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Tuesday, January 06, 2009

Marriage and stuff

So this year will be a landmark one for us. Me and the hubby's 10th anniversary is in May. When we first eloped, people said we wouldn't last 6 months. And here we are. I know a lot of that has to do with the fact that we're both stubborn. Stubborn enough to stay together just to prove those people wrong. The will to do that has pulled us through some pretty rough times.

There is something else though, that has been there, working quietly behind the scenes. The advice of my great grandmother, given to us the first summer we were married. She passed away a few years later, but her quiet voice's sage advice has stayed with me.

In 1999, we had been married all of 2 months when we visited my great grandparents. My great grandfather was one of those people with a presence. A tall man, even in old age, with a deep booming voice. As we were all sitting around chatting, he turned to my new husband and said "We've been married 68 years, think you can make it?" The hubby sat there looking like a deer caught in headlights.

That's when my great grandmother spoke up. She was a little woman with a small voice. She looked at the hubby and said "Just take it one day at a time dear."

Such a simple sentence has turned out to be the best marriage advice we have ever gotten. And here we are, almost 10 years later.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

congratulations... I think family probably feels the same way about my wife and I... we're a little past 6 years. I figure it's probably because we just eloped and got married without having a whole ceremony and everything... since "that's what you do when you get married" according to most. Oh well.

Michelle said...

I think Grandmas often give the best advice of all. Ours will be 18 years this year and we take it one day at a time too :) We got married very young too... just 18 and 19 years old and no one thought we'd last. After 18 years and almost 9 kids I think we can laugh and say I told you so!