A Couple of Amazing Couples

My parents celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on Saturday! We were able to throw together a fun "Route 66" diner-food party for them. It was really great seeing my parents so happy. Instead of waxing on about it, I'm going to have you check out this amazing post from Cari at OregonicGirl. I will, however, share a couple of photos of the happy couple~

Mom and Dad, circa 1964...

 ...and Mom and Dad, 2014!

I often forget how rare anymore it is for couples to stay married for 50 years, but so many people were surprised and pleased about my folks. I know they've been through a lot of stuff (that would take more than a book or two worth of memoirs), and I am really happy they have not only stayed married, but remained friends. Way to go, Mom and Dad~ love ya both lots!

While I am writing on great marriages, I want to introduce you to another amazing couple, Blessed Emperor Karl Von Habsburg and Empress Zita, his beautiful wife, who has been declared a Servant of God. I had learned about them a while ago on Crisis Magazine in an article written by one of Joshua's professors at Thomas More, Dennis Kitzinger. I hadn't thought about them for a while, and then I came across another article about their amazing marriage  in The Imaginative Conservative. The articles are both outstanding, but what is even more awe-inspiring was their marriage. The love they had for each other as well as The Lord and the faith they kept during even during horribly tragic circumstances is just incredible. Their family legacy still continues in a story about Archduke Imre (one of the couple's great-grandsons) and his wife, Her Imperial and Royal Highness Kathleen on The Catholic Beat. I hope I've shared enough to get you to read their stories! 

Emperor Karl and Empress Zita on their wedding day, 1911

With marriages like those of my parents as well as  Blessed Karl and Servant of God Zita, those of us who are married today have something to strive for in our relationships. Thanks to all of you who have paved the way for all of us who want to have marriages that are also friendships, but even more so, marriages that glorify God and bring Him honor.

You Gotta Have Friends

After procrastinating for almost two weeks, I finally took the time to call my very dear friend, Debbie, who lives with her amazing husband and six terrific kids in a wonderful house settled in the picturesque Steilacoom, Washington. She and I haven't talked for probably a year, so we had some major catching up to do! What followed after she picked her phone up (thankfully; I thought she may not after I took so long) was an almost 3 hour long conversation filled with much laughter, oohs and ahs about how our respective kids are doing, and a bit of seriousness too. After finally hanging up, my heart was so full of gratefulness and love for our friendship that it has affected the rest of my day in a very positive way.

Virgin Martyrs- companions of Saint Ursula

Many of the great saints have had friends who were an integral part of their faith and their lives. Saints Perpetua and Felicity; Saints Francis and Clare; Saints Issac Jogues, Jean de Brebeuf and Companions; & Saints Paul Miki and Companions are just some of these. Of course, these saints were really holy people (as Josh would say, "That's why they're saints!"), so they took their friendships seriously. 

As I get closer to turning 50 49 next month, I am realizing how important it is to not only have good friends, but to be sure to stay caught up with each others' lives. These saints have inspired me to start taking my friendships a bit more seriously. I guess I've now said it, so my friends better be ready for me to work better on staying connected. When I tell a friend, "We need to get together for coffee.", I need to get out the calendar and pick a date instead of saying we'll do it, "when we've got some free time". It may be difficult at first, but I think once we actually do it, getting together will come a bit more easily.

As GK Chesterton said,“Because our expression is imperfect we need friendship to fill up the imperfections.” So do whatever it takes to get together with your friends. If they live far away, call, video chat, write an email or letter~ do something to stay caught up in their lives. As Donkey from shares with Shrek, "You gotta have friends!"