Five Years!

 It's been five whole years! Five years ago today I was waking up to birthday mimosas, buttoning a shirt I could easily take off without ruining my wedding hair, and preparing to head to Duke Chapel. It was undoubtedly the best day of my life. Our wedding day is one I would do again and again if given the opportunity.

What have I learned in five years?

1) Sitting at the table for dinner with the television off is essential if couples are going to continue to grow together.

2) Hearing Craig thank God for me in prayer are words I could never grow tired of hearing.

3) An annual vacation and other times away can rekindle whatever sparks have gone missing.

4) It is possible and actually delightful for a United Methodist pastor to be happily married to a devout Roman Catholic. Our worshipping in separate places and having separate days to call our own are huge gifts.

5) Setting clear boundaries at the church by restricting meeting nights to no more than two a week is hard but necessary for our marriage to flourish. Being a pastor and being a wife are both callings from God and both need to be cultivated.

6) Marriage is a means of grace that enables one to see and experience God more often.

7) Forgiveness and letting go are essential.

8) Marriage is a gift that causes me to thank God for the quick realization God made when it was discovered how one should never be alone - how life is to be shared with a helper by our side.

9) Having separate checking accounts could be a sign of strength in a marriage and not weakness.

10) Being married to someone who constantly makes me a better person is a gift to everyone around me.

"The best thing you ever did for me was to help me take my life less seriously. It's only life after all." Thanks, Craig, for five great years of making me laugh, dance and enjoy life - together.