Married folks, have you ever considered renewing your vows? Casey and I talk about this and maybe one day when we get crazy skilled with a tripod we will photograph our own vow renewal on top of one of our favorite mountains.
I used to be confused as to why people would take the time to get married again… But after almost seven years of marriage, I think I get it! Casey is not the man I married and I’m not the woman he married either. GASP!
But not in a bad way. Rather in the most amazing way. You see, over the past seven years we have done a lot of work to change and grow and evolve together. As we drove through Joshua Tree in a convertible for Casey’s 30th, I was able to tell him with every bone in my body that I liked him and loved him and felt connected to him now more than ever. Not because of who he used to be, but because of who he has become. I’ve been thinking a lot about the street cred, the hours put in, the fighting, the making up, the hard work that married people put in. It’s freaking honorable! I have so much respect for the couples that still hold hands on date-night fifty years in. I always make sure to tell them that they are who I want to be when I grow up. I want a marriage that is ever evolving, ever sharpening, ever blooming, ever ripening, like a good wine… Who doesn’t love a good, aged wine!?
To the engaged, hang on tight. It’s a crazy unexpected ride, full of work. The BEST life work there is.
Don’t take this personal not-yet-married people… But I think there’s even more weight in vows from the mouths of those who actually know what they’re saying, who have actually experienced the weight of “in sickness” and “for poorer”. Those words are easy to say, yet hard to live when actually faced. Once you’ve climbed out of those valleys, those words mean something real, they are substantial and worthy of saying all over again. Maybe even more worthy.
Casey and I have stuck it out through sickness and poorer. One of the reasons I love him even more. We have rewritten our vows and they mean more to me than the original. Probably because they are not canned, but specific to us. They hold weight. Because life has given us street cred, and for this I can be grateful!
One day we will stand on a mountain top and look into each others eyes and speak the new words we’ve chosen to represent our new selves and our new marriage. I actually can’t wait!
If this is something that resonates or excites you, reach out. We’d love to capture this for you too. Because let’s be honest, you’re not the person that you were on your wedding day. You don’t have the same spouse. You are stronger, you are wiser, you are more dependable, your heart has a greater capacity to love, you have more wrinkles from every laughing fit, your skin has more sun spots from every spontaneous trip forgetting sunscreen, you have little humans, creating more love than you could have ever hoped for. Your life is full. Your life is big. And it is worth recognition.