July 18, 1986. My wedding day.
I woke up terrified.
Not because I wasn’t excited and ready to get married later that morning. I was terrified because I overslept. By half and hour! I was going to be late – no doubt about it.
I threw on my clothes, yelled to my parents (who were leaving shortly) and headed out the door. MInd you, I wasn’t going to be late for the actual wedding/sealing. I was going to be late for pictures. (Yes, back in the old days, we didn’t take pictures days or weeks before the actual wedding and then pretend that they are wedding pictures. We actually took pictures on our wedding day.)
We were blessed with a rare overcast morning, as you can see from the picture. Later that morning, when we came out of the temple, it was a brilliant 110 degree day. Some morning gray was very welcome.
Back to my story. I tried to make the 30 minute drive to the temple from my house in Scottsdale to the temple in Mesa in record time, while tying my tie.
I arrived, entered the doors and went to hand the brother my recommend.
No recommend.
What? Best day of my life and I forgot my temple recommend. True story.
I told the brethren at the desk that I was supposed to be getting married later that morning – which the found hysterical.
I waited for a few minutes while they had a behind-the-scenes confab. I was told that I could come in. Phew! I still ended up waiting for my bride-to-be, but it was worth it. She emerged looking like a princess, ready to live happily ever after.
Twenty-nine years of marriage is a long time to the world, and to those who see it as work and drudgery.
I find it to be as natural an easy as breathing. I see twenty-nine years as a nice prelude to a few billion years together.
I get to spend my mortal existence with my favorite person. We get to grow, grow old, learn, experience, sorrow and embrace this life, as we embrace each other. and joy. We find joy all around us, especially in our kids, and grandchild. We intend to spend our eternal existence together as well.
I am so in love. I loved her when I was a young and stupid groom, but my depth and understanding at that times pales in comparison to what I know, and feel now.
I have been married to my Chrissie for more than half my life.
The better half.
Mr. Mo and I will celebrate 26 years in a few months. You’ve captured much of what I feel. Mature love is so much richer and deeper than our giddy-anxious wedding-day emotions – although, I am forever grateful for that young girl and boy who threw caution to the wind and leaped in. The trials and firestorms we have somehow (miraculously) weathered together since that day have made our love and marriage all the more richer and sweeter. Happy Anniversary. Here’s to the next 29 – to infinity, and beyond!
Happy anniversary!!! Glad someone took pity on you and your forgotten recommended! My husband truly was terrified. We were older YSAs and it took a lot for us to get to engagement and marriage so we were excited but there was plenty of anxiety in the mix. No better place than the temple to calm a troubled heart, however. No better foundation for love and life than those covenants with God.
Lovely!
Such a nice post – you two crazy kids! You look so young! I feel the same way about my years of marriage. The world looks at it like it’s record or something, I look at it as the only way I would have ever been happy in life. To infinity and beyond!
Thank heavens there are people like Chrissie and Dave to put up with people like you and me.
So happy for you two.
We are coming up on the big 50 next week on July 23rd. Since we are from the Mesa-Gilbert area, the idea of going there from Alaska at the end of July was daunting to say the least. I guess the heat didn’t bother us when we were young! We did an “early” party in Arizona at the end of March. Congratulations!
Sweet sweet post. Yes, 29 years IS an eternity to some in the world but we are getting ready for 32 and are so thankful each and every day for the time we have spent together. Thank you for sharing!
Congratulations on three (almost) wonderful decades. Unfortunately, these days that seems like a lot. Next month will be our 61st, and I echo everything you said, with gratitude for my wonderful EC, my five children, twelve grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren. Under the gospel umbrella, life is very good.
Congratulations on all 29 of those years. I’ve got you beat by 5-1/2 years.
And I should also provide a heartfelt thank you for your blog. I ran across one of your posts several months ago and thought I should have written your comments myself. As I’ve read your posts, that exact thought has gone through my mind every time. Surely we we were close brothers in our pre-earth life. You think as I do.
Tell your good wife that one of your pre-mortal brothers wishes both of you a happy anniversary.
Thanks again.
What a sweet post… Happy Anniversary! I agree with what you said about marriage being natural or as easy as breathing, I can’t recall exactly what you wrote but whenever I here people talk about what hard work marriage is, and what a struggle it is to remain married I always get a little confused and feel sad that anyone would say that. It all just boils down to being with the right person, I’m happy for you and Christie as it certainly sounds like you both hit a home run in the finding the right person department…Thanks for sharing this!
The reality that my husband and I find marriage hard does not mean to me that I married the wrong person. It means I have a lot of repenting to do. Marriage can be hard when you are immature like I am. I’m a little envious that others find it so easy all the time. Sometimes I find marriage east but sometimes I just don’t.