When we got married, there was opposition from all sides and one of his aunts even cursed us! We had been living together and decided to get hitched on impulse. I had an anti-marriage bias, and this was a “now or never” type of situation.
With only two months’ lead time, we managed to pull together a formal Italian-style reception, complete with live band and multi-course feast.
LESLIE, a lanky short-haired blonde, is grieving the recent breakup of her relationship.
DEBBIE, of average height and build, with long auburn hair, is a free agent, juggling several suitors and taking none of them seriously. She too has had her heart broken recently and doesn’t want to get involved with anyone.
A black Camaro pulls up, and two males get out.
FRANK, the mustachioed driver, is of medium height and slight build, with light brown hair in a fashionable “shag” haircut.
ANGELO, slightly shorter and more muscular, is clean shaven, with a swarthy complexion, hazel eyes and dark, shoulder-length hair.
They join the group.
FRANK Meet my old friend from Italy. We used to play soccer together.
LESLIE Hi. What’s your name?
ANGELO replies, and LESLIE pulls a sour face. That is also the name of her despised ex-boyfriend.
DEBBIElaughs (atLESLIE).
ANGELO grabs her arm, scowling.
ANGELO (in a heavy Italian accent) What’s so funny ’bout my name?
DEBBIE pulls her arm away, thinking, “what an asshole!”
They glare at each other.
FADE OUT
~~~~~~~~
Yes, I met the love of my life 52 years ago. He had moved here directly from Italy a few months earlier and barely spoke English. We took an instant dislike to one another, which made for an awkward situation, as we shared the same social circle.
Slowly, we became platonic friends, but our relationship took a more romantic turn when he asked me out on a date that October. One night and we were both completely besotted!
January 1973
The following year, I informed my parents I wouldn’t be following their plan for college. (A big fight ensued, but it was my life, after all.) I found a job to earn my keep. Nothing glamorous; cashier at a bakery, but it gave me some independence.
A few months later, my sweetie and I rented an apartment. What fun to set up housekeeping together! We decided to get married in the summer and picked the first weekend of August, almost two years after that famous first date.
As mentioned above, this met with disapproval and objections. My parents came around when they saw we were going ahead without them.
[click on images to enlarge]
Wedding day Aug. 4/73
How sweet it is!
The newlyweds!
Dream Shot
So serious! ☺
One For The Road
There have been many ups and downs over the years, but we always made it a point to celebrate our anniversary. Some have been more memorable than others.
In the first decade, there were house parties that lasted long into the night and sometimes even the next morning. Those were the Halcyon Days!
1st Anniversary party, 1974
We celebrated our 10th, 20th and 25th anniversaries in Niagara Falls (only 93 km. = 58 mi. from home), at the Love Boat Restaurant, a favourite hauntfor over 30 years.
Our 40th anniversary was marked in grand style, with a month-long jaunt through Europe, including a dream-come-true, two-week tour of Greece, plus visits to Hubby’s birthplace in Italy, and mine in Germany.
40th Anniversary, Athens, 2013
I didn’t think we could top that, but for our 45th anniversary, we flew to Barcelona, then embarked on a 24-day Mediterranean and Adriatic cruise, winding up with family in Rome for a few days.
Those memories will last a lifetime!
45th Anniversary, Venice, 2018
So, here we are in 2023 and, according to pattern, there should be another trip, right? Especially considering we are celebrating our golden anniversary…
Not this time!
Three years of pandemic have driven travel and all other costs through the roof! We’re both retired now, so there’s less disposable income. The biggest change, though, is that we adopted a beautiful fur baby and couldn’t possibly leave her for that long!
No regrets!
Zoey and Daddy 2022
Instead, we will host a dinner party at our favourite local restaurant tonight. Cheers!
HA! They all said it wouldn’t last. We showed them!
Want to know the secrets of our success?
