I like you anyway!

A younger friend, going through one of those troughs that show up now and then in marriages, asked me for the secret to a long, full-filling relationship. 

So I asked my son--he and Tami have been married 26 years and seem more in love now than when they first married--and my daughter who has a deep, loving friendship with her husband of 32 years. 

My daughter said her theory about creating a long-lasting relationship is this simply statement: 

                “I like you anyway.”

Because here is a great truth: each of us has habits of thought or behavior that inevitably irritate the special other in our lives. And ironically, it may be the very quality that most attracted us to the other! 

My daughter is wonderfully artistic. She also tends to clutter. Her husband loves her artistry; but the way she fills every surface?  Not so much. He, on the other hand, is addicted to ESPN sports shows, which  she tries to tune out.

Ever said  to your beloved,“You do this thing that makes me crazy"?  Next time, add this little phrase: 

“But I like you anyway.”

What are you waiting for?

Recently, I read “There are no tomorrows; only a string of todays.” How ironic that we grow up not realizing this. Instead, we are taught to dream forward. To yearn for some day.

Someday

WHEN...
I am rich
I am thin
I am in love
I am successfu
I am secure

THEN...
I shall be happy.

But when someday comes, it is always NOW.
This very moment is all that any of us can be certain we have.
If you think about your own life,  you know this is true.

Jesus said to the rich young man,
“Drop what you are doing and follow me. Come NOW.”
But the rich young man was afraid to let go.  He said,

AFTER...
I have checked on my business
Saved more money
Met more of my goals

THEN...
I shall  follow you.

But the universal God is always saying to us,
NOT when. NOT after.  NOT someday.
Someday is fantasy. TODAY is what we have.


Do it. Live it. Experience your life. NOW.

What do reunions tell us?

My friend Jim Todd and I attended his 50th college reunion. As I listened to the bios being read and watched the grey-haired men and women stand and smile at former classmates, I wondered again: what is it about school reunions? Why get dressed up to renew your acquaintance with people you haven’t seen in 20, 40, even 50 years--and may not see again? 

I think the person we really meet at reunions is ourselves. In the faces and stories of others we see a reflection of our own youthful dreams.  And we may ask:  Has my life turned out as I once dreamed it would?  

Initially, some might say no. Most lives hold surprises. And inevitably, some disappointments. 

But reunions can remind us also of how far we have come in our personal search for wisdom and greater understanding. Sometimes we learn the most from our greatest trials. 

It's certainly been true in my own life. So as I moved about at Jim's reunion, I thought, "This is fun, but oh, I'm so glad not to be as young and unformed as I was on the day of graduation."  How about you?  Would you say the same?