Love

I am helping with a wedding this weekend.

I have had many opportunities to talk with the bride and groom over the last several months as they went through the process of being friends to the commitment of marriage. They are not in the first blush of youth in their lives, yet making the commitment to marry and share their lives forever seems overwhelming at times.

We had many opportunities to discuss this thing called love. Is it a feeling?? Is it a commitment?? Is it passion??

As we talked, and I continued to think, I realized that truly loving someone is trust and contentment. It is deciding to walk the path of life together and then working to make that walk enjoyable. Sometimes there is passion. Sometimes the feelings of joy are overwhelmingly wonderful. But, most often marriage is trust.

I am thankful that I was able to find someone to love and trust early in my youth. We have had a good marriage and I do love him more today than when we married 38 years ago. After many life experiences I trust him more too. Has our life been easy?? NO!! Have we made mistakes and disappointed each other on occasion?? Yes. Yet we have tried to work out the differences and keep walking, learning to trust and depend on each other through each bump we encountered.

I tell my children that they can win in the game of marriage only when they keep trying. It is if they choose to quit that they will lose. Trying to figure it out is a winning effort. In time everything improves.

Yes, love is passion, a feeling and a commitment. But, mostly it is trust and a feeling of contentment.