MEEMAW MEMORIES: 50 years

Tuesday, February 4, 2020

50 years

This is the week of the actual wedding anniversary--January 31, 1970. The celebration has continued all month, it seems. But, hey, a Golden Anniversary is worth it!

A few of the cards that have come in

First let me tell you, because many have asked, that my eye condition is improved, thanks to antibiotic drops and warm-egg wet-cloth compresses.

Memory Monday

I have inherited a large box of Dad's sermon notes, decades-worth. For this week's theme I set aside one, a folded half-sheet titled Bodas de Oro (Golden Wedding). He was asked to speak at don Humberto and wife's celebration. I don't remember or recognize who they were. My brother Lynn would probably know and have stories to add, if only he could whisper them to me from heaven.

Dad considered it a privilege to honor them as they celebrated God's hand upon their lives. His main points were:

God's hand in bringing them together.
God's protection
God's salvation
God's mercy

The same outline and Bible quotes could apply to our story.

Another Monday note: Stephan made sopapillas for our dinner which reminded us of a popular restaurant years ago in Muncie--One Accord. How many locals remember it, and the flags at each table that went up to signal "We need more sopapillas!"

Tuesday was an interestingly loooong day. I took Leah to her long-~~awaited~~ dreaded doctor appointment. From there she was sent to Med Express where they confirmed malignant hypertension and sent her to the ER. She may be smiling in the photo, but the four tell-tale lines on the monitor spoke of the turmoil going on inside. After a complete cardiac workup and repeated attempts to bring down her blood pressure, she was admitted for a 23-hour observation period.

The next day, my younger brother Ivan was passing through after business in the area, so we met at the hospital. We had a nice visit in Leah's room, Michael and Kayla there also.

What, did you think I was his little sister?

The two positives of ending up in the hospital:

the efficiency of having many tests in one place, at one time.
Dr. S's energetic,entertaining, educational (he had a student present) and thorough analysis of Leah's situation.

One of the hardest aspects of a hospital stay is the waiting. Everything takes f o r e v e r.

One rough moment was the attempt to draw blood that ended up blowing a vein.

We finally made it home by evening. Leah has a full schedule just monitoring her blood pressure, taking meds, keeping calm, and scheduling the many next steps in the process of determining the underlying cause.

"I can't wait to get home!"

That night very late (or was it the next day?) Moriah's team arrived back from their J-term experience abroad. Because it was so late and after so many hours of travel, she crashed here before going home the next day.
She brought back a couple souvenirs: a coaster for Mike, and a sweet little turtle for my collection.

Friday, our 50th wedding anniversary was finally here! However, I was feeling puny all day. We had no special plans, just a quiet day together. Michael, however, went out of his way to make flan desserts. That was very special.

Our family celebration a month ago lingers sweetly in our memory. I think fondly of each member's contribution to the special event, and also the letters and many congratulatory messages from friends all over the world.

One blessing-in-disguise of these weeks of being a "robot widow" (as some call it), is more available time on my own. Saturday, with nothing else scheduled, and no plans or emergencies with Leah, I realized I was free to attend friend Dorothy's 85th birthday party. There I met several other people I knew and enjoyed an hour of delightful music.

With Dorothy Schultz and Alma Thiessen

Janet Friesen and Ace Holsinger

Sunday, some family members asked to watch the Superbowl with us. Michael prepared a whole lot of food and we had a fun time. What was your Superbowl experience?