Ray and I got married 46 years ago today, when I was 27, and he was 22. Yes, call me a cradle robber if you must.

The first photos are of our official wedding, performed by a county judge in Mountain View, Arkansas. We had a tiny wedding with seven people invited, and seven more who crashed, for a total of fourteen. We were basically eloping, but with just a few close friends there to cheer us on.

The second group of pictures, where I’m wearing a white dress, comes from our wedding blessing, which my beloved friend Shirley Patterson planned and organized for us on a Sunday shortly after our official wedding, with the Stone County Congregation, the Episcopal church group to which she, her family, and I belonged in Mountain View.

Credit for our marriage must also go to Shirley’s husband, Ray, a former Catholic priest, who posed the question, “If you think you might be aiming for marriage and you want to live together, then why don’t you just get married now?” My Ray nodded in agreement, then spent two hours down on the banks of the White River making his case. I guess you can conclude the outcome of that argument. We were married just a few weeks later.

Was it a good idea? Yes.

Did we go on a roller coaster ride over the years? Also yes.

Would that have happened even if we’d waited another few months? Yes, most likely.

Married life has a way of bringing up all the unfinished business from childhood, of which we both had plenty. Am I glad we did it? Without question. Our life has been full of rich and wonderful experiences and lessons that have pushed, prodded, and propelled us toward growth, sometimes in spite of ourselves.

But we have also done our share of laughing and loving.

And our children. Wow. What a gift they have been to both of us. Then came the sons-in-law, and finally the grandkids. Who could ask for a better crowd of folks who have proven themselves to be the loves of our lives?

Today, we had a brief blessing at St. Thomas the Apostle in Hollywood. I cried through all of it, of course, proving myself to be the biggest crybaby on the planet. But I was just so touched to be there with Ray and with Ian, our close friend and priest, officiating. I felt so grateful, so blessed, to be standing there with my church family, celebrating a commitment I made 46 years ago to a man who has become the true love of my life.

Did I know that was going to happen when we married? I hoped it would.

The fact that it has happened—and that Ray is also my best friend—is beyond my wildest expectations.

And yes, all of this grew out of a promise we made at 22 and 27, a promise that has sustained us through all these years.

So yes, happy anniversary to us.

Forty-six years later, I remain deeply grateful for the shared and beautiful life we have built together.