Our Wedding Anniversary Was Made Good As Gold
The act, rite or sacrament of marriage was completely honorable back in the year of our Lord 1947. It still is for those of us who took our vows seriously and are still together.
Keeping one’s first love does wonders. Trusting God’s promises does more.
Three sons and five grandchildren later, in the year of our Lord 1997, we feel fortunate and blessed. All three of our sons are educated, married and gainfully employed, with families who love each other and us. No divorces, no abortions, no drug problems, no affairs, no lasting sibling rivalries (that we know about).
Where did we go wrong?
Knowing that our sons and their families were planning a large celebration for our golden wedding anniversary, we took the liberty of informing our middle son that what we would really love would be two weeks alone in his San Juan Islands home. Permission was granted and, much to our surprise, all of our immediate family showed up for one day to make it perfection. Seal- and whale-watching were included as extra-special activities.
We are constantly being asked what it is like to be married to the same individual for 50 years. We wouldn’t know; we haven’t been.
You see, each of us has changed so much - and we have changed each other so much - that we hope we are more loving, kind, understanding and dependable than when we married. Also, our heavenly father has made us more willing and obedient. We are not the same people we were 50 years ago.
After our two weeks in the San Juans we had another special event. En route to my mother’s 105th birthday party in Mossyrock, Wash., we used a gift certificate from our youngest and eldest sons to round out this beautiful and romantic interlude at the Skamania Lodge in Stevenson.
If bills can be paid by appreciation, our loved ones can rest assured that ours are paid in full.
If it isn’t true that marriages can thrive for 50 years, please don’t inform us. Let us go on living in blissful ignorance. Our minds are made up, so please do not try to confuse us with facts.
If our family will repeat the performance, we will give them permission to start planning our 100th wedding anniversary. We will then go on to my mother’s 155th birthday bash in the Year of Our Lord 2047, God willing.
MEMO: Your Turn is a feature of the Wednesday and Saturday Opinion pages. To submit a Your Turn column for consideration, contact Rebecca Nappi at 459-5496 or Doug Floyd at 459-5466 or write Your Turn, The Spokesman-Review, P.O. Box 2160, Spokane, WA 99210-1615.