Forty-Two Years On

 

Wedding bells ringing
To the sound of sweet I Do's...
Surrounding these two
Love doves soaring
On the wings of love,
Up and above the clouds
The only way? No, but by His design
They climb...
And keep climbing...
Rising to heights many aspire to
After all there's no guarantee
When you say I DO.
Those three letters can weigh heavy
On the heart...
Like a new tax or levy -
From the start,
They can add pressure, split ties or
Pull apart,
What seemed to be mapped out
On the chart
Of life.
For a husband and his wife,
Emotions like the ocean -
High and low tide
What matters isn't the pretty exterior...
Reception and destination honeymoon,
It's what fills the inside...
The core.
The foundational structure.
The "I'll never abandon her"
And "I'll always support him"
Whether we gain weight or stay trim
Like that day we said I Do!
We both agreed to
Follow things through
Until death do
Us part.
Not to sound dark
Or stark but to be blatantly honest,
After the food and festivities,
The gifts and feeling-like-celebrities,
The real test lies ahead
With moments of truth.
Isolated from opinion widespread
Under one roof, twenty toes in one bed
Between the sheets, man and woman
A queen who submitted and supported
As her trusted king led...
Remembering when they signed
Here and here -
To have, hold and share...
They learned what it meant.
All the energy and money spent,
Held together by love yes...
But more importantly discipline.
So those sweet hons, and love you too
Were battled tested along the way
And not necessarily by strife,
Thankfully.
But by the unpredictability of life,
Inevitably.
They have sustained and maintained
Not always blue skies but never disdain.
Never a hateful ending
To a discourse or interaction.
No screaming 'til she's hoarse or
Or her presence he shunned...
They worked through it.
Learning each day,
With a bit more patience,
By God's grace and abiding
By His ways.
Love and honesty adorned this place.
As every face to face
May not be perfect but
They found their way.
Maybe he deserved a medal
Or she might need a sedative,
But thankfully they understood
How to operate, how to live,
The give or take.
And let's say
For the sake of argument
You could take odds
On 42 years on
And mortgage paid
Children grown and making their way.
Health generally intact...
Stew and Lyn can look back
And clearly state
They made it.
Thankful for all the blessings
The more or lessons
That they received.
Not just conjecture or perception,
They definitively believe
They've achieved what many desire.
Not only the passion and fire
But ability to get through the mire
The flat tyres and "check engine lights"
The sleepless nights
At the end of long tiring days
When
They couldn't see beyond human gaze
But they COULD rely on God's strength.
And from that they raised up
And continued through the maze
And do so to this day,
by His continued grace.
Not fearing the grave,
As life wears on
But remembering August 1, 1981
And how far they've really come.
How many more till it's done?
Who knows...
But Stew and Lyn
Understand ebbs and flows...
And one thing's for certain
By His hand they're determined
To see it to the end.
Well... Hip Hip Hooray!
Cheers and God bless them!
With as many years as His will dictates,
However more may be, they'll happily take!

 

Michael Russell © August 2023