Read some solid advice and interesting anecdotes on the subject:
Dog Mom and (retired) Canine Innkeeper in suburban Toronto, Canada, known as The Doglady. Former corporate workaholic. Writer, photographer, digital creator. Animal lover, music fanatic, inveterate traveller. Eternal hippie/rockchick. History, literature and cinema buff. Hockey and soccer fan. Dedicated night owl. German/Canadian binational, multilingual. Let me entertain you!
51 thoughts on “HALF A CENTURY?! #ANNIVERSARY LOVE ENDURES”
I so enjoyed this post. I saw your announcement on FB, but this is so much better! Congrats on your golden anniversary! We just celebrated 43 years and we’re complete opposites. He was the country boy and I was the city girl. The minister who married us told Entrepreneur’s mom he doubted if the marriage would last!
Hi Debbie – I eventually got here … apologies for lateness. Congratulations – that’s wonderful to see and know a bit more about both your backgrounds … and then the trips … I guess being home, happy and peaceful with life is the best – brilliant news for the two of you … here’s to many more! Cheers Hilary
No apologies needed, Hilary. 🙂 I’ve hardly done any blogging this summer and haven’t been good about visiting either. Thanks for the congratulations. We are amazed how quickly those 50 years went by! Being home is fine, especially since travel has become so difficult and expensive, plus our furkid keeps us busy enough. 😀 That said, I still get those “itchy feet” once in a while. Hard to reform a travel addict!
What a beautiful storybook tale, Debbie! The songs are so fitting for such a perfectly maintained fairytale relationship. It really is rare ( that’s why I call it fairytale) that something so good can actually last so long. Congratulations!
Deb, this was a beautiful sharing of your love story together. You’ve both made so many wonderful memories together. Thanks for sharing some of them with us. Happy Anniversary!!! <3
Talk about a meet-cute! Your story would make a great movie. Long-term marriages seem to be the exception these days. In the US 40% of marriages end in divorce. Congratulations on working everything out over the years. Stubborness worked to your advantage.
Thank you, Janie! 💖 I’ve seen a few movies like that. 🙂 Canadian divorce rates are similar to yours, so I know we got lucky. And yes! Stubbornness definitely played a part. 😀
Happy Anniversary Debbie and Angelo! In my opinion this is an amazing accomplishment. Long committed relationships grow fewer and fewer as time goes on. I’m so happy for the two of you. 50 years of loving and fighting, smiling and crying can only make a couple stronger when they come through the storms together. I hope y’all have a wonderful time celebrating with friends. This milestone needs to be a bash! May you be blessed with many more years of togetherness, dear friend. xo
Thank you so much, Cathy! 💖 We are amazed how quickly the time has passed. You’re so right about becoming stronger through adversity. The party was a blast and is now a treasured memory. 😀
That’s awesome! I’m happy to know that y’all had a ball. With each passing anniversary, like you two, we marvel at the passage of time. It’s so unbelievable how fast the years have gone. In 2029, that’ll be our golden anniversary. It’ll be here in no time! Have a great week, my friend.
Happy, Happy Anniversary to the couple of all things cool! You have the fairytale and I couldn’t be happier! What an amazing courtship. Wishing you many more! – Happy Anniversary hugs coming your way. ❤️ –
Congratulations Debbie, that’s not an easy feat today and many will never reach that milestone. My parents were married for 73 years. I’ve been divorced so I’ll never see that many years married.
Many congratulations Debbie and Angelo and what a wonderful story from beginning to end. Wishing you and your fur baby continued happiness across many more years.
Wow what an adventure. I did not quite get why some people objected including your parents. Was it because it was sudden or because of not going to college? Maybe not my business. I am really glad your marriage has been such as success. 50 years is a great success. Congratulations on your 50th anniversary. 🏆🏆🏆🥂🥂🥂
A detail regarding something else, the “like” button does not load
Yes, it’s been quite a ride! 😀 My husband’s family was old-world Italian and Catholic. For him to marry a German atheist was scandalous, especially since we had been “living in sin” beforehand. 🙄 My parents objected because of the college issue, but when they saw we were going ahead without them, they accepted it.
