Anniversary

We were married! We'd dated, gotten engaged and survived planning our wedding. We'd enjoyed our reception so much that we were practically the last ones to leave. Now we were flying free...

This photo of the old biplane that pulled My Awesome Husband Greg and me up over the Pocono Mountains in a glider--professionally piloted, of course--then cut us free is from our DIY wedding album. It's the kind of album where the photos are permanently affixed by sticky strips of glue that turn yellow after a few years. The cellophane page covers that become brittle with time make the pages dangerous to touch, rendering the entire album unappealing, no matter how precious the memories.

It was 1973. We didn't do selfies back then, but we did take pictures of ourselves on road trips. I took this one as we started out for our "romantic" (that's what all the ads in Bride Magazine promised) Penn Hills honeymoon...

Possibly even more dangerous than texting while driving--taking photos of your spouse while driving...

Tucked among those brittle, sticky, yellowed old pages, I found a poem I had written for Awesome Greg on our 26th anniversary. Apparently I thought it was worth saving, which makes it worth repeating here, perhaps. Elizabeth Barrett Browning had nothing on me, as you can see...

How do I love thee...
How shall I explain?
I love thee like a new umbrella
Loves a gentle rain.

I love thee like a faithful dog
Loves the creaking door
That signals that his master
Has returned to him once more.

I love thee like the empty gut
Loves the morning meal,
And I love thee like a chilly morn
Craves the sunshine's feel.

I love thee like the poet,
With obsessive need to rhyme,
Loves the rare occasion
When there's ample "quiet time."

But mine will soon be over,
So this ballad must end here--
Just know somehow I love you
A little more each year.

Happy Anniversary to My Awesome Husband Greg!