My husband and I will celebrate 45 years of marriage later this month. It seems impossible that we have been a couple for that long. Three children and eight grandchildren later we are still in love but it has grown into something that is so much more. He is my best friend, my confidant, my stabilizer, my caregiver and the rock that I lean on in good times and bad.

My diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis 20 years ago put a whole new perspective on our idea of what marriage was and how it would change in the future. 

In the beginning things stayed pretty much the same. I started medication and only suffered from occasional fatigue. It wasn’t long before more symptoms showed up and we realized that the roles we had assumed for the last 25 years would soon be reversed. He still had a full time job and was traveling several times a month only to come home to everything that I had previously been responsible for. He accepted these new responsibilities with love and humor. 

There came a time when we realized that we needed more help and hired a woman to come into our home to relieve some of the burden on him. She was with us for several years until his retirement. Now my oldest daughter comes twice a month to prepare meals and do laundry. 

We are in our sixties and retirement is not exactly how we thought it would be, but we still find joy in each other’s company and appreciate what we can do despite my disabilities.

Marriage is hard and can become complicated for many reasons. Not withstanding a diagnosis of a chronic disease like MS. 

With faith, family and friends we hope to have many more years together.

Yes, he kept his promise.