What song did you dance to at your wedding?

What song did you dance to at your wedding?

We danced to "Spinning Like a Wheel" by Susan Ashton.

What? You've never heard of it?!

It's no surprise.  Honestly, we didn't have an "our song," so when the DJ asked, we had to come up with something.  Beth had a CD by a lesser-known artist named Susan Ashton and liked it so we picked a song on that album.  I don't think I'd ever heard it before!

I thought it would be interesting to go back to our wedding song to see if it matches up with us now.

Spinning like a wheel, round and round I go over you
Too good to be real, how you're moving me.
I'm lost in a whirlwind, so this is how it feels
Spinning like a wheel so in love with you.



Back then, I hated it when people cracked on "young love."  I still do now, but I get where it comes from.  See, I'm not spinning anymore.

There are two reasons couples don't spin anymore.  One is because hurts, annoyances, and humdrum have accumulated enough that "young love" looks naive and, quite honestly, stupid.  "They'll become just like us," these cynics think, "and all that mush will go away."

But there's another, alternative reason not to spin that doesn't mean something has gone away.  In fact, it doesn't mean that being "in love" has gone away either.

The writer C.S. Lewis once wrote that a pilot is thrilled when flying for the first time, but after more flying, that excitement wears off.  But, if that pilot continues to fly they will then learn flying tricks and maneuvers they once never believed they would achieve.  Lewis compared this to the growth of love as it moves out of early thrill and moves into greater depth.

For many of of us, being "in love" is the presence of romantic and affectionate feelings.  Beth and I are still "in love," but not because we have maintained the "spinning" nature of our dating and first years of marriage.  I would argue that this is not a state to maintain, but to build from and mature.  Through date nights, kind words, sweet notes, flirting, love making, jokes, getaways, and more, we not only keep the flame alive, but continue to put new wood on the fire.

But what makes this better than spinning is that our "in love-ness" is now combined with long, meaningful, sometimes difficult discussions, having gone through pain together, learning to raise children, facing loss at each other's sides, helping clean up each other's short comings, and entering into each other's spiritual and emotional hopes and dreams.

So, no, we're not "spinning"; instead, we are "soaring," facing the rushing wind with our hands clasped together (and a giggle :).