and both band kids (haha... they're so not kids), and my husband is, in college Greek-terms, their much older brother. So when we got this invite, it wasn't hard to decide that we had to go.
The most hilarious part of this was watching myself fight to unwind. I couldn't help but prairie-dog, looking for the kids, feeling like I had something I should be doing. Let me make it clear that the kids were invited; we just chose to use this as a date. We don't get those very often without the kids, so y'know, it made sense.
With the kids parked with Grammy and Grampy (thanks again for that, by the way), we found a nice spot for our little white minivan beside another minivan that looked a little lonely and made our way into the church. I hadn't worn real shoes in so long I had to remind my date to walk a little slowly, lest he wind up taking me to ER for a broken ankle instead of a wedding!
I can't tell you how awesome their wedding was. Beautiful, amazing, sweet, tasteful... musical... and of course, Baylor-ful! But the colors didn't get to me, the music was great but it didn't move me as much as the beginning. No, not the girls walking down the aisle or the always awkward moment when you leave your date's arm to take the arm of the usher, leaving your date to tag along behind a bit dejected. Never understood that. We did it in our wedding too, I just think it's funny!
More than the carefully-chosen elements of color, sound, light, apparel, people... more than the aesthetics in place which were artfully chosen... I was brought back to our beginning. I looked at Tara and Ryan (great name, right?!) and saw our beginning. We didn't really care what problems lay ahead. We didn't care how many times we'd fight over who should take the garbage out or whose turn it is to change a diaper. It all lay before us in mysterious, shrouded glory. Even on our honeymoon, when I took great delight in saying the words "my" and "husband" together whenever I could, I still could only see that step of life. That one day, that one point in time. The rest lay ahead to be uncovered day by day, minute by minute.
Just as I could see that curly-headed piccolo player standing in her maroon and white uniform, fighting to get that silly piece of wood in tune before a performance, or in her spongey yellow flip-flops and toe socks boarding the bus to wherever, I saw Eric and I in my mind's eye on our wedding day. I thought of the things we've walked through together, the things we've fought through together, and I almost started to pray that this sweet couple would never have to do that... then I stopped.
Instead, I found myself in the middle of a wedding, watching this pair of people who I know to be believers, praying that God would hold them fast through their marriage. That he would hold them, never let them go, and that they would find themselves in Him, not in each other, not in the mess the world has to offer. I found myself praying not that the storms wouldn't come, but that they would grow closer to Him and to each other as they weathered them. I prayed that their roots will grow strong and deep in the Lord; that they'll chop out any anger and protect their hearts from the temptation of even the slightest bit of malice. And when they do make mistakes, that they'll be generous with grace and mercy, remembering to love each other with the love Christ gives.
You know what else?
That they'll remember that the days may drag, but the years fly.
Someday they'll be sitting in the same position as we were at their wedding. I hope that when they are, they will be holding hands, that she'll occasionally lean over and rest her head on his shoulder, sighing in the heart-overflowing experience of watching two people at that amazing point in time.
As we celebrate our ninth year of marriage tomorrow, I feel like I should say something completely astounding about my husband and our marriage, because he is, and it is just that. Words fail to express my love for this man. They stumble to describe the importance, the sweetness, the depth that is our relationship and what it has done for us both.
So I guess I'll leave you with this: I am indescribably thankful that after nine years, a dog, a cat, three kids, several major family events both negative and positive, back surgery, postpartum depression, autism, and six moves later we're more googley-eyed than we've ever been. I so love you, Eric Senzig. To the moon and back, I love you.
And that, dear Tara and Ryan, is what I want so much for you.
Thanks be to God for Eric, for the institution of marriage, the years behind, and the many more to come.
Ah, I remember like it was yesterday. They're both Baylor grads, and both band kids (haha... they're so not kids), and my husband is, in college Greek-terms, their much older brother. So when we got this invite, it wasn't hard to decide that we had to go.
