I love my parents. Dearly. Desperately. And have loved them, for forty-seven years and ten days.
Their names are Chuck and Jo Bessey, for those of you who don’t know that, already. And tomorrow, October 1, 2010, is their 50th wedding anniversary.
Wow.
Yes, I love Mum and Dad. That’s not to say that they don’t drive me nuts, sometimes. They do. And… I return the favor. In spades.
That’s not to say they don’t have their faults. They do. But so does their middle dotter.
That middle dotter is me.
How do I adequately express all that these two people have done for me? All that they mean to me?
I don’t think I can.
They were both from poor, working class families. Families which were proud. Families that stayed together. Both Mum’s and Dad’s parents also celebrated more than fifty years of marriage. That’s a heritage of which to be proud, in my book. (Well, not in my BOOK. Mum and Dad aren’t in my book. Because my book is fiction, after all, and my folks are very, very real. Perhaps ‘by my estimation’, is what I should have said…)
Anyway… I’m proud of my heritage. I’m very, very proud of my parents. They’ve hung in there. They’ve survived. They even enjoy one another’s company.
Most days.
And isn’t that what ‘real life’ is like? Nothing is ever rosy and bright all the time. No one and nothing is perfect.
But there are people who are loyal. People who are honorable and trustworthy. People who stand beside each other no matter what, and take their promises seriously. People who put aside their own ‘wants’ and look out for the best interests of the other. Their partners. Their mates. Their spouses.
People like Chuck and Jo Bessey. My parents.
My heroes.
Happy 50th anniversary, Mum and Dad. I love you. Always and forever.
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Top: Mum and Dad at the Piscatiquis County Fair in 1961. Mum was eight months pregnant with my big sister Chris.
Second: Bami and Bappa (Thelma and Arthur Bessey) on their 50th anniversary, December 5, 1975
Third: Mammy and Grankie (Ruth and Milton [Mike] Dolley), August 15, 1981
Fourth: Mum and Dad posing for me in 1980
Fifth: Mum and Dad on Eli's 13th birthday, October 13, 2009
We were out of town when you celebrated your "50th", Chuck and Jo. So sorry we missed it. But congratulations anyway, just a bit late. By the way, we love your dotter. She's a gem, that Karen! Ya done good when ya produced her. Linda and Dave Miller, Lexington
ReplyDeleteHey, Linda and Dave! Thanks so much for commenting. I've forwarded this to the office email, so that Mum and Dad can see it! I especially think it's vital that they see the comments regarding their middle dotter.
ReplyDeleteHeh... that's a nice thing to say. Thank you. :o)
Hope you're both feeling better.
xoxo