I Do

They exchange a glance, a smile, a word, a set of telephone numbers. They share experiences, adventures, and memories. They fiddle = awkwardly through first touches and kisses. They wrestle through arguments and reconcile with passionate forgiveness. They say “I love you.” They say “I do.”

They make a choice to have and also to hold. In the riches and through the depths of potential poverty, they have each other. in hospital beds writhing with illness as in wellness they hold each other.

Through sorrow. Through tragedy. Through joy. Through prosperity.

Through the birth of the first bubbly baby, and the loss of the second.

Through the purchase of their pleasant property, and the bankruptcy that took it away.

Through the acquisition of aching addiction, and the trust that was rebuilt

Through the growing of their gracious grays, until the last day.

She weeps.

Over love that was both had and lost. A love that flowed more than it ebbed. Marked by growth in each of them, towards the hope of becoming better than they were before. They made each other strong. They gave a place to belong. That love lives on.