Some Memories

I called my Mom yesterday because it would have been her and my Dad's anniversary.  She had just got off the phone with my sister, Maxine, when I called.  I guess Maxine and I were both thinking alike.

I don't remember my parents ever making too big a deal out of their anniversary, although over the years we had given them some really nice parties and gifts, especially after we were grown.  I can remember once when I was high school, we decided that Mom and Dad needed a really nice storage building -- Dad had been saying he guessed he needed to find somebody to help him build one for a long time, but hadn't got around to it.  He wanted a nice building to put all his lawn and garden equipment and tools in, with room for regular storage as well.  Our house was not big, and storage room was minimum.

All of my siblings were out of school and working and/or married at the time, so all of us put together our resources, along with some cousins and some good friends who were like family, and we started planning.  On the day of their anniversary, which was a Saturday that year, my Mom's baby brother and his wife came and picked up Mom and Dad to take them out for the day.  They told them they wanted to spend the day with them, just the four of them, and then they were taking them out to lunch.

While they were gone, my brothers-in-law, sisters, brother, cousins and several friends erected and almost completely finished a big 30 x 30 ft. wooden building, with big double doors.  Only the wiring had to be left for later.  (The weather had cooperated, and it was a very dry, sunny February day.  If we'd had bad weather, then we were going to give them a big card with the blueprint inside, telling them that it would be built as soon as the weather improved.)

While they were doing that I was in charge of the house and the food.  My niece Sheila and friend Angie and I cleaned the entire house and kept sandwiches, cake and drinks ready for the workers, and then in the late afternoon, two of my sisters and I fixed a quck dinner, set the dining table and brought out a huge anniversary cake that another friend had made for us.

Mom and Dad were, needless to say, completely surprised.  Mom told me later that she half expected that we were planning to surprise them with some people over for dinner and cake, because my aunt and uncle kept them out later than they were expecting, but that the building was a total surprise.

That was a very nice evening, and I remember Mom and Dad actually walzing that night while my uncles and brother played guitars and fiddle.

Even though I can never remember them making a big deal out of their anniversary themselves, I do remember that Mom always made a special dinner for Daddy on that day, and Dad always brought Mom a huge, satiny, heart-shaped box of her favorite chocolates every year.  (Of which there was always an abundant supply, since Valentine's Day was just around the corner!)