I am always more nostalgic this time of year, however, being 6 months pregnant has put that into overdrive. With the holidays always comes the closing of a year and reflection, and then the New Year brings anticipation and goal setting.
Our anniversary is January 4, so Kit and I always start the year in assessing how we are doing and where we are emotionally, mentally and spiritually and then making goals for our marriage for the upcoming year.
This year, in anticipation of some of those conversations, and thinking about impending parenthood, I pulled out one of my all time favorite books. I read it in highschool and then again when we were engaged and our early marriage. I don't think that I have read anything that has been so influential to me for our marriage.
The title is "A Severe Mercy" by Sheldon Vanauken
It's an incredible story and I really can't describe how good it is.
So this year, in reading through it again, I had an idea for a Christmas themed tradition that has turned out to be more significant than I had originally anticipated.
The goal of doing it was to prepare us for our anniversary conversations and evaluations about what we want for our marriage.
I went through the book and looked at the themes that Kit and I had underlined when we read the book together, things we wanted for our marriage, and I printed them out on the computer and attached them to a little Christmas tree that goes in our bedroom.
At least twice a day, when I am getting ready for the day or getting ready for bed, I see those themes and I am reminded of what Kit and I want for our marriage .
It has made me more aware of how much I love my Kit and all of the things that we are able to share together and how much I trust him and really what an amazing friend and teammate he is to me. It also makes me aware of things that I want to grow in and areas that I want to be better for Kit in.
Kit, thank you so much for the "shining barrier" that you have helped to enforce for our marriage, with total trust and total sharing, and helping to protect it from "creeping separateness". I love you so...
Thank you for sharing life with me!
