I give you my life

I give you my life
I give you my dreams
I give you my sadness
I give you my joy
I give you my next breath
I give you fears
I give you my life

I've been preparing couples for marriage of late
Tis the season

I've always been in awe of the sacrament of marriage
and while doing the pre-marital inventory

I am always struck how the communion of life which the couple is striving for
is so contingent on the couple's ability to give their lives to each other.

Not only the good stuff but also the less than good stuff

If they don't share their dreams
If they don't create them together then they risk ending up in different places
looking for their spouse who has followed his or her own dream

If they don't give each other their saddness if they don't feel safe sharing what is broken in their lives. The communion of life which they are striving to create is more of a facade it doesn't penetrate deep into their souls

If they don't share their joy - or are not willing to share each other's joy pride or a subtle narcissism might be showing its ugly head.

If they don't give each other their next breath and the next one and the next one
If they don't face the challenges that come their way as easily as taking their next breath
If each breath is not a gift, a surrender to the other it may mean that one or both of them is holding back is keeping certain parts of their live and love for themselves.

If they can't share their fears with each other who can they share their fears with.

The promise of engagement is both simple and profound
I give you my life completely

BTW no one is exempt from giving away their life

Priests and Religious make the very same promise

We are called to give our lives completely to God and to God's People.

So much to think about with my cup of coffee this morning..

I give you my life