A story of my parents.

I want to go to bed so you get a story about my parents.  They are my go to muse for inspiration.

For my parents 50th wedding anniversary we did a big dinner party.  I think we had about 200 people or so.  My brother that's a cook cooked pretty much all of it.  We did it at my mother's church -we won't even discuss the quality of that kitchen- and used family and friends for labor.

Most of the people that my parents knew are craftsmen, artists and salesmen that sold to the others.  We are talking woodworkers, upholsters (they are all crazy), drummers, musicians, carvers, and jewelry makers.  Some are professionals some are amateurs.  I was dressed in my olive green suit with a wood tie (woodworking family) and my wife grabbed a different tie because the brown of the tie do not go with that shade of green.  Did I wear the backup?  Nope, my father took me around to his woodworking friends to show off my tie.

My sister had a little speech about how our parents are the third generation to have a marriage that lasted 50 years or more.  She then looked at me and mentioned, "No pressure".  Yes, I know how old I'll need to be to make it four generations.  I'm watching my health so it shouldn't be a problem.

Everyone had fun, my wife was my girlfriend at the time and I think she got a little scared at meeting all of us -family and friends- at once.  Odd little story about my wife and my family, we had been together for about six months or so and it was Christmas, we went to my parents house for dinner.  My parents gave her a Christmas present, a vegetable peeler (we still have it), and told her to use it on the potatoes.  She started peeling and didn't stop until the whole bag was done.  My parents loved that she didn't complain about working.  She was my parents favorite child then.  She was even more their favorite when she gave them their first grandchild.

One of the gentlemen at the party brought his girlfriend to the party.  Later, he told us that he proposed to her that night because of my parents and their 50 year marriage.  She did accept.

I hope that our 50th wedding anniversary party we have someone inspired by us to propose, and we better have grandchildren there.