seven years

Seven years ago today, we made our vows. That means that we've concluded seven whole years of marriage. Seven years of matrimony doesn't seem that impressive when you consider that lots of people have been married, like...forty years. But since I'm not even forty years old, I don't consider that to be an obtainable goal for myself. Seven years is good.

Seven years is as long as it took me to get through middle and high school.

(Seven years of marriage has definitely been better than middle and high school, which is saying something. I loved middle and high school, bless my heart.)

I tried to think of other significant things that happen in sevens, but I'm coming up mostly blank. All I can think of is the Harry Potter books (shocking, I know), which happen to be seven volumes covering seven years. And although I'm still 100 pages from the end of Book 7 right now (which means it's a damn MIRACLE that I'm blogging and not reading, okay?) and don't yet know how it ends, I have heard that the ending will supposedly be satisfying. Everyone tells me that my mind will be blown, that all of the pieces will fall into place, that the details and mysteries of the first six years all prove to have been intentional, to serve a purpose, and to come together into a conclusion that is meaningful and satisfying. I can't wait to see what happens, and I'm savoring every paragraph as I quickly make my way to the end.

And although our marriage is nowhere near its end, I'd like to think that you can look at it kind of the same way. These seven years haven't always been easy. Like a brilliant book series, there have been rises and falls, mysteries solved while other mysteries remain, laughter and tears, heartache and unfinished business. I have no idea, most of the time, where the story is going next- I can only enjoy (or endure) where it is at the time. But even during the hardest chapters, the ones where you're sobbing and angry and not sure where the story goes from here...you keep going, trusting that the author knows what they're doing. 

I trust that the Author knows where we're going. And that the story will be good.

Our seventh year of marriage didn't play out quite how we'd hoped. There were a lot more sad chapters than I would have chosen. But there were a lot of good things, too. Adventures. Happiness. Moments of bliss and peace. One day, maybe, we'll look back and say Year Seven was awesome. It was crazy at the time, but later, when you look back...it all made sense. Because I think that the Author knows what he's doing here. Nothing is by chance.

I am incredibly thankful for Mattie, my partner in adventure and misery and whatever else life throws at us. I love almost everything about him (an exception being made for this one really abnormal nose hair he has that grows at like six times the rate of any other nose hair...I do not love that, nor do I love when Matt tortures me by pretending he's going to touch me with it) and love that he loves (or at least tolerates) almost everything about me. There is no one else I would rather do life with. 

Happy Anniversary, Mattie. Since you started reading my blog semi-regularly at some point during our seventh year of marriage, there's actually a chance you may see this someday. Thanks for letting me express my love for you by constantly torturing and pranking you, and thanks for still never laughing at my jokes. I can't imagine the self-control that that requires- I stand in awe. Thanks for always wanting to be twinsies with me and getting as excited about stupid stuff as I do. As always, I hope that the next year of our marriage is the best one yet-- but by now, I've lived and learned enough to know that even if it isn't...it'll still be pretty good, and it will definitely be worth it. I love you!

More Overly Verbose Anniversary Meditations:

Six Years

Five Years

Four Years

Three Years

Two Years

One Year