Sometimes the best things in life are right in front of you. I snapped this picture of my in-laws a few years ago. They have been married over 60 years. What inspiration right there. They may know a thing or two, about how this marriage thing works!
The other day I noticed she posted a picture of a buckle Hank had won at Tarleton back in 1958. The buckle is worn and the edges of the the bull and rider knocked off by years of wear. The scroll work beautiful but faint in places. I notice the year is still evident and neatly outlined in a box. The T.S.C. stands for Tarleton State College, which is now Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Tx. I share this because I know she still admires him. I can just picture her picking this buckle up off the dresser and reminiscences about that day. The shoot opening and out erupts a 2000 lb. bull with her man on board. She cheers, then prays, closes her eyes but then decides she doesn’t want to miss it. She cheers at his score but is more relieved that he’s got both feet on the ground, when it’s all said and done.
Today, on Valentine’s Day we will see pictures of young cute couples, like they stepped off the pages of a shiny magazine, flawless. Nothing wrong with that but don’t you know some young couple out there will see their pearly whites and silky skin and think to themselves, “We don’t look like them at all!” “We don’t look as happy as they do!” They may even get some out of whack notion that they are failures. They will begin to evaluate and size up, counting up all their imperfections and maybe they will believe a lie.
“This couple must have it all figured out!”. Besides, how did they afford that house or that pickup? They may even think…did I pick the wrong person?
But instead I’d rather see folks like my in-laws, plastered on the walls of social media. They are the couples that can tell us how it’s done. It is the couples that stand together through sickness and empty pockets. The ones who root for each other when no one else does. We need to show pictures of the husband at home with the three year old while the wife has been looking after a newborn in ICU, for the past three months. We need to show the picture of the wife bringing lunch… and a smile….to her discouraged husband, laid up on the couch from the horse that blew up with him.
What about the couple who is working two jobs to dig out from the pile of debt they incurred while trying to “look” like everyone else. Show them arguing over bills but then show them again after they figure how great it is to be free from “looking” like everyone else.
I like this couple… because that’s real. I want my husband to reach for my hand in the middle of the street after 60 years of marriage.
I challenge you today…to post a picture of a couple you admire. A couple who you’ve seen not only during the good days…believe me there’s plenty of those and that’s awesome!! But post the picture of the couple who’ve had some hard knocks in life and dust each other off. Yes sir!! Now that’s western!
Let me leave you with this….
“Two are better than one,
because they have a good return for their labor:
If either of them falls down,
one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
and has no one to help them up.
Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
But how can one keep warm alone?
Though one may be overpowered,
two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.
Ecc. 4:9-12 NIV
How about you…what couples do you admire? Love hearing from you and thank you for reading…..thecowboypastorswife
Leave a Reply
Your email is safe with us.