38th Wedding Anniversary

On this day 38th years ago, Tommy and I became husband and wife. It was on a Sunday and we were married at 2:00 that afternoon at the Old Forest Road Baptist Church in Lynchburg, Virginia. The ceremony was performed by my Dad and he made it such a personal and worshipful service. In some ways, it seems it was just yesterday, in other ways, it seems a lifetime ago. Of course, I was only 18 years old. I did turn 19 seven weeks later, but nonetheless, I was only 18. Thank goodness, Tommy is 5 1/2 years older than me and definitely was much wiser than me at that time. If he had not been, our marriage would never have survived. I don't know that any couple has any idea what they are really getting into when they marry, but I do know that Tommy and I made the commitment for a lifetime. That was the way our parents raised us, there was no other option! So, with the prayers and support of our parents, here we are.

When we arrived at our little humble abode in Bastrop, it hit me that I had left behind everything familiar to me . My Mom was 1000 miles away!!! And, there was no internet, no cell phone and since we had no money, there were hardly any "old fashioned" phone calls. But, there was a lot of "snail mail." Tommy was so patient as night after night I would cry myself to sleep due to homesickness. Mom's letters were always encouraging and so were the few phone calls that we were privileged to share. Month by month, I adjusted, made new friends and began my journey, called marriage.

The greatest credit that we can give to these 38 years is the abiding guidance of our Lord and Savior. No, we have not always sought His leadership, nor have we always followed it. But, we both share the same commitment in striving to put Him first and I must say have come a very long way from where we were 38 years ago. I do not know how any couple can ever survive without a joint commitment to Him. Trying to make it on your own is just not possible and we are so grateful for the growth we have experienced through Him during our marriage.

We have walked through some more than wonderful times in these years, but we also walked through some very "dark" days. The loss of 3 parents and health issues with both of our children have been the darkest. But, through it all we have felt God's peace and comfort.

We look forward to the coming years and thank Him for these past. Yes, God is good, all the time God is good!