marriage...

I am quickly approaching a year of marriage. Can you believe that? I mean, this time last year, I was packing up my stuff to leave sweet Melanie, storing tons of boxes of gifts in our tiny little office, finalizing details and getting ready to trek to Lubbock. It's gone by so fast.

Of course looking back brings back the nostalgia and makes me start to remember conversations, letters and such that came my way. So today I was reflecting on a couple of comments I had directed at or about me shortly after my engagement.

#1. "Well, of course she's excited. It's her first marriage."
#2. "I'm sure you're happy, but if I could go back and do it again, I wouldn't."

Wow. It's still amazing to me that that was someone's actual response to my engagement. I know the reality is that marriages end in divorce sometimes. That people end up hating eachother or got married when they shouldn't have in the first place. I know that I am naive about many things, but it never occurred to me that MY ENGAGEMENT would be looked down upon by some. The other incident I remember vividly was a conversation at a lunch with some teachers from my school. 2 of these teachers knew me very well and had followed my courtship with Joe closely all the way. The other 2 teachers know very little about me...as evidenced by the conversation. They were shocked to hear that Joe and I were waiting till our wedding night. It's not just in the movies, I actually had the question asked of me, "How do you know you love him if you don't know how he is in bed?" It was one of those moments when time freezes and your mind is racing for an answer that isn't there. I didn't know what to tell her other than that is what I believe. That you wait for your husband and he waits for you. That it's what God intended to happen. Thankfully, this was a respected answer and I earned a lot of credibility with these ladies. (both of whom have been through divorces, yes...plural.) Mostly tho, it earned respect for Joe, who is a king among men apparently, for waiting so long for that right gal to come his way. (They could not believe I found a 27 year old guy who had waited.)

So why am I saying all this now? Good question. I don't know. I just really was thinking about it on the way home today. It makes me sad that there are people so soured on the godly intent of marriage. It has been such a blessing for me and it's sad to know that it hasn't been for everyone. So chalk this up as a rant from Rachel, a stream of conscience typing.

And to sum up....I'm glad I'm naive. I want to believe the best. And I want the best for myself, especially for my family both present and future.