Happy Anniversary

On May 17th, my parents, George and Ruth, would be celebrating more than 50 years of marriage. Sad to say, not many people are lucky enough to reach that milestone. They raised four children active in sports and activities, and they participated in our schools and our church, showing us the way it should be done by their own actions. As a young child, my father worked nights, which left my mother to deal with the four of us a great deal of time. On the weekends, my father fixed anything and everything, thus earning himself the name “Harry the Handyman” which stuck with him until the day he died, the day before Thanksgiving, 2007. They worked as a team. My father was a quick learner, and so his favorite phrase became “Go ask your mother.” That possibly came because if my mother said no, we would corner him, hoping to get a different answer. (Honestly, it did work once or twice!)
Later in my childhood, my father traveled a lot for his job, and often took my mother with him. It gave them an opportunity to see the world and gave them wonderful memories and pictures to last a lifetime. Sometime ago, my father retired so that he and my mother could enjoy what he called “the golden years” together. Unfortunately, his health deteriorated shortly after his retirement, which curtailed, and finally stopped their travels. They traveled seldom then, and mostly just to family funerals or to the Marine Corp reunions with the Marine families my parents so loved. During the years, as his health worsened, my mother cared for him, and their love remained strong. He fought to watch his children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren grow.
Now it was well known to us, his family, that there had been a deal cut many years ago, whereas my father made my mother promise that he would go first when their time came to leave this world for a better place. Over a year ago, my mother had a stroke, although minor and he became very concerned. Then in October, she had a heart attack, followed by triple bypass. This was the indestructible matriarch of our family, and it shook the foundations of our family and made my father question whether she was backing out of their deal. That did not happen, because within days of my mother returning from the hospital, my father played his final card and won the game.
This week, my mother will celebrate this first wedding anniversary without him. It is a sad time for her, but I believe he is still with her (and us) and will be there with her especially on that day. It is a blessing when two people find each other in this great wide world and end up sharing a lifetime together. They were that lucky! Now she must find that strength that was the backbone of our family and find a way to go on until she sees him again. When that happens, he will be free of all the aches and pains of the world, as will she, and they will finally enjoy their golden years together! Until then, there is still a lot more of this one left to live, and a new great grandchild expected almost to the day of their anniversary. There may be some happy tears on that day yet!

Happy Anniversary Mom & Dad!