This post is a bit different. It is deeply personal. Today, Hersey and I celebrate our 29^th year married. I feel so fortunate to be able to help couples create the exact sentiment and feel for their day. Over the years, I have been able to put to paper, what is difficult in words. There are a million readings out there, but if I could boil down 29 years of marriage into a single reading, it would be this.

The Art of Marriage

by Wilferd Arlan Peterson

Happiness in marriage is not something that just happens.
A good marriage must be created. In marriage the little things are the big things.
It is never being too old to hold hands.
It is remembering to say “I love you” at least once a day.
It is never going to sleep angry.
It is at no time taking the other for granted; the courtship should not end with the honeymoon, it should continue through the years.
It is having a mutual sense of values and common objectives.
It is standing together facing the world. It is forming a circle of love that gathers the whole family.

It is doing things for each other, not in the attitude of duty or sacrifice, but in the spirit of joy.
It is speaking words of appreciation and demonstrating gratitude in thoughtful ways.
It is not looking for perfection in each other.
It is cultivating flexibility, patience, understanding and a sense of humour.
It is having the capacity to forgive and forget.
It is giving each other an atmosphere in which each can grow old.
It is a common search for the good and the beautiful.
It is establishing a relationship in which the independence is equal, dependence is mutual and the obligation is reciprocal.
It is not only marrying the right partner; it is being the right partner.

And so, with this, I say Happy Anniversary to my partner in crime, who has stuck with me through thick and thin, no matter the weather. Thank you, my dear, sweet Hersey. Thank you for choosing me… all those years ago.