Cotton’s hair around his eyes have faded to white.  That’s how I am reminded he has been with us for 10 years.  He was my husband’s birthday present during our first summer of marriage.  We were eager to have a little “family” and since we are both dog people, it wasn’t a hard choice. I went to pick him up from the breeder and he was in the pen with his mother and litter.  The date on the fence read 6-4-05.  Our wedding date.  Just a month earlier when were saying “We do” promise to love each other, be faithful to one other, and stick together through thick and thin, our sweet Cotton graced this world.  As marriage tends to do…it challenged us throughout these past ten years.  Testing our loyalty, straining our unconditional love, and spending a few nights in separate beds.

Not Cotton…

His faithfulness to us as his owners has been unwavering.  His love for us is never based on the conditions of our performance or perfectionism.  His sleeping arrangements have always included being cuddled up in a bed with one of us.  I can learn a lot from good old Cotton.  My looks are guaranteed to fade and my body will eventually get tired, but my faithfulness to my God, my husband, and my family doesn’t have to be compromised.

Proverbs 3:3 “Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart.”

Proverbs 31:30 “Charm can be deceiving, and beauty fades away, but a woman who honors the Lord deserves to be praised.”