The most hilarious part of this was watching myself fight to unwind. I couldn't help but prairie-dog, looking for the kids, feeling like I had something I should be doing. Let me make it clear that the kids were invited; we just chose to use this as a date. We don't get those very often without the kids, so y'know, it made sense.
With the kids parked with Grammy and Grampy (thanks again for that, by the way), we found a nice spot for our little white minivan beside another minivan that looked a little lonely and made our way into the church. I hadn't worn real shoes in so long I had to remind my date to walk a little slowly, lest he wind up taking me to ER for a broken ankle instead of a wedding!
I can't tell you how awesome their wedding was. Beautiful, amazing, sweet, tasteful... musical... and of course, Baylor-ful! But the colors didn't get to me, the music was great but it didn't move me as much as the beginning. No, not the girls walking down the aisle or the always awkward moment when you leave your date's arm to take the arm of the usher, leaving your date to tag along behind a bit dejected. Never understood that. We did it in our wedding too, I just think it's funny!
More than the carefully-chosen elements of color, sound, light, apparel, people... more than the aesthetics in place which were artfully chosen... I was brought back to our beginning. I looked at Tara and Ryan (great name, right?!) and saw our beginning. We didn't really care what problems lay ahead. We didn't care how many times we'd fight over who should take the garbage out or whose turn it is to change a diaper. It all lay before us in mysterious, shrouded glory. Even on our honeymoon, when I took great delight in saying the words "my" and "husband" together whenever I could, I still could only see that step of life. That one day, that one point in time. The rest lay ahead to be uncovered day by day, minute by minute.
Just as I could see that curly-headed piccolo player standing in her maroon and white uniform, fighting to get that silly piece of wood in tune before a performance, or in her spongey yellow flip-flops and toe socks boarding the bus to wherever, I saw Eric and I in my mind's eye on our wedding day. I thought of the things we've walked through together, the things we've fought through together, and I almost started to pray that this sweet couple would never have to do that... then I stopped.
Instead, I found myself in the middle of a wedding, watching this pair of people who I know to be believers, praying that God would hold them fast through their marriage. That he would hold them, never let them go, and that they would find themselves in Him, not in each other, not in the mess the world has to offer. I found myself praying not that the storms wouldn't come, but that they would grow closer to Him and to each other as they weathered them. I prayed that their roots will grow strong and deep in the Lord; that they'll chop out any anger and protect their hearts from the temptation of even the slightest bit of malice. And when they do make mistakes, that they'll be generous with grace and mercy, remembering to love each other with the love Christ gives.
You know what else?
That they'll remember that the days may drag, but the years fly.
Someday they'll be sitting in the same position as we were at their wedding. I hope that when they are, they will be holding hands, that she'll occasionally lean over and rest her head on his shoulder, sighing in the heart-overflowing experience of watching two people at that amazing point in time.
As we celebrate our ninth year of marriage tomorrow, I feel like I should say something completely astounding about my husband and our marriage, because he is, and it is just that. Words fail to express my love for this man. They stumble to describe the importance, the sweetness, the depth that is our relationship and what it has done for us both.
So I guess I'll leave you with this: I am indescribably thankful that after nine years, a dog, a cat, three kids, several major family events both negative and positive, back surgery, postpartum depression, autism, and six moves later we're more googley-eyed than we've ever been. I so love you, Eric Senzig. To the moon and back, I love you.
And that, dear Tara and Ryan, is what I want so much for you.
Thanks be to God for Eric, for the institution of marriage, the years behind, and the many more to come.
Just read this again...I'm so glad you guys were there! Thank you SO much for these words. Can't believe it was 9 months ago!!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Tara! I can't believe it was, either! :-) And our tenth is this June! Holy cheese, when did that happen?!
ReplyDeleteI was just telling a friend about your blog, and thought: "hmm...I'm just going to scroll back to 2012 and see if I can find 'it'"... And here it is! :) 4 years later (in reality, almost 15 ::gasp:: years later), this still blesses me--YOU still bless me! Grateful for you!
ReplyDelete