From Red Skelton's "The Perfect Marriage" I share these heart-warming thoughts:
I take my wife everywhere..... but she keeps finding her way back.We always hold hands. If I let go, she shops.She has an electric blender, electric toaster and electric bread maker. She said "There are too many gadgets, and no place to sit down!" So I bought her an electric chair.
Very simply: the secret of a lasting marriage and a happy life is gratitude. That is deceptively simple and wants illustration.
A U-tube video has a young man sharing this story:
It was September 30th, 2008 when the doctorsaid my Mom had a cardiac arrest; they told me that I had to make a decision: they said we could do (a) try to revive her but we'll probably break every bone in her body and she is feeling all the pain or (b) you know, we'll just let life take its course and you know we'll let her pass in peace.
So I made the decision to let her go. I remember I just lay at her side and I was just weeping like crazy. I told her everything I was grateful for; I told her thank you so much for how you raised me. And the sad thing about it is that was the only time I did it. I never did it before; I never told my Mom how much I loved her. I never told her; I never told her anything until that moment.
After that I remember I kissed her and I said goodbye.
The secret of sustaining a marriage is also gratitude. Many marriages today break up simply because one or both parties have forgotten the love shared in sacrifice to the other. At a time in their lives when this sacrifice should be most appreciated, it is often forgotten.
I remember this love best expressed in the Bette Middler song "In This Life":
Let the world stop turning.Let the sun stop burning.Let them tell me love's not worth going through.If it all falls apart,I will know deep in my heartthe only dream that mattered had come true:In this life I was loved by you.
The secret of sustaining a marriage is gratitude. The secret of a sustained relationship with God is gratitude. We will never break our relationship with God if we are truly grateful.
In the story "The Sun Shines in Our Windows" a young boy lives in a house on a hill overlooking a beautiful valley. Every night he marvels at the beauty of the sun reflected in the windows of the house across the valley. One day he visits that house. It gets late and he is invited to stay the night.
A girl his age tells him he will have to be up at sunrise to see this beautiful house across the valley that catches the morning sunrise. Sure enough next morning when he looks out across the hills he sees this house that dazzles with the rising sun; he is shocked to find it is his own little cottage.
Lord, let us be open to the beauty and gift of that which is as close as family and home. Keep us grateful daily for the wonderful gifts we often take for granted.
