Life...Together

My nana passed away about a week ago. She was 97. We held her funeral on Monday. My pop-pop, her husband, died in 2003. When he died they had been married for 75 years. 75 years! This fact, in combination with watching my parents over the past week, has left me thinking about what it means to spend the rest of my life with someone.

I now understand why it’s so important that the person you spend your life with be more than just a lover, but a friend, a friend that either is or can become your best friend. There is far more to a marriage than sex, but somehow sex is often what so many of us single people think about when we think about a lifelong commitment, at least those of us who have decided to wait. Yet, sex is just one component of what makes a loving relationship a success. I imagine that when physical beauty has faded, there should be an inner beauty which never fades, an attraction based on what’s inside that grows stronger with the passing of time. I know for a fact that my grandparents didn’t have sex for the last 19 years of their marriage. Yet, they loved deeply. My parents on the other hand, are hornballs. They’re also best friends, who love deeply.

So, what would it be like to spend the rest of my life with one person? No children. No pets. Just the two of us. Sitting with company or in silence. Enjoying one another and at times, our loved ones. Cooking together. Laughing together. At times annoyed with one another. Attending church together. Running together. Hiking together. Watching the sun rise and set, together. Two hearts joined together, whether physically together or apart. What would that be like?


- Bryan