It’s not just about the first day. The first day is very
important, yes. It will of course serve as a symbol of the journey that you
will take together. If you take nothing else from this book, grab hold and
don’t let go of the fact, yes, I said fact, that it is not just about the first
day. As every other day, this day will come, and it will go. Of course, it
should be special, because no matter if it is big, small, or somewhere in
between, you will think of it often, sometimes with happiness, hope and great
joy, sometimes with sadness, sometimes wistfully, and at other times with deep
longing to return to when it was simpler, and you thought that you were
invincible. There will be times when you will look to it as a source of
strength that you will take with you through the rocky, dry, deserted, lonely
places you will inevitably end up in. But know this, you do not have to stay
there. Take all the strength you need and remember. Remember? you ask. Yes,
remember. Remember how you looked at each other, the things that made you smile
inside and out, how you couldn’t wait to tell each other what happened that
day, the dreams of your hearts and the stepping stones you’d crossed that day
to get closer to them. You must not forget! Trust me, the words for better or
worse, sickness and health, richer or poorer are not just arbitrarily placed in
your vows if you chose to recite traditional vows. They are there for a reason,
because at some point, and it differs for all couples those times will come. They hardly ever announce
that they are coming so you must be ready. Be ready to remember what you said
on that first day, that you would be there that you would stay whether good or
bad, whether they mess up or almost always get it right, whether healthy or
sick and whether with more or with less. Words have power, and those may be
some of the most powerful words in the vows. They are not simply words that are
spoken before all your family and friends, but they are blueprints for your
life together—words you will live. So, remember, it’s not just about the first
day, it is really about each day that follows the first day.
