This is my Father’s Day gift. A set of silverware. An odd gift for Dad you might say but you see we have a strange metric to measure our success as a married man and woman with five children. In other words, a God made, natural family.

When Yané and I decided to marry we chose this set to place on our registry. My sister Donna and her husband Joseph delivered the goods. We have enjoyed countless meals with our original set.

Over the years, as we’ve added to our quiver and they learned to clean up after meals, many pieces were accidentally thrown into the trash and delivered to Mt. Trashmore. It’s become one of those inside jokes you share with your spouse alone.

We measure our marriage’s success by how many lost pieces of our original set of silverware have been lost as we build up the next generation.

Man and woman marry. Children follow. Husband and wife, Mommy and Daddy, sons and daughters with a sprinkle of twins. We are intact, not broken just as the Lord intends. Tonight we all eat with the same silverware once again.