Have you ever woken one morning in a daze, wondering what happened in your marriage? Something is different but it doesn’t have a name. Or maybe it was a slow dawning realization that you and he have both changed. When did that happen? You didn’t see it coming. Maybe you look at him across the kids’ heads, momentarily oblivious to the chatter and mealtime bickering, and notice lines on his face, gray in his hair. You hadn’t noticed before. Surprise flitters through your heart. Time. It slowly etched its presence, creased its passing into your lives over the accumulated years. You recognize it for the first time or you see it anew. “For better, for worse,” you said. But it doesn’t take long for worse to knock on your door. It’s not always a crisis, thankfully. Sometimes it’s just normal wear and tear, accumulated fatigue that dampens the spark. Ten days ago the nation witnessed a remarkable moment at the beginning of the Super Bowl. The pre-game hoopla subsided and the coin toss was up. Newspapers had announced who had been chosen for that honor. My eyes scanned the large crowd at midfield; beefy players, striped refs, camera toting men and women, honored guests. I didn’t see him there. Then the announcer said, “Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome some very special guests, President George Bush and Barbara Bush.” The crowd stood to its feet, clapped, and cheered. Our former president, wheelchair bound, was pushed out of the end zone, accompanied by the always pearl-clad Barbara in a cart at his side. I cried. My husband even teared up, as did most everyone watching. I know because we were there. Tweets went out saying, “Why am I crying at the sight of this couple?” I’ll tell you why. The Bushes, imperfect as all of us are, are a model to our nation of unending love. Covenant keeping love. They remind us of what matters most in life. We see this so rarely in our world full of super stars and unending divorce drama. Decades ago, Barbara Bush spoke to the graduating class of Wellesley college,
If You Pray Only One Prayer for Your Marriage…
If You Pray Only One Prayer for Your…
If You Pray Only One Prayer for Your Marriage…
Have you ever woken one morning in a daze, wondering what happened in your marriage? Something is different but it doesn’t have a name. Or maybe it was a slow dawning realization that you and he have both changed. When did that happen? You didn’t see it coming. Maybe you look at him across the kids’ heads, momentarily oblivious to the chatter and mealtime bickering, and notice lines on his face, gray in his hair. You hadn’t noticed before. Surprise flitters through your heart. Time. It slowly etched its presence, creased its passing into your lives over the accumulated years. You recognize it for the first time or you see it anew. “For better, for worse,” you said. But it doesn’t take long for worse to knock on your door. It’s not always a crisis, thankfully. Sometimes it’s just normal wear and tear, accumulated fatigue that dampens the spark. Ten days ago the nation witnessed a remarkable moment at the beginning of the Super Bowl. The pre-game hoopla subsided and the coin toss was up. Newspapers had announced who had been chosen for that honor. My eyes scanned the large crowd at midfield; beefy players, striped refs, camera toting men and women, honored guests. I didn’t see him there. Then the announcer said, “Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome some very special guests, President George Bush and Barbara Bush.” The crowd stood to its feet, clapped, and cheered. Our former president, wheelchair bound, was pushed out of the end zone, accompanied by the always pearl-clad Barbara in a cart at his side. I cried. My husband even teared up, as did most everyone watching. I know because we were there. Tweets went out saying, “Why am I crying at the sight of this couple?” I’ll tell you why. The Bushes, imperfect as all of us are, are a model to our nation of unending love. Covenant keeping love. They remind us of what matters most in life. We see this so rarely in our world full of super stars and unending divorce drama. Decades ago, Barbara Bush spoke to the graduating class of Wellesley college,