Thank you for your kind words! My husband and I can hardly believe so much time has passed.
Unfortunately, I have no control over the like button, and it can be temperamental sometimes. Hopefully, it will work again, the next time. Sometimes, it works if you reload the page.
Oh I see old world thinking. Young people in the west today don’t have to deal with that as much. In India though, they still have arranged marriages. When I was there on business I talked to a young man who was about to get married, an arranged marriage. He was not happy and wanted to move to Texas. The like button just showed up now.
Good thing those attitudes have loosened! I have many blogging connections from India and was shocked to learn they still have arranged marriages there.
Apparently a caching plugin was causing a problem. All good now. 🙂
.jpg)
Follow THE DOGLADY’S DEN on WordPress.com 
51 thoughts on “HALF A CENTURY?! #ANNIVERSARY LOVE ENDURES”
I so enjoyed this post. I saw your announcement on FB, but this is so much better! Congrats on your golden anniversary! We just celebrated 43 years and we’re complete opposites. He was the country boy and I was the city girl. The minister who married us told Entrepreneur’s mom he doubted if the marriage would last!
Thank you, Lisa! 🙂 And congrats to you. That’s a funny thing for a minister to say! We are all getting the “last laugh” here. 😀
Hi Debbie – I eventually got here … apologies for lateness. Congratulations – that’s wonderful to see and know a bit more about both your backgrounds … and then the trips … I guess being home, happy and peaceful with life is the best – brilliant news for the two of you … here’s to many more! Cheers Hilary
No apologies needed, Hilary. 🙂 I’ve hardly done any blogging this summer and haven’t been good about visiting either. Thanks for the congratulations. We are amazed how quickly those 50 years went by! Being home is fine, especially since travel has become so difficult and expensive, plus our furkid keeps us busy enough. 😀 That said, I still get those “itchy feet” once in a while. Hard to reform a travel addict!
Happy 50th anniversary to you both! To many more years of joy!
Thank you, Olga! 🙂 We hope there will be many more years…
P.S. I just dropped into your website and saw you’re from Barcelona. We loved visiting there! 💖
Thanks, Debbie! I hope you might be able to visit again in the future (although you’re right about the prices for travel going up everywhere). ♥
Happy 50th Anniversary to you both!
Thank you! 🙂 Hard to believe…
Congratulations! A marriage that long is pretty impressive these days.
Lee
Thanks, Lee! We are fairly impressed to have made it this far. 🙂
Congrats to you and your hubby
Thank you, Patrick! 🙂
Congrats and happy anniversary, Debbie and Angelo. Wishing you much love for the future. ❤️
Thank you so much, Eugenia! 💖
You’re very welcome, Debbie. I loved the photos, btw. 💞
Happy Golden Wedding Anniversary, Debbie and Angelo, have a wonderful evening ! Wishing you always the best, like health and LOVE. Karin.
Thank you so much, Karin! 💖 We had a wonderful time. 🙂
Happy anniversary to you both, and many more! I will lift a glass of wee heavy to you tonight!
Thank you, Chris, and cheers! 🍻
What a beautiful storybook tale, Debbie! The songs are so fitting for such a perfectly maintained fairytale relationship. It really is rare ( that’s why I call it fairytale) that something so good can actually last so long. Congratulations!
Thank you, diedre! 💖 As with every fairytale, there were also some dark moments, but we persevered. 🙂
Congratulations, you two! Here’s to another 50!
Thank you, John! 🙂 Another 50 might be a tad optimistic, but wouldn’t it be grand? 😀
Deb, this was a beautiful sharing of your love story together. You’ve both made so many wonderful memories together. Thanks for sharing some of them with us. Happy Anniversary!!! <3
Thank you so much, Deb! 💖 We have been lucky. Also determined to make it work. 🙂
Talk about a meet-cute! Your story would make a great movie. Long-term marriages seem to be the exception these days. In the US 40% of marriages end in divorce. Congratulations on working everything out over the years. Stubborness worked to your advantage.
