A marriage remembered

Somewhere in London

HER eyes lit up as I slipped the ring into her finger, moments after we entered into a union that both of us wanted so much to last for as long as we breathe. It was 25 years and two beautiful daughters ago.
 I could still look back at the time with much fondness, though both of us now have greying hairs. To me she never got one minute older from the time we vowed to share our lives ahead. I love her as much now as I loved her then.

 Through the years, she has stood by me, unwavering in her love through thick and thin. There were challenges here and there and the many times that we were apart, while in pursuit of our dreams, I always knew that in her heart of hearts, I was always there.
 We were on separate ends when we met, in many more ways than one. For one, we needed passports to see each other, she being a national of a neighbour in our south.
 Then, I was at the extreme end of many of the traits she has. To this day, I still cannot figure out how such an organised person as her could fall for someone who lived life by the day, whose span of attention was so constantly out-of-focus that even crossing a street was a challenge and whose long-term outlook stretched no further than dinner time.
 I was a disorganised wreck when she met me. Yet she stood by me over the years, patiently helping me to get my life, and eventually ours, together. When she first held my hands across a busy street, I knew she would be by my side forever.
 She has also been my best friend throughout and likewise, I have always been the first she'd turn to for anything from an opinion whether her skirt matches with her blouse or whether I'd be kind enough to wash her car.
 While she has always been the enforcer of sorts in the house, keeping our two beloved daughters under her sharp watchful eye, she has always respected me as captain of the ship.
 These days we look back at those years with fondness. Deep in our hearts, we are glad that we found one another and when she sometimes hold my hand and say that she loves me as much now as she loved me then, I know we can at least hope for some more years together.

ENDS.