The LORD detests the sacrifice of the wicked, but the prayer of the upright pleases him (Proverbs 15:8).

Growing up as twin sisters, Susan and Sarah had shared everything:  bedrooms, birthdays, clothes, toys, classes, friends, make-up, crushes, and music.  So when they found themselves falling in love and getting engaged within a month of each other, they decided to have a double-wedding.  Consequently, their anniversaries coincided every year, too.  Once or twice, they'd attempted to celebrate their anniversaries together; but with kids and careers and everything, it became less and less of a priority over time.  Even when they hit the 20th anniversary milestone, the occasion was observed privately, each couple doing their own thing.  It was a few weeks after the fact, even, before Susan and Sarah had the chance to talk together about it.

It was a fine summer morning when they arranged to finally meet up at Godfrey's for coffee.  Susan was already half-way through her latte when Sarah arrived, face flushed with the activity of a dozen errands that had just been completed.  She apologized for being late and then dropped a handful of plastic bags down at the foot of the chair across from her sister and went up to place her order at the counter.  When she returned to the table, the two sisters embraced, and they fell immediately into conversation.

After a bit of preliminary chit-chat, Sarah suddenly put her hand on her sister's forearm, in mock panic.  "Oh Susan!  Mark and I completely forgot to send you and Ryan an anniversary card!  Happy anniversary, by the way."

Susan smiled and said, "Thanks.  And a happy anniversary to you, too!"

"This was a big one, too, wasn't it?" said Sarah.  "20 years... What did you and Ryan do to celebrate?"

"Didn't I tell you?" said Susan.  "we flew out to San Fransisco for the weekend.  It was amazing!  We stayed at the Exelcior, right downtown, and Ryan took me out to this amazing Japanese restaurant for dinner one night.  It had to have cost us a fortune, but I'm so glad we did it.  We haven't had much of an opportunity to have some time for just the two of us, so it was really nice to have a special weekend out there.  You and Mark should definitely do it sometime."

"That sounds lovely," said Sarah.  "Did you do any sightseeing while you were there?  I've always wondered what it would be like..."

"Yes, well, I got to do some sightseeing -- but Ryan had to stay at the hotel and get some work done."

"He didn't!" said Sarah, with an exagerated sense of indignation.  "Please tell me he did not bring his laptop along on your anniversary get-away."

Susan sighed and her shoulders sagged momentarily -- but she forced herself back towards levity.  "Yeah, well, you know he was just promoted a couple of months ago, so he's been keeping pretty busy since then.  The plus side of it all, of course," she said with a mischevious grin, "is that he told me to go shopping and pick out a few anniversary presents that I would like.  And boy did I!"

Sarah laughed, but then straightened her face and asked, "Seriously, though -- are you guys doing OK?  I worry about Ryan's workload sometimes."

"Don't we all," said Susan.  "But I know I shouldn't complain.  His job provides our family with a lot of luxuries that other families just don't have.  I mean, we stayed at the Exelcior, Sarah!  And you wouldn't believe the aristocracy that we sat among at that Japanese restaurant, overlooking the Bay.  Ryan's job has opened up incredible opportunities for us."

"That's for sure," said Sarah.  "Well, I'm happy for you guys.  And I'm especially glad that you got to celebrate your 20th in San Fransisco... Maybe I'm even a little bit jealous."  She smiled and leaned back in her chair.

"But enough about us," said Susan.  "What about you and Mark?  How was your 20th anniversary celebration?"

"Ah, it was pretty low-key.  I had to work, so we couldn't really get away for the weekend.  But Mark was very sweet.  He brought me 20 roses and he wrote a beautiful letter, looking back through the years."  Her eyes drifted off to the empty space at the corner of the table.  "He's a good man," she said, smiling to herself.  She thought momentarily about the impossibility of them ever being able to afford even the shortest weekend get-away to San Fransisco.  She thought about the self-made card that he had given her on their anniversary.  But then she also thought about his warm and reassuring presence.  She thought about his thoughtful communication and earnest desire to care for her and the kids.  She thought about his honesty and integrity in everything from the way he ran his business to the way he coached their son's baseball team.  Her eyes remained unfocused, unmoving.  But her lips parted again and she echoed herself:  "He's a good man."