Last Updated: Friday - 09/24/2010
Week of June 23, 2008
Our Marriage is Great
God has fulfilled his promise
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- Photo supplied
The Fortiers on their wedding day in 1964.
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By JEANNE FORTIER
Vegreville
It was May 16, 1964 and it was my wedding day. I glanced outside and the emerald green grass, newly-formed buds, flowers and sunshine reminded me of God's promises about new beginnings. I thought of my upcoming sacrament and it filled me with peace and tranquility.
Our marriage was going to be a new birth. We never even held hands during our courtship. Now with God's gift of our union, we could become one physically, spiritually and emotionally.
At first, it was romance and roses. Then a minor issue blew into a thunderstorm. Our heads were both set that we were the one who was right.
I burst into tears. How could he suddenly turn into someone so stubborn? Then, I don't know how but I remembered our promise and I prayed. It calmed me down and soon we were the closest friends again.
Two sides
When our tempers got set aside, we saw that there are two sides to every issue and we might always see minor details differently. As long as we don't try to blame the other person, we could work it out.
Nine months later, God had an additional gift for us - the birth of our first daughter. For two people in love, the feeling of witnessing this little person grow and develop is just indescribable. It really did deepen the bond between us.
Two years later, our happiness was increased when God blessed us with another girl.
The most special part of our marriage is the never-ending support we give each other.
My husband had a job during the recession. As a result, he was threatened frequently with the loss of it. Nothing meant more to him than providing for his children and me.
One day he came home with an expression of pain written all over his face. I threw my arms around him. I knew he did his best and I fought for him. He did keep this job.
We were only apart when he took courses in Calgary. The house felt so vacant. No one else could fill the void. Days dragged by. Then he came home and the feel of his hand on mine filled me with ecstasy.
Our marriage is full of common interests and the simple joy of being alive with each other. We still go for daily walks and bike rides together.
There are times when we enjoy going the extra mile just to put a smile on each other's face. When you're together for years, instinct tells you what makes the other person happy.
A special gift
I remember the day I found a brand new dryer in the house. He saved and bought it just to make my work easier.
Now we're getting older and serious illnesses hit us. However these crises just remind us how much we still love and need each other.
I could search the whole world and there would be no one else I could fully dissolve myself into and still receive unconditional acceptance.
When God designed marriage, he never meant it to be paradise. But if people follow God's plans, it can provide a closeness and support that nothing else in life can match.
Over 44 years, God has blessed us in our marriage.
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