Marriage Is Mistakes And Laughter

…To have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part.

Almost 10 years ago, Robbie and I said those words to each other. I don’t remember any of it.

We had no idea what we were doing. I was 25, the last of my friends to get married (except for my friend who was in medical school—she married at 30). We said the words. We started our journey.

Ten years later…

Husband: Where are my white dress shirt and suit pants?

Me: I have no idea.

(Silence)

Me: When did you last see or wear them?

Husband: Last year.

‪Flabbergasted, I proceeded to ridicule him like the proper wife that I am.

Me: I am not the Keeper of All The Things—I am only one person! You should know where your pants are! How is it that you haven’t worn your nice pants in 10 whole months? Oh my God, we need to find a church and start attending. It’s good for the kids. It doesn’t matter which church, let’s just pick one. They need to learn Bible stories because I keep forgetting to teach them because I’m too busy keeping everyone alive and the only ones I can remember accurately are about Adam and Eve and the Christmas Story. Why are you laughing?!

My husband is a very patient man, and he listened to my entire tirade before asking me to check the dry cleaner’s to make sure I hadn’t forgotten to pick them up nearly a year ago.

“Well…okay,” I said. “But I am usually really good about keeping up with that stuff.”

Karma is a bitch, friends. After spending three days searching for Robbie’s suit pants and dress shirt, I swung by our old dry cleaner’s—the one I don’t use anymore because it’s so far away—on a whim.

The guy started laughing as soon as he saw me pull in. My face started to redden, and I got a feeling in the pit of my stomach that I can only describe as bewildered mortification.

“Hi, Mrs. Hobbs. I knew you’d come back! I kept telling my boss not to give your stuff away!” This is what he said as I picked up everything the entire family—yes, all five of us—wore for Christmas pictures nearly a year ago.

Apparently I didn’t notice that I’ve been missing clothes, either.

That’s marriage.