Love,
Janie
Thank you, Janie! 💖 I’ve seen a few movies like that. 🙂 Canadian divorce rates are similar to yours, so I know we got lucky. And yes! Stubbornness definitely played a part. 😀
Happy Anniversary Debbie and Angelo! In my opinion this is an amazing accomplishment. Long committed relationships grow fewer and fewer as time goes on. I’m so happy for the two of you. 50 years of loving and fighting, smiling and crying can only make a couple stronger when they come through the storms together. I hope y’all have a wonderful time celebrating with friends. This milestone needs to be a bash! May you be blessed with many more years of togetherness, dear friend. xo
Thank you so much, Cathy! 💖 We are amazed how quickly the time has passed. You’re so right about becoming stronger through adversity. The party was a blast and is now a treasured memory. 😀
That’s awesome! I’m happy to know that y’all had a ball. With each passing anniversary, like you two, we marvel at the passage of time. It’s so unbelievable how fast the years have gone. In 2029, that’ll be our golden anniversary. It’ll be here in no time! Have a great week, my friend.
It’s always a treat to re-read your love story. You’ve been so courageous, both of you!
Happy anniversary, you guys, keep it up 🙂
Thank you, Tamara! 🙂 I’m not so sure about courageous, but definitely stubborn, and determined to keep things together.
Happy anniversary! I really enjoyed reading your story and seeing your photos. May you have many more wonderful years to come! 🤍🤍
Thank you, Kimberly! 🙂 I’m glad you enjoyed it. We are hoping for many more years.
Congratulations to both of you. I’ve enjoyed following your trips, but agree that after COVID I have little desire to hit the road.
Thanks, Denise! 🙂 Yes, travel has lost some of its appeal, but I still get “itchy feet” occasionally.
50 years married is a landmark anniversary indeed. Sincere congratulations to you both from England.
Best wishes, Pete.
Thank you so much, Pete! We find it hard to believe that so much time has passed. 🙂
Happy, Happy Anniversary to the couple of all things cool! You have the fairytale and I couldn’t be happier! What an amazing courtship. Wishing you many more! – Happy Anniversary hugs coming your way. ❤️ –
Thanks for those kind words, Karen! 💖 We have been lucky, but it wasn’t all roses. 🙂
Congratulations Debbie, that’s not an easy feat today and many will never reach that milestone. My parents were married for 73 years. I’ve been divorced so I’ll never see that many years married.
Thanks, Lisa! I hope we live long enough to celebrate 73 years of marriage. 🙂 I know, we are very lucky.
Many congratulations Debbie and Angelo and what a wonderful story from beginning to end. Wishing you and your fur baby continued happiness across many more years.
Thank you, Sally! 🙂 It’s been quite a ride, so far.
Wow what an adventure. I did not quite get why some people objected including your parents. Was it because it was sudden or because of not going to college? Maybe not my business. I am really glad your marriage has been such as success. 50 years is a great success. Congratulations on your 50th anniversary. 🏆🏆🏆🥂🥂🥂
A detail regarding something else, the “like” button does not load
Yes, it’s been quite a ride! 😀 My husband’s family was old-world Italian and Catholic. For him to marry a German atheist was scandalous, especially since we had been “living in sin” beforehand. 🙄 My parents objected because of the college issue, but when they saw we were going ahead without them, they accepted it.
Thank you for your kind words! My husband and I can hardly believe so much time has passed.
Unfortunately, I have no control over the like button, and it can be temperamental sometimes. Hopefully, it will work again, the next time. Sometimes, it works if you reload the page.
Oh I see old world thinking. Young people in the west today don’t have to deal with that as much. In India though, they still have arranged marriages. When I was there on business I talked to a young man who was about to get married, an arranged marriage. He was not happy and wanted to move to Texas. The like button just showed up now.
Good thing those attitudes have loosened! I have many blogging connections from India and was shocked to learn they still have arranged marriages there.
Apparently a caching plugin was causing a problem. All good now. 🙂