We’ve always made a big deal out of anniversaries.
During the Navy years I would travel to be with Rusty on that day if he was deployed. We celebrated anniversaries in Iceland, Sicily, St. Thomas, and The Phillipines. One year he had what we called the “Ready” duty and had to sit by the phone in his flight suit with his suitcase packed ready to take off at a minute’s notice. We ordered pizza and passed on the champagne that year. Only twice in the 22 years of Navy life were we unable to be together to celebrate.
On our ninth anniversary, Rusty was in the middle of the Indian Ocean on the USS Eisenhower CVN-69, and sent me a hand drawn anniversary card since he hadn’t been on shore to buy a card for three months. (I treasure it still.) That anniversary I was at my parent’s farm, and my teenage sisters took me out for pizza, and a movie. Then we drove the circuit like in American Graffiti. They still tease me about how they pulled a “fire drill” in the middle of Main Street. What craziness.
Celebrations at home with the kids always included a coconut cake cut with a knife engraved with our wedding date. We topped it with the bride and groom off our wedding cake, and hoped we were holding up better than they were.
Rusty and I had our kids so late in our marriage that we had to get a sitter to go out on our 25th Anniversary. Now we babysit so our daughters can celebrate their anniversaries with ther hubbies.
If I could give one bit of advice to newlyweds today, I’d say to always make a big deal of the anniversary. It is important. A marriage should be celebrated.
Today when we look back at those two young kids in those wedding photos, we are amazed. Good grief, they were so young. We didn’t have those elaborate photo sessions that they have today, with the artsy angles and custom colorization, but the few photos we have tell it simply enough.
Those kids were deeply in love.
And I’m happy to tell you that those kids are still with us. Oh, you cannot see them, but we do when we look into each other’s eyes. Still in love and still ready for the next great adventure together.
Happy 40th Anniversary, Honey.
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