Nine years ago today I married my best friend. Officially, with a minister and a crowd of people and all the trimmings that two twenty-year-old kids could afford. (Surprising most, our wedding cost less than $900, considerably less. Dress, cake, flowers and the like were made and borrowed by and from family. The reception hall was bartered for (would have been $400). I'm not sure where the money was spent exactly. I know we paid for staff to serve the punch and cake and clean up. My bouquet was real. I paid for the children attendant's clothing and my bridesmaid dresses.....ok, you get the idea.) It was a beautiful, stunning, made people cry wedding. In the middle of a blizzard. Most people that could come were those within walking distance of the gallery. Luckily, my out of town relatives were staying near by and the rest of our invite list were neighbors (neighborhood art gallery/theatre was our location). The minister and piano player were both neighbors too.In retrospect, I think that the reason our wedding ceremony felt so intimate was that these people were not strangers or distant cousins or work acquaintances- they were instead the very people that we lived in community with, who would be supporting us through friendship and as mentors in our first (and many) years of marriage. The minister sensed this and used it in her sermon. (She also wrote it into our vows, and so we promised, never to hang wallpaper together. Never have.)
Marriage is hard work. We've had some good and bad times. This last house restoration tested us in ways that we could not foresee then. What got us through was luck, hard work, and each other. Those people who promised to support us back in 1999, really have- even though we moved from that community in 2000 across town.
I began this post intending to write about us as two teenagers in love, me with purple hair, an English major and Dear Husband, a punk rock skateboarding drummer- but really our marriage is more than an evolution of two people sharing lives. It is a tribute to those who support us as well.
How far we have come, how far we have to go. We are blessed to make the journey in good company. :)
happy anniversary!
ReplyDeletehappy anniversary! I'm so glad you two have made it through so many things together.
ReplyDeleteLove,
Aunt Bee
Congratulations! That is a huge accomplishment! We will be at 17 years in May, and it always surprises me that we have made it this far- unlike you two, most of our friends and relations did NOT support our relationship AT ALL. It has only been in the last five years that my mom (and others) has accepted my Dude (He had been married before, and we weren't when we got pregnant-by our choice, but it still offended many folks.). I still wanna hit people (but I don't) when they say things like, "He really IS a good guy, isn't he?" Umm, yeah, that's why I married him.
ReplyDeleteSo, all that to say, that having community support is very important, and I think it really helps.
LB
Happy Anniversary! What a beautiful tribute to your relationship with your husband. Sean and I will celebrate our 10th anniversary this year in the hospital with me getting my uterus taken out. LOL
ReplyDeleteThis post is a really lovely way to commemorate your marriage!
evie
Apparently we share an anniversary date. :) Only 6 years for us, but still wonderful. I love your post remembering your wedding. Very fun.
ReplyDelete