A Marriage and a Promise

Hello Lovelies,

Well if you follow me on Twitter (@WriterWithin_KK) or have “liked” my Facebook page, you would have already known this happened during the week.

Image copyright Katherine A. Kovács -The Writer Within

After, what seems like forever, scribbling notes and researching, I finally have a working title for József’s story, a prologue and the start of the first chapter! So things are getting pretty exciting! The name of József’s wife has come to me also, but I might save that reveal for a later blog post, when I’ve finished finding out exactly who she is and her appearance.

Whilst I haven’t written thousands of words (hopefully soon though!), I have been busy planning and researching, including revising Jewish marriage customs, something which I studied in high school. What I have found most intriguing is the use of the number seven, the bride circles the groom seven times, the seven blessings are an integral part of a traditional Jewish marriage ceremony. Whilst this is something I have read of before, whilst reading about these customs and the symbolism of the number seven, I realised a connection to myself. You see, I have always considered the number seven to be my lucky number, I have no idea why, but for as long as I’ve understood the concept of “lucky numbers”, seven has always been mine. My soccer jersey was number seven and I know this is going to sound like OCD (and it probably is), but as a teenager I used to set my alarm in multiples of seven, so if i needed to be up at 6:30am, the alarm would be set for 6:28am. Weird, I know, but it’s something I couldn’t help at the time, needless to say that no longer happens, I take as many minutes as I can and hit snooze several times, but still the number seven is my number.

The number seven is considered one of the greatest numbers in Judaism, symbolising Creation, blessing and good fortune. The use of the number seven in Jewish marriage customs is to bring blessing and good fortune to the happy couple as they create their “new world” together (this is another reference to the Creation story). I have always found Jewish customs and traditions have always been an intriguing subject and am enjoying the opportunity to research these in more detail. In my years of teaching in Catholic schools it’s also fun to point out to students that Jesus Christ was actually Jewish.

Now, on to the reason why I have titles today’s post “A Marriage and a Promise.” You see, with all marriages I suppose,not only is it a celebration of two people coming together as one, but it is also a time when promises are made, a promise to love, support and care for each other in every way they can. Some take this promise (or vow) more seriously than others, but with every marriage, promises are made. In considering this, I began thinking about the type of person József is. I don’t want to give too much away, but Jozsef’s story, An Anguished Heart, József has to make some very difficult decisions. He is young and newly married, but the promises he made on his wedding day he takes very seriously, the promise to care for his wife and to always be there for her. In the beginning, it seems that everything is perfect for József and his bride, but the “happily ever after” cannot last forever, war comes and war changes everything. József must choose whether to try and keep his the promises to his wife and be labelled a traitor and risk losing everything or to do what is expected of him and leave for the front line, becoming someone he is not, perhaps never seeing her again and breaking his promise.

This story will address some of the dark realities of war and the anguish and heartbreak of complete loss and devastation, but no matter how dark the night is, the sun will always rise. The question is though, what will be left when the sun does rise? Will József find a way to carry on and stay true to his promises?

I guess all those questions will be answered in good time, so stay tuned!

Enjoy,

KK

© Katherine A. Kovács and The Writer Within, (2013-2015). Unauthorised use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Katherine A. Kovács and The Writer Within with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.