Your Life's Witness

A quote from the movie Shall We Dance?: "There's a billion people on the planet. I mean what does any one life really mean? But in a marriage, you're promising to care about everything. The good things. The bad things. The terrible things. The mundane things. All of it. All the time. Every day. You're saying, 'Your life will not go unnoticed because I will notice it. Your life will not go unwitnessed because I will be your witness'."

I was reminded of the movie and these words, as I read a new chapter of Love and War by John and Stasi Eldredge.

I was inspired to write on the subject in honor of a very special couple I have had the privilege to know.

I will try to give you some background information as clearly but briefly as possible.

I met Carol and Bill about 8-9 years ago. In my eyes they resemble Meryl Streep and Robert Redford. To me, they are a most classy older couple. Funny, witty, quick, smart, good looking, charming. As a couple, they possess perfect chemistry. She picks up where he leaves off. He teases her to get a quick response. He puts his arm around her and opens up doors for her. She reaches over and touches his hand and softly pushes the hair away from his eyes. (Got to love it!) They are my idols....

Well, some time ago Carol gave me some "teaching" material to be used in my classroom. With this material, items such as daily calendars came along. So I have one that sits on my kitchen counter. It has the spiral binder affect that you can flip the page to a new one each day. It has the month and day (the year is not included, so you can reuse every year), and it also includes "meditations" for the day. I always look forward to flipping the page and reading the next "meditation".

However, lately I have noticed some additional writing on some of the pages. Mostly numbers. Numbers. This went unnoticed until recently when I began looking a little closer to read what these numbers represented. I found on the left side of the page was Carol's name and some numbers. On the right side was Bill's name and numbers. Numbers.

Here's an example:

Top left corner-Carol --- 155/109---P 60-----9 a.m.-----Top left corner-Bill--- 153/111--- P 67

Bottom left corner- 149/87---P 79-----9 p.m.-----Bottom right corner- 159/99--- P 70

Numbers? I finally got it! These numbers represent daily blood pressure readings. Morning and night.

Did I lose anyone?

They are recordings of Carol and Bill's blood pressure readings. Okay.... sounds mundane enough.

NO... not to me. To me, it is right out of a love story. This is what it's all about! Checking each other's blood pressure. Sharing each other's toothpaste. Waiting your turn for the bathroom. Sleeping in the same bed. Sharing a cup of coffee or maybe it's tea. Standing by when the other feels like debilitating. Standing close enough to reassure the other that he/she is not alone. Sitting in the same room, nothing being said. And yet feeling content. Having each other's presence speaks volumes loud and clear.

Someone is there for you. The same "someone" who was there 45 years ago. The someone who reminds you that your life has not gone unnoticed.

It is your life's witness.

This is what it's all about...

Happy Anniversary, friends!

"Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up..." Ecclesiastes 4:9-10a