My First Day as Mrs. Matthews

Most stories begin with the enchanted line, "Once Upon a Time". The main character goes through a series of trials, at some point good overcomes evil, and the story ends in "happily ever after." I was like one of those girls who loved the romance of movies, and had the most perfect soon to be husband on the planet. I pictured us riding off into the sunset, and that would be the end of my sorrows.

Welp, I was wrong. On the morning of our wedding, we got in our first big fight. He wanted to take separate cars to the temple to save on time, and "it's bad luck to see each other before the wedding anyway". I whined and insisted on riding together. Welp, I was wrong again (I was off to a great start).

On the way to the temple, we were rear-ended, spun across four lanes of highway traffic and then hit by a semi-truck. The car was completely totalled but we got away without a scratch. Our bags were packed for the honeymoon and most of our belongings ended up scattered across the highway and run over, including Anthony's ring. Thankfully, the highway patrolmen stopped traffic and we were able to gather the remains of our stuff. Anthony's ring box was smashed, but we pried it open and his ring was in perfect condition. During the accident which lasted seconds and seemed like eternity, all I could think was, "We can't die. We're not sealed yet. We're not sealed yet." It is a miracle no one was hurt, especially when you see how badly the car was destroyed. As soon as I walked in that beautiful building, I was instantly calm. We were told by one of the temple workers, "Satan really did not want you here today, but the Lord has a special plan for you."


I think of those words often, because the adversary's attempts to destroy us are still aggressive. That's why it is so important to do things that will strengthen us. We've made it a priority to read our scriptures together each day, pray with one another, and hold Family Home Evenings. The days we forget or "don't have time", you can really feel a difference. These simple practices make a tremendous difference. I pray we can continue to do these things that will strengthen our relationship against the wiles of the world and bless our little family, so that we can have our own "Happily Ever After".