Had my mother lived, March 4th would have been their anniversary. I always hesitate to make much of it, especially now that she is gone. Theirs was a very rocky road. I don't carry many happy memories between the two of them. My father is not and has not been one to celebrate such things... or Christmas, or Birthdays...so it was, for me, something I recognized for her, not him. ( If you've read me for any length of time, I have shared that when we lived in South Carolina, I called her local florist and had flowers delivered for an anniversary, signed "Your favorite daughter". They only have 2.... Mom guessed wrong. I had forewarned my sister so to us, it was funny. I was out of state, the florist was local so she just assumed it was my sister. So..... the next year.... I did it again. You would think she would have known then. Nope! My sister got the credit then too. So that was a running joke for years. Mom was not happy. We were laughing at her and she did not appreciate it. (We did.)
This photo was taken of Gerald and Nancy in May of 1950. Mom was 19, Dad may have had his 22nd, May 26th Birthday. Mom would be 20 in June and I would arrive in July. They look happy. They had left all they knew of family and friends in Missouri, in the rear view mirror, as they made their way to Flint, Michigan so Dad could work for General Motors.
I have mentioned previously that they were married March 4th, 1949, when they were 18 and 21. They had only dated a few weeks. They eloped, with friends serving as their witnesses. Then, (my grandmother told my sister and I when we were in our 20s...that they kept the marriage secret,and went home to their respective parent's homes for 3 months. I've never gotten a straight answer on the "whys" of that. I think I need to sic YFS (your favorite sister...) on that with my dad.
This is from their 25th anniversay party that my sister planned. YFS, Mom, dad, my brother and me, March, 1974.
My father will be 85 in May. I wonder if he even knew that anniversary has passed.
7 comments:
My Mom's birthday is next month, I am so tempted to do the flower thing. For reason's I'll never know, I am not the favorite. My sister and I have joked about it, it's really obvious. It used to hurt a lot, but thankfully, I've let it go (for the most part). I could never really figure out my Mom and Dad's relationship either. Dad's gone now, and Mom rarely speaks about him.
They must have liked each other part of the time to have three children:)
Perhaps your Mom was not through with school yet..around here if you were married you were kicked out of school. So that could have been a reason to keep their marriage a secret.
I have never understood why some people stay together in an unhappy marriage:(
Used to be a lot of "stay together for the children" but I think this really meant something else, like, "We are scared of what the family, friends, and/or neighbors will think" back in the day...
They must of had some happy times -
I hope they are happy now - where ever they are...
I was the baby and was always teased as being the favorite,... maybe. But I think that I got more attention from my siblings than my parents. They are both gone now, but I'm still getting the attention of my wonderful siblings.
Always hold on to the good memories, they get us through the bad times.
Big hugs,
Patti
I never pretend to understand the whys and whats of relationships, especially our parents. As children, we never really know the real story cause parents tell us what they think we should hear and know and more often not the truth. I know as a parent, I do that. Glad you stopped by!
It's easier for a woman to be married than single -- two incomes are better than one, and men are handy to have around the house.
Sweet! sandie♥
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