Earlier this month, my beautiful parents celebrated fifty years of marriage. To honor the occasion, they invited their most dear friends to come together for a weekend here in Colorado.
When I look back upon this year and those special days for my parents, I will do so with a great amount of gratitude. I am thankful they continue to have one another each day, to take care of each other, to play cards and laugh together, to walk through the mundane of daily life including the, yes, sometimes irritations of it too, and to wake up with each other to do it all again.
We know that in this day and age, many people do not choose one partner for all those many years. And as we know too well in our family, some lose a beloved partner much too early. Time is indeed a thief.
My dad asked my mom out for a date when he was a on leave from the Air Force. He had to return to base just three weeks later. And so, there was no time to waste. After the first date, he knew, and before he returned, they were engaged. Fifty years later, they have written chapters together.
I remember my grandparents’ fiftieth anniversary in Downer’s Grove, Illinois years and years and years ago. I was, perhaps, Harper’s age when I attended this celebration. I remember a harpist played that day, because my grandparents loved instrumental music. We had dinner, took family photos, and danced. My Grandma and Grandpa were happy. I feel grateful that I have now lived to see two generations of marriages that are enduring and joyful.
This week, Jason and I will ring in fifteen years of marriage. I would like to think that Harper and Jameson will bring their families when we celebrate our fiftieth, as well.
I am happy for my many friends who are also celebrating five or ten or fifteen years of love with their partners. And I hold a place in my heart for those I know are aching, too.
Speaking of friends, I have only a couple that have been in my life for decades. I met Kelly Wolf when I was just 18 years old, in the basement dormitory of Libby Hall at the University of Colorado. Life gifted me a special person then, and she happens to be a good photographer. Thank you, Kelly, for taking pictures on this special weekend.
Here’s to the people you love!
