60 years!

Today is my parent's 60th anniversary!  60 years of marriage!  In today's disposable, all about me world that seems almost impossible, but they have made it work all these years.  Mom and Dad met at BYU.  Dad and his roommates had a running bet about having a date every night while maintaining a B average.  Dad's roommate was engaged to my Mom's roommate, and one night after Dad's date had fallen through, he asked Mom out so he wouldn't lose the bet.  Although before the date they hadn't been too impressed with each other, after the date something clearly changed, because they were engaged two weeks later.  After a 7 month engagement, they were married in the Idaho Falls Temple.

I know that not every marriage works out the way we hope it will, but I am grateful for their example of working things out, and never giving up on each other. I remember once when my parents had a fight, and I was afraid that they would get divorced.  After they had worked things out they explained to me that, yes, they sometimes disagreed, but that didn't change the way they felt about each other.  They told me that they had made promises to each other and to Heavenly Father and they were going to keep those promises. From them I learned that marriage is hard, but enjoyable, work.  From them I learned that you have to continue to date, and care for one another.  From them I learned that you always hold hands, and they still do by the way.  From them I learned that putting the Lord first in your lives makes your marriage stronger.  From them I learned to work, to value time spent together as a family, and to live the gospel.  They were my prime gospel teachers. They became my best friends when we lived in Brazil for 3 years.  They taught me that when a love of God permeates your home and your heart, peace prevails.

My parents are in their 80's now. With the passage of time, the inevitable aches and pains and other losses are apparent.  They walk with slow and sometimes faltering steps, but I feel no cause to complain.  My heart is full of gratitude, that I have been blessed to have them be a part of my life here for so many years.