Thursday, August 07, 2008
It Was 20 Years Ago Today...
Well, actually, it was 20 years ago yesterday, but I can't go back and ask the Beatles to change the song now.
On August 6, 1988, Tim Butler and Rita Markel were joined together in holy matrimony at Holy Cross Church in Marine City, Michigan. It was an insanely hot day. In fact the entire summer was scorching. (Yet, no one was complaining about "global warming.") Despite the heat, it was a bright, beautiful day. I started the day in a hotel with two of my groomsmen. Before we dressed for the ceremony, we went to the local Big Boy and ordered two breakfasts each. (Two servers had to bring us the food.) The church was beautiful. There was time to kill after the ceremony, so we drove around in our limo and stopped by a party my parents hosted at their hotel. The reception was an absolute blast, and I was touched by some of my friends (all of whom I've lost touch with) who journeyed long distances to attend. A couple of days afterwards, Rita and I left for our honeymoon in Gatlinburg, Tennessee.
So, how did we celebrate this momentous occasion? Well, observers would be very disappointed. Yesterday, Rita called me at work to say, "Happy anniversary!" I brought home flowers. Then, we went to our usual Wednesday night hot dog roast and fellowship meeting at Living Word. Rita spilled the beans during the festivities, so the folks in attendance threw together an anniversary song for us.
And that's it....
For now....
Sunday is the real celebration. It probably won't be any different from any other year. We'll exchange gifts. Go out to dinner at Outback Steakhouse. Go for ice cream for dessert. Walk around, hold hands, and reminisce about old times and how happy we are with our marriage and our family.
Nothing extraordinary for number 20. We have some dear friends who also celebrated their 20th anniversary this year, and they spent a long weekend at Lake Michigan, where they honeymooned back in 1988. However, their kids are a bit older than ours, and this afforded them the freedom to take such a trip. We'll be in a much better position to do something amazing and ground breaking for our 25th. Maybe a return to Gatlinburg or a long weekend in the wilds of northern Michigan?
We'll see.......
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