“Us” on the Back Cover

Our story is similar to so many others…. but, to us, it is special.

We went to high school together and had numerous mutual friends, however, we didn’t really meet until our mid 20s.  After a whirlwind year of dating and meeting family and friends, we married in a large Catholic wedding.

All the proper steps were covered-  a time for courtship, the formal request for hand in marriage, attended “Pre-Cana” (marriage preparation for Catholics), and the full mass to celebrate our sacramental union.  The combination of cultures was represented and the symbolic activities included  being wrapped in Mexican wedding lasso (double rosary), receiving first coins, candle ceremony, and of course, the something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue.

After the wedding day, we stored everything -the ceremony, the symbols, and the actual blessings into storage and they were not pulled out again until it was too late.

We continued on our whirlwind – raising a family, getting in and out of debt, growing older and building walls and resentments along the way.  We forgot the lessons we learned and we ignored God’s encouragement to look to Him.  Even though we attended mass often… we only warmed the pews, not our hearts.

Well, it was inevitable – after 22 years we became a statistic… part of the greater than 50% of marriages that end in divorce.  That was when we went to court and severed our marriage.  This part of our journey included all the bitterness and feuding we could muster too.  Friendships were challenged – some lost even.  Children (even as young adults) were hurt.  Everything we knew and were familiar with changed.

This is where the story gets interesting though.  After that courtroom divorce, we managed to survive – each in our own way.   Maybe the real word is exist. We just barely did that for a little while.

Pay attention because this is where some really miraculous stuff started happening.  We started to rebuild and find ourselves.  Who knew we were so broken?  How did that happen?  Why did that happen?  With a lot of work and change and time we were able to rebuild and even restore our marriage.  This time on a very firm foundation.  This time with God truly invited and very much a part of our lives.

We want to share our lessons and continue to learn and grow with our own.  Are you ready?