CAROLYN’S COMPOSITIONS
FROM A FIRST DATE TO A 42ND ANNIVERSARY
Monte and I celebrated our 42nd wedding anniversary September 3, after we left home to travel along the Atlantic coast. Because the computers were not accessed as easily while traveling this time, I did not get this item posted in a timely manner.Actually, we spent eight hours on September 3 in the Historical Society of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, toured the ghetto in Camden, New Jersey in the evening and ended the day having dinner at the Bahama Breeze in Cherry Hill, New Jersey (SNAPSHOT ENCOUNTERS: Brief Meetings With People #3) gives a short story on these three events).
Below is a short piece I wrote for a writers conference competition a few years ago. The subject was “a life changing moment.”
As I reached for the phone that quiet evening in February, 1966, I wiped sudsy hands on my apron.
“Hello.”
“Hi,” answered the man I dated the week before. The call surprised me because nervousness made me behave rudely on our first date. During the bad movie I made snide remarks, and over pizza I taunted him about teaching physics and being religious. His call was also unexpected because the guys I liked usually didn’t call me back. And I liked this man.
Suddenly a voice superimposed itself on our telephone connection. Soft and fleeting, it said “He will be your husband…and he will be a preacher.” The unusual message flashed so rapidly I wouldn’t have noticed it except for its intensity. At gut-level I recognized this was a word of knowledge.
“I was wondering if you would like to go to a concert with me this weekend,” he asked, snapping me back to reality.
We began dating in February, and the only surprise about his June proposal was the timing. We married on September 3, 1966.
Fifteen years later he attended seminary and became a pastor.
Throughout our marriage I’ve considered throwing in the towel numerous times, but each time we entered troubled waters the word of knowledge reminded me I this was where God wanted me. This reassurance caused me to seek understanding of why I was in this relationship rather than how to escape it.
We celebrate forty-two years of marriage today because that momentous phone call and word of knowledge changed my life.
Our “official” celebration in Philadelphia occurred the following night, when we met with Tom and Michelle. Tom had been an usher in our wedding, and we hadn’t seen each other for about thirty years.
What is your opinion?