For better or for worse...
Illustration
For better or for worse. For how long should those promises be kept? Honeymoons
should last a year and marriages a lifetime, but some couples sow separation seeds at
their wedding receptions. They disagree. Feelings are hurt. The wedding vows are tested
before they escape the church steeple.
Do some couples never hear the "worse" part? My wife has received plenty of "worse" from her husband. It amazes me how she remains patient. We were never the kind to throw pots and pans, verbs or adjectives. We've used strategies developed in the Polar Regions, but don't recommend them any more than we advise pan tossing.
My wife and I are gradually becoming more temperate and open. But for more than five decades, she has been more consistent, regardless how gross my behavior, or how icy my communications. Whenever it's time to eat, she puts a great meal on the table. She always does the laundry, too. In case you're wondering, I know that those tasks should be mine as much as hers.
By lovingly doing those things, my wife demonstrates that she remembers the vows the minister asked us to recite in 1955 -- "For better or for worse...." Something profound and wonderful impresses me. The fact that she cheerfully and patiently handles the "worse" parts over the years makes the "better" part even better. She is "being transformed into his likeness with ever increasing glory." I pray that God will make me more worthy of him and her.
Do some couples never hear the "worse" part? My wife has received plenty of "worse" from her husband. It amazes me how she remains patient. We were never the kind to throw pots and pans, verbs or adjectives. We've used strategies developed in the Polar Regions, but don't recommend them any more than we advise pan tossing.
My wife and I are gradually becoming more temperate and open. But for more than five decades, she has been more consistent, regardless how gross my behavior, or how icy my communications. Whenever it's time to eat, she puts a great meal on the table. She always does the laundry, too. In case you're wondering, I know that those tasks should be mine as much as hers.
By lovingly doing those things, my wife demonstrates that she remembers the vows the minister asked us to recite in 1955 -- "For better or for worse...." Something profound and wonderful impresses me. The fact that she cheerfully and patiently handles the "worse" parts over the years makes the "better" part even better. She is "being transformed into his likeness with ever increasing glory." I pray that God will make me more worthy of him and her.
