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Twenty years… Seems like a long time, doesn’t it? Yeah, that’s how long we have been married and yet it feels like… (no, I won’t say yesterday) …probably our 6th or 7th anniversary. But you know what? We could have gotten away with that thought if not for our kids; kids who are 16 and 13 now! So yeah, we can’t escape. There is proof that we have been married that long in case our mind doesn’t seem to register that.
Twenty years… it’s sort of a milestone, isn’t it? Shouldn’t we be planning something spectacular? May be a trip to our dream destination; a grand gala event; expensive gifts. Probably. But no. We have no such plans as of now!
As my husband put it, “It’s our 20th year, my dear, it deserves a year-long celebration! Let’s not reserve it for just this day alone.”
It’s not how much we spend on the anniversary that makes it special, though that is exactly how the outside world seems to see it. And somehow, we end up convincing the same to our inside world, too. We end up measuring our happiness by the amount of money we spend on celebrating. Not that it’s a deliberate attempt to show the world anything, but sometimes we just use money as a yardstick to measure the amount of love we have for one another.
But we all know it’s not all in the glittery show. It’s in the quiet togetherness we feel; it’s in the warmth of love that keeps multiplying manifold with each passing year; it’s in the cozy family we created together; a small cocoon, a safe haven in this big world; it’s in the affection and bonding we share; it’s in the little things we do for each other.
There have been anniversaries before that involved diamonds, trips to dream destinations and gala celebrations at expensive hotels! But this time, though we kept thinking that it’s a milestone year, and we should be doing something extraordinary, we really didn’t feel the need to impose such expectations on ourselves, just for the sake of it.
There have been a number of days when we had done extraordinary things for each other, have had impromptu celebrations for no rhyme or reason, and booked vacations to enjoy time together as a family. No special occasion. Just because we felt like it.
This time around, with the kids’ exams going on full swing, (though that’s not an excuse) we didn’t feel the need to do anything elaborate and just wanted something simple. Something soulful. A day doing just the things we would love to do; simple pleasures in life, you see.
So we started planning; we decided to start the day watching the sunrise on the beach, while sipping coffee together; sounds good to me! Then followed by a relaxed breakfast right on the beach watching surfers and kayakers doing their thing; then a restful day spent at home to freshen up and recharge for a musical evening listening to our all-time favourite singer belt out some of the evergreen yesteryear songs we grew up with, and then ending the day with a quiet candle-light dinner at a sea-side restaurant listening to the waves crashing in and soaking in the gentle ocean breeze blowing on our faces. Seems just about right! Sounds like a plan to me…
I am grateful for the blessings I have in my life; my absolutely wonderful husband and my adorable kids. I am grateful for being able to experience all this love in my life. I am grateful for all the choicest blessings God has showered me with already. Diamonds are great, but this…this is even better, better than the best there is!
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