Have you ever seen an older couple, who have been together
forever, and who you can see are just so in love, that their love radiates
outward. There is really nothing like it, so much so, that if it were not rude
or weird, I would go up to them, and ask them what their secret was. When I see
a young couple, I wonder and I hope that they one day will be that older
couple. So, how do you get there? I strongly suspect that Sabrina and Gary are
one of those couples. I think that if we listen to them, we might discover the
secret.
Sabrina describes their first meeting, in that most romantic
of settings, waiting in line at the college bookstore, "After gathering
all my books I stood in line behind this guy and we started to chat. We had so
much in common and there was an instant connection, something I’ve never felt
with anyone else. Right then and there I knew there would be a relationship
between us. When he was done checking out I yelled for him to wait
because I didn’t want this amazing guy to slip away. That was the beginning of
our wonderful and long relationship!"
So that was it. The magic of love at first sight, and they
lived happily ever after. No, not really. Definitely, the magic of the
beginning of a relationship is key. But you can't build a lasting relationship
on this alone. As Gary
describes, "Sabrina and I met when we were just kids, at the age of 19 and
20. We had much to learn and lots of room to grow as adults. As the years
passed, we became closer and closer, loving one another more and more. We faced
many challenges along the way..."
As Gary
indicates, a real relationship is one where the couple realizes that it will
always be a work in progress. A real relationship is one that evolves with the
couple. A real relationship is one where you grow together, learn together,
overcome challenges together. As Sabrina tells us, "I think what made our
relationship so strong and last so long is that we never rushed into anything.
We took our time emotionally to fully learn and understand one another. From
the beginning we wanted this relationship to work."
How smart, how meticulous, how wonderful. Sabrina and Gary,
you've got it! You have figured out the secret. May you continue to live the
dream together one day at a time.