...and happy anniversary, Padre. That's a lot of work! Congratulations to the two of you for putting in the effort to make it this far - there are times when the love seems far away and marriage is a slog. It's easy to live up to the "for better" part of the vows - to make it through the "for worse" is an inspiration.
Thanks.
Over the years I had couples who wanted to write their own vows. It was usually a deal-breaker for me. At best they were greeting card smarm; at worst, just sappy pledges that vaguely hinted at love. The Book of Common Prayer was my stout oak in those cases. When people contract marriage they need to commit to the hard times as well as the good. We've been together through potentially fatal health crises, surgeries, injuries, infertility, career ups and downs, and raising 2 challenging children. The vows matter, not because they keep us together, but because we knew what we were getting into in advance.
Footnote:
Larry King is divorcing his 7th wife after a marriage of 22 years.