"THE RINGS" ; A Metaphor

       Robert and I went to New York to shop for our engagement and wedding rings..........  It was a beautiful day, a day full of new beginnings and promises......... a platinum band, exquisite diamonds, all in white,  a style so rich/ so pure/ so bright/ just the right touch of antiquity you could practically imagine finding it in your grandmothers treasure chest.
       We traveled all over the Tri-state area; one thing is for certain---the price of jewels will always be competitive here.  The east coast, Pennsylvania being the highest, then New Jersey, and then New York City the least when it comes to buying jewels. This has much to do with the quantiTIES/ that are shipped into the New York City diamond exchange from overSEAS/ (over 90% come from Africa, Russia, and Canada).  Where a small boutique in neighboring New Jersey may supply one thousand pieces, a shop in New York may carry three times that amount.  Typically, your purchasing power is stronger when you purchase higher quantities, as a merchant, this you should know.
       My soon to be husband had me select three different stones; the rest remained a surprise.  I didn't know when, where, or what he had in store for me. As it turned out, he took me out to dinner and had the ring planted in a sterling silver covered serving dish with a rose.  Men playing violins came over to our table, I had no idea! Robert read me a poem he'd written, and when I pulled the cover off the butter dish, he proposed!  I said Yes, I'll marry you, immediately..................
       Five years had gone by and Robert asked me if I wanted to replace my rings.  The only doubt I had was the fact that the TWO RINGS never stay in place.  One band would go one way, one the other.....  You never see the TWO lined up on my finger at the same time, I thought.  I even went to the local jeweler to see what he suggested.....  I decided NOT to have it replaced or re-designed for that matter because the cost in and of itself just didn't seem worthwhile.
 
       Here's the funny thing that's been happening to me lately........ 

Whenever I am thrown for a loop, even for a second, bogged down by contemplation, I look down at my two beautiful wedding rings, now JOLTED, STRESSED, BENT and WORN, and I turn them until they are perfectly LINED UP!.......AND THEN I REALIZE IN A SECONDS TIME EVERYTHING'S GOING TO BE OKAY! ....THE TWO INEVITably become one!

       This is what happens to me daily.... Each and every day!  So, you see, these rings were meant for me.... In them I see a sign from Jesus.  I tell you, that if you see my face within that seconds time, you will know that when I look down and turn my rings I am suddenly at peace......... Once again, I see Jesus's face as though he's whispering sweet words of love in my ear.............He wants me to know that I am loved....


Thank you heavenly father for the greatest gift of all, your love!

1 Corinthians 13:4–8a 
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails ... (NIV)

Amen and God Bless
Sharon Maria Perrotta-Thourot
 
     

Soliloquy Conclusion

Please see my post Soliloquy == The Conclusion

"God's Plan" - "My Soliloquy"

Part II God's Plan.....
June 1998
      The sweetest man I'd ever met took me by the hand and led me to the dance floor....  I knew this was no coincidence because this was the last place on earth I expected to meet the man I'd marry!  As we danced he whispered "You have warm hands"  which he later revealed made him fall in love with me.....


God had everything to do with us meeting............  By thanksgiving we were engaged.  By March of 1999, we were married!  It took a while for me to conceive but in God's time came along my two beautiful daughter's Ariana Marie and Kara Nicole who were born exactly eighteen months apart!


My world was about as perfect as anyone could hope!  I had it all and told myself nothing would ever take this away from me!  No more holidays hurting or being alone.  No more longing for someone I could call my best friend.


Not only did I recognize God's love the night we met but something greater happened to me shortly after we were married....  Robert said something to me that I needed to hear more than anything.... Something that I believe has saved my life today.  Something I had never been told before and that it could only be God's true message to me.....  God the savior knew I needed to hear what Robert had to say that very day and that it would one day save my life!  


