April 27, 1968. It seems like ages ago, and at the same time like yesterday. Daniel and I would have been married 44 years today. What was our wedding day like?
Busy, I guess would be the best way to describe it. Like most wedding days.
We were married in Miracle Valley, AZ by Rev. Bud Dunn.
As I set here looking at the pictures there is one of us with both sets of parents. What I see is, from that picture my mother and I are the only ones still living. (My mother will be 90 in a few days by the way)
We became engaged on Valentine's day in 1968 and were married a couple of months later. :) No long engagement for us.
(sigh) Where did the years go? When you set out on a journey thinking you know how it will end, it is always a surprise to look back and see how short it was and how the ending turned out.
On that day 44 years ago I would not have guessed we would end up living in the Pacific Northwest or that Daniel would die here. We thought we would always live in Arizona. Then we thought we would always live in Iowa. Then we always felt we would live a little while longer, but the reality is we do not.
Now comes the reality of coping with the days after someone you have loved and lived with for nearly 44 years is no longer here.
I have a little journel book that I write in. (I may have mentioned this before.) I have been writing in it a year now. I started on this day last year. I was setting on my bed in a care center. My husband had been gone only five months. I had fallen, broke my arm, and had surgery ten days before. I desperately needed to talk to Daniel. OH how I longed for him to be there to take care of me, to take me home. I was there with strangers helping me with unmentionable things I could not do for myself. In my hour of sorrow and really, really being down in the dumps, a young lady from the church I attend came to visit me at the care facility. I poured out my heart to her. ( I guess she just happened to be in the right place at the right time) She was kind enough to bring me the little journel book. It was a life saver for me. I started writing as though I were writing a letter to Daniel. I have been writing to him ever since.
When I fell I was wearing the dress Daniel bought me for our 40th anniversary. In the emergancy room they started to cut it off . I said, "NO, don't cut it. I will take it off." They looked at me like I was delusional. My arm was broken how would I get a dress off. I managed to get it up over my head and all except for the arm that was broken. They had to cut that part. I was able to save the dress, and have it repaired. There is something about tangable things, like a dress, that we need to hang on to.
The little journel book helps me to hang on to past memories and let's me record new ones.
I know my Daniel is celebrating our anniversary around the throne of God today. I know some day I will be there too. But, in the meantime I will continue to write my thoughts in the little journel. Taking comfort in telling him the things I would if he were still here.
Through all this remembering and looking back, we have to remember God tells us we have no assurance of tomorrow. He tells us all that our days are like a vapour. Yet, we seem to think they will last forever. That nothing will change, things will always be the way they were. We put things off. Thinking we will have time to "fix it later", "tell her/him later", "go visit them tomorrow". Truth? There is no assurance of tomorrow. Tell him/her, visit those loved ones today.
Happy Anniversary Daniel
Busy, I guess would be the best way to describe it. Like most wedding days.
We were married in Miracle Valley, AZ by Rev. Bud Dunn.
As I set here looking at the pictures there is one of us with both sets of parents. What I see is, from that picture my mother and I are the only ones still living. (My mother will be 90 in a few days by the way)
We became engaged on Valentine's day in 1968 and were married a couple of months later. :) No long engagement for us.
(sigh) Where did the years go? When you set out on a journey thinking you know how it will end, it is always a surprise to look back and see how short it was and how the ending turned out.
On that day 44 years ago I would not have guessed we would end up living in the Pacific Northwest or that Daniel would die here. We thought we would always live in Arizona. Then we thought we would always live in Iowa. Then we always felt we would live a little while longer, but the reality is we do not.
Now comes the reality of coping with the days after someone you have loved and lived with for nearly 44 years is no longer here.
I have a little journel book that I write in. (I may have mentioned this before.) I have been writing in it a year now. I started on this day last year. I was setting on my bed in a care center. My husband had been gone only five months. I had fallen, broke my arm, and had surgery ten days before. I desperately needed to talk to Daniel. OH how I longed for him to be there to take care of me, to take me home. I was there with strangers helping me with unmentionable things I could not do for myself. In my hour of sorrow and really, really being down in the dumps, a young lady from the church I attend came to visit me at the care facility. I poured out my heart to her. ( I guess she just happened to be in the right place at the right time) She was kind enough to bring me the little journel book. It was a life saver for me. I started writing as though I were writing a letter to Daniel. I have been writing to him ever since.
When I fell I was wearing the dress Daniel bought me for our 40th anniversary. In the emergancy room they started to cut it off . I said, "NO, don't cut it. I will take it off." They looked at me like I was delusional. My arm was broken how would I get a dress off. I managed to get it up over my head and all except for the arm that was broken. They had to cut that part. I was able to save the dress, and have it repaired. There is something about tangable things, like a dress, that we need to hang on to.
The little journel book helps me to hang on to past memories and let's me record new ones.
I know my Daniel is celebrating our anniversary around the throne of God today. I know some day I will be there too. But, in the meantime I will continue to write my thoughts in the little journel. Taking comfort in telling him the things I would if he were still here.
Through all this remembering and looking back, we have to remember God tells us we have no assurance of tomorrow. He tells us all that our days are like a vapour. Yet, we seem to think they will last forever. That nothing will change, things will always be the way they were. We put things off. Thinking we will have time to "fix it later", "tell her/him later", "go visit them tomorrow". Truth? There is no assurance of tomorrow. Tell him/her, visit those loved ones today.
Happy Anniversary Daniel
