Last weekend, my husband and I attended the wedding of one of my son David’s longest and closest friends. During her growing up years, Lily was like my second daughter, spending a great deal of time at my house and with my family. Now seated behind Lily’s parents during the ceremony and next to her mother at the reception dinner, I wept with joy for Lily and Viktor’s unabashed happiness.
Among my children’s friends, several couples will exchange vows in the coming year. David said, “They want the ring.” I asked myself, what ring do they desire? What ring had I desired when I was their age?
With many of my girlfriends getting married after graduating from college, I, too, became eager for a ring: security, partnership and children. Truth be told, I was also afraid of being alone, afraid that nobody I liked would want me, afraid of things that were out of my control. Not surprisingly, I got married and had children, everything I feared happened, and my marriage ended in divorce.
Several years and much soul-searching later, I got back on the carousel of life and reached for the golden ring. This time I knew what I wanted: faith, hope and love. That ring guides Keith and me through our days especially the hard times, which challenge us to do what does not seem within our capabilities.
Faith, hope and love, the ring that Lily and Viktor wear on their fingers. This is the ring I wish for all our children, our life blessings.
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