We were home, declaring our love for one another.....  It was a dream come true for the two of us..... I looked up at Robert and I said, "I love you more than anyone or anything.... You will forever be my best friend," and then he said to me......  "No, You must love God above anyone else"  This statement shocked my heart because no one has ever said this to me!  I replied, "why?"  shouldn't it be my husband?  and Robert said, No! Never!  GOD COMES FIRST!  "Isn't loving you the same as loving the Lord?  and again he said, "NO" you must ALWAYS put the Lord first!  Then your husband, then your children (who didn't come along for 3 more years)........  Again, it was a shock to my heart to hear him say this and all I did thereafter was ponder those words.


Years had passed, but God really gave me a great beginning; exactly what I needed in life----a full package to say the least! We both had great jobs, we lived each day like it was our first date together.  I could honestly say the honeymoon went on for eleven years.  I thanked the Lord for providing me with a Love so strong that only he could be responsible.  I thanked the Lord every minute of every day and asked him to never let anyone or anything take that feeling away from me/from us!  

"There was never a day I didn't look up at the sky and thank the Lord for my blessings; for bringing me a man who taught me that Loving the good Lord should always be first and foremost and above all else." 

Sharon Maria Nicole (my confirmation name)

Epilogue Part III to be continued.................

      

"God's Plan" - "My Soliloquy"

Soliloquy -- PART I
       It was spring of 1998, when I looked up at the sky and said, "Lord, is this the life you truly have planned for me?"  No husband, no children, and though I was never one to marry prematurely, I was beginning to wonder if it were ever going to happen. 
   
       Several events had taken place... For one, my brother and his wife just returned from their honeymoon.  He handed to me a beautiful silver medallion of the Pope and said, "I had this blessed at the Vatican in Rome."  When I heard that I wore it ever day because I knew it would bring me luck.
   
        Meanwhile, my mother reassured me that God had a plan.  She stated that her sister in Italy traveled to the Vatican in Rome as well to say a special prayer for me.  Could this be?  My aunt Katherine and my brother travelling to Rome, around the same time?  When I heard this I knew something was soon going to happen.  I just didn't know when or where.

       My mother seldom prayed, but it was around this time she mentioned that she too, prayed for me everyday.  That is, she prayed that I would meet a man that would be everything I hoped and dreamed for and that truly loved me for me.

        I'd already been engaged twice: In my early 20's I'd spent 5 years with a guy.  The second engagement took place shortly after my 32nd birthday. Eventually someone asked me why a beautiful girl like me has never been married?" I replied, "because I don't want to become another statistic..."  I'd witnessed many marriages that fell apart after a year or so and I just wasn't eager for that to happen to me.  It seems like some treat marriage as though it were an experiment.  While others take the plunge just so they could say they had a beautiful wedding or feel marriage validates who they are.  I believe that society makes us feel like being married validates you as a person; and if you're not married there must be something wrong.

      My mother constantly warned us, me and my brothers that is, that going through a divorce is one of the most anguishing events that will ever take place in a persons life.  Especially if there are children involved.  Besides, she should know.

      After seeing my parents break up, I realized how much pain and suffering there was for the two of them; what's more is my brothers and I also became victims.  In short, I was not willing to settle down with a man if the relationship was not sustainable, or driven by fear.  If something brings you nothing other than pain, let it go.....

The Introduction--  
       It was June of 1998 and I received a phone call from my girlfriend Renee.  She invited me to stay at her shore house on a Saturday night because there would be a spare bunk for me on this night.  So I went....  That evening, we went out to a party.  The outdoor setup was that of a luau.  I heard some famous basketball player was throwing the outdoor party.  The inside, however, was a night club.    It was down by the beach so it was different than any other club I'd seen.   I was standing among 7 or 8 other women when all of the sudden someone came up from behind me, tapped me on the shoulder, and introduced themselves to me.  After the introduction, this gentle man said, "oh, I see your catholic," while noticing the medallion around my neck...  I replied, well that's a first!

To be continued.........................................