Marriage is not for the faint-hearted.
And if we are being honest, life isn’t either.
We wanted to share our point of view of life, because if it resonates with you then we just might be some type of soulmates. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately, more on that in a bit), we cannot immortalize the life we live, no matter how hard we try. And, man, do we try. If we are all deeply honest with each other, we spend entire lives trying to do so. Everything from youth, to time, to money, and even memories.
As the years have gone by, we have become somewhat obsessed with contemplating this reality almost daily. Actually more than just contemplating it, we have been trying really hard to accept it. To not let ourselves forget that this is not forever, none of this is. All the beauty and all the tragedy our individual lives have to offer is finite.
In our line of work, the focus is the journey of marriage, of family, essentially joining the past with the future. We meet two people, in love, with the distant glimmer of a future they have yet to see but one they feel in their hearts as certain.
What most people do not talk about, is that marriage is a mirror of life. It is not for the faint-hearted and above all, life is not forever.
We have been a part of hundreds of weddings and if there is one piece of invaluable wisdom that we have learned and that we would like to extend to you, is that your wedding day is just a start, not an ending. It isn’t something that will even remotely define who you will become. It says who you are right now, not who you will become.
Truth is, for the years that you have each other, you will love hard. So hard. You will hurt as well. You will gain and you will lose. All of that becoming the perfect stage for the transformation of two people. Marriage will break you in all the right places and build you right back up again, better than ever. Embrace it, all of it.
So maybe, just maybe, it is fortunate that we cannot immortalize our lives.
It gives us the chance to live them and live them well. Live your life like it’s the only one you’ve got, because it is.
Love hard. Hurt hard. Forgive lots. Laugh even more (and especially after the fights). Be sexy, be silly. Open your souls to each other with such a vulnerability that being naked with each other doesn’t even primarily refer to anything physical in your relationship. Be honest. Be loyal. Have fancy dates, have simple ones too. Be a refuge for each other, a healing home for your hearts. Challenges are seeds of growth so tend to them, don’t run from them.
Relish in your now, because now is now and next time is next time.
We aren’t telling you this from many years of “experience.” We are telling you this straight from the ring where we fight the fight every day, right next to you. So take heart, because none of this is for the faint-hearted. Someone once told us, “La vida es para los valientes” (life is for the brave ones).
It’s for you and for us.
Life is a gift. To forget that, is easy. But to remember it, is so important.
- Nathaniel Drew