07 June, 2021

New Beginnings...

At this time of year, with graduations and end-of-school-year excitement,  my mind always travels back to those "last" days when I was young. There was so much anticipation of what was to come, what great things awaited, those things that were always just out of grasp and view. I ran across this photograph the other day. This was my graduation day from Vermont College in 1973. Mr. G and were just engaged to be married the night before (such young faces!!) we were both on the brink of a whole new beginning and had no idea whatsoever of what was in store for us in the months and years to come!  I wonder what we were both thinking at this moment in time. Fast forward to today, we've only just celebrated our 46th wedding anniversary; and what a blessed life we've led. Each day has held its own surprises and adventures. We think we know how our lives will unfold, we plan and chart our courses; but, as we all know, life can toss us some curve balls. If we're not prepared to run out of our way and remain flexible in what we hope to achieve and when we might get there, we may just end up disappointed, disillusioned and giving up on those dreams all together.  Life isn't a sprint and there's not always a straight line from A to B. My advice to anyone on the brink of a new beginning is to stay firm, hold on to your dreams and not let go. You have no idea what's to come but your loving God does; a God who will never abandon you, one who only wants the very best for you and your life. Be of good faith!
How's this for a portrait of love and commitment? This happy couple celebrated seventy years of marriage yesterday! As a church family we were privileged to celebrate with them yesterday after worship, with cake and heaps of congratulatory wishes we all had the opportunity to hear the story of their wedding day in 1951; the moment that these two, embarking on a new beginning of their own, stepped out in love and faith! Would we live our lives differently if we knew what was ahead? Of course we would. But, that would be living a life without faith, and I can't imagine anything sadder. Believing in God's goodness is the key, for what is the definition of faith but the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. There's where our hope for all new beginnings lies! Greet each day full of hope and expectation, it's not just those big milestone moments like graduations, engagements and weddings but it's each little faith-filled step along the way that gets us to our goals!

Celebrate life every day...
Life is good!

5 comments:

Sherrill said...

You two truly do have a blessed life. 46 years is a long time to be together and still love and cherish each other. I'm always a tad jealous of these long years together as mine and DH's were cut short. He's been gone almost 9 years now and was younger than I am now when he passed. Hope you two have many, many more.

Janet O. said...

A very beautiful post, Mrs. G--not only the story of the beginnings of you and Mr. G, but also the story of the lovely couple celebrating 70 years. What a milestone!
I also appreciated your words about faith and its place in our lives.
Truly, God is good and so is life!
(We have anniversary #43 coming up later this month.)

Deb E said...

Loved reading your post, and seeing the two of you just starting out your life together, and the older couple at 70 years happily married. We have been married 47 years so far, and its passed so quickly -- in the blink of an eye! Best wishes to you! Deb E

Tanya said...

Yes, it does take work. I hope all the young couples at your church will remember the veteran couples and learn to hold fast in all things!

Carole said...

Beautiful post! I needed that. Cheers!