Nearly 47 years ago when we were married, we never had a honeymoon.  We were just two kids madly in love, scraping together every penny we could find to pay for the wedding.  And we pinched every one of those pennies until they squealed.  The honeymoon was not a high priority.  We just wanted to be married.  The wedding took place in my home town.  That evening, when the festivities were over, we hugged our families good-by and began the twelve hour drive to Jim's hometown.   That first night was spent in a hotel an hour out of town.  The next night we were finally home, beginning life as Mr. and Mrs.

In the ten years that we have been privileged to have Shiloh, we have been on many honeymoons!  While previously we had no first hand knowledge of what goes on during a honeymoon, we are now experts on the subject.  

Many Cameroonian newly weds, who want to establish their marriage in the Lord, come to Shiloh for their honeymoon.  Just as married couples come in all sizes and shapes, so too do honeymoons.  

There was the couple that arrived for their three day honeymoon still decked out in their wedding finery.  We registered them in the office and then showed them to the "honeymoon suite".  We closed the door on them and left them alone.  But they didn't leave us alone.  Soon we heard loud talking sliding out from under their door.  And the loud talking soon became LOUD talking, which devolved into VERY LOUD talking.  This went on day in and day out, the whole time they were there.  We would quietly set their balcony table with our fanciest dishes and all sorts of yummy food.  Then I would nervously knock on their door.  I had to knock loud in order to be heard over the din.  Immediately all noise stopped.  I could hear scurrying around, and then the door would open a crack.  I would tell them their meal was ready and then turn and run back downstairs.  Soon they were on the balcony, laughing and talking sweetly to each other.  They lingered over each meal, having such a wonderful, romantic time.  But the moment their bedroom door would close, the VERY LOUD discussions would begin all over again.  

WOW!  If ever there was a marriage that wasn't going to make it, this was it!!!  But that's not how the story turned out.  This couple came back some time later to have a spiritual retreat.  They spent the weekend with us, eating meals at the table with Jim and I.  A more kind, considerate, and loving couple you could not hope to find anywhere.  We were sooooo glad to see them actually making a go of it.

Then there were the newly weds whose pastor paid for a three day honeymoon at Shiloh.  The honeymoon was not their idea.  They just came to please the pastor.  They barely spent any time here at all.  They were constantly asking us to open the gate so they could drive off to do this, that, or the other thing.  They would announce that they didn't want the next meal.  They would find something to eat while they were out.  In the end, they cut their honeymoon short by a day.   

Another couple came for their honeymon one evening, announcing that the new wife would be leaving the next morning.  She had things to do that would take her away all day long, each day of their honeymoon.  So could they please have an early breakfast?  And the husband would be spending their honeymoon alone in their room, so only fix lunch for one person.  Would it be OK for them to eat the evening meal after 8 p.m. when the new wife got back?  

But the current honeymoon that is going on right now, even as we speak, is going down in our book as the quietest honeymoon of all times.  This couple go out onto the balcony to eat their meals three times a day.  If it weren't for the scraping of chairs as they sit down to the table, or as they get back up from the table, we would hardly know they are there.  When they do finally talk, they talk in low, murmuring voices.  Mostly it's his voice we hear.  She hardly adds a comment.  And then the long stretches of silence return. 

 And on and on the true stories go.  We could write a book about our experiences on all the honeymoons we have witnessed over these years.  We have learned so much.  The one thing we know for certain is that you cannot predict anything about how a marriage will turn out biased on how the honeymoon goes.