Lines from Oz
The Poetry of Brian Langley
This poem was written on the occasion of my 40th Wedding Anniversary. It sort of drove itself and eventually seemed to come out as advise on how to sustain a successful relationship
.
Forty Years
Was forty years ago today
When in the church I stood
And said "I do" when asked if I
Forsaking others would
Take Dorothy to be my wife
In sickness and in health
Forever, till the end of time
In poverty or wealth
Then she was asked the question
Like me, she said, "I do"
Then it was time to kiss the bride
That was the part we knew
Then sign the book and we were wed
Her name, she'd signed away
We'd started on our voyage
That's got us here today
There's some who said it wouldn't last
We were too young to wed
That it was just a brief romance
A year or two they said
A year or two, it's forty now
There's been some ups and downs
Times of wonder, laughs and smiles
And sometimes tears and frowns
For life deals up some problems
To see if we can cope
We'd strength to overcome them
And not to give up hope
We've watched our girls mature and grow
Have families of their own
It seems that they've inherited
The values that we've shown
Like sharing life together
Not quitting when it's rough
Dividing labour fairly
It's pretty heavy stuff
We agree on major issues
We have no "mine and yours"
We do not carry grudges
But I still open doors
We accept each other's failings
Our own, we try to mend
We share expenses evenly
Agree on what to spend
Walk hand in hand when shopping
And cuddle when it's cold
We're friends, companions, lovers
Will still be when we're old
It's time I stopped my rambling
I do it now and then
And get back to the reason
That I picked up my pen
For when I look around me
At my family as its grown
I'm very pleased with what I see
The fruits of seeds I've sown.
And the mother of my children
Now forty years my wife
You've always been, and will be
The best part of my life
I loved you back in sixty two
When vows we both exchanged
And still my love continues
Perhaps a little changed
Back then I called you beautiful
But every year I find
The beauty word no longer fits
Now stunning comes to mind
So there I end my ditty
Of forty years I've told
Another forty yet to come
By then, we'll both be old
© Brian Langley June 2nd 2002