It's Anniversary Week!

Several of my friends are celebrating wedding anniversaries today, and others will be celebrating in the next week or so. I'll just give them all one big "Happy Anniversary!" shout-out rather than mentioning each of them by name, since I would inevitably leave someone out.

On a more personal note, Saturday of this week marks another milestone in the journey of my life.  45 years ago - June 10, 1972 - I said "I do". For the past (almost) 45 years, my life has been shared with the man of my dreams. And what a life it has been!

We began our married life in a little house in the "Avenues" of West Columbia, SC. (If you're from Cayce/West Columbia, that will mean something to you. Otherwise, probably not!) When I say it was a "little" house, that's exactly what I mean.  It was a very small house, less than 1000 square feet. We have since lived in apartments that were larger than that house!

We had some expectations when we married. We expected to live out our days in West Columbia. (Or maybe we might move to Cayce!) We expected to move someday to a larger house. We expected that we would have children. I'm sure that back then we had other expectations as well.

In many ways, life has far exceeded our expectations, even our wildest dreams. Over the years we have moved far beyond the boundaries of Cayce/West Columbia. Far beyond South Carolina. To Colorado and to Connecticut. To Minnesota and to Florida (talk about climate extremes!). We lived in the mountains of North Carolina, and now we find ourselves back in our home state.

We have traveled to places we only read about or dreamed of visiting. All across these United States.  Thanks to our road trip two summers ago, we have now both been in all 50 states at least once.  We've visited such far away places as Tokyo and Paris. Sydney and Cairo. Edinburgh and Jerusalem. And numerous other spots in between. What an amazing journey we have had together!

I've said many times before that every journey has hills and valleys, smooth roads and potholes. Sometimes the scenery is beautiful. Sometimes not so much. Sometimes the road is straight. Sometimes there are curves. Bends in the road. It's all part of the journey. And we've experienced some of all of it!

Even so, there's joy in the journey. Joy because we're right where our LORD wants us to be. Joy because we're taking the journey together.

As we have been for almost 45 years. Through thick and thin. In good times and in not-so-great. Through it all. Joy in our journey. Together.

This last year has certainly put the "for better, for worse; in sickness and in health" to the test! Even through all that, there is joy in the journey. And I wouldn't want to take this journey with anyone else!