I had a rather rare privilege this past Saturday evening at a Gentleman's Dinner (that, for the uninitiated, is what maybe you would call a bachelor's party, we just roll like that!). I had close to three hours of listening to married men talk about their marriage experience - 33 years, 28 years, 8 years, 2 years, even 24 weeks! And what a wealth it was!
It was so refreshing listening to men who are still madly in love with their wives decades later, seeing men who have gone and done it, have learned to live with their wives, have learned forgiveness and love and making it work, and are enjoying every bit of it. It was amazing to hear a father talk to his son and encourage him to begin the walk of marriage with confidence - not glazing over the bumps that can be found in it, but giving proven tips on how to work through them.
There's nothing that has been dragged in the mud so much over the past few years like marriage has. It has been painted as an impossible thing to do, a misguided idea, a relic on its way out. All sorts of reasons have been thrown up as to why it can't be done, or if it can, why it's no longer viable to say 'till death.' Throw in mixed tribes or mixed races and you're in even bigger trouble, and another litany of 'why nots.'
But for those hours, the men who have gone before us dispelled the myths, encouraged and exhorted us, and near pleaded for us to restore the family and marriage as God intended. They made us laugh, they made us think, they made us hope. Yes, it's possible, even in this day and age, to have a Godly, solid and exciting marriage, to live in the fullness of what God intended for the family unit. It's work, AND it's possible.
To Mr. Mangucia, Mr. Malu, Gilles Mukusa, Kevin Malu, Albert Sabwa, thank you. Thank you for showing the way. To Tray Murundu and Lydia Stern, to Sammy Baita and Anna Marie, Godspeed as you begin the most exciting journey of your lives in just a few days. We're watching in the wings excited for you and urging you on. Yes, marriage will be everything you have hoped it will be, and more!
