dance in the rain

Today, March 20, 2011, is our 36th wedding anniversary. The years have flown by and much has changed since March 20, 1975. For example, 36 years ago no one owned a computer, cell phone, dvd player, ipod, or digital camera. There was no such thing as the internet. Star Wars wasn't a household name yet. Aids was not a regular part of our vocabulary. There were no skateboarders, or snowboarders. "Goth" was something associated with cathedrals. Thongs were something you wore on your....feet.

There have been other changes that have taken place. Many family members who were at our wedding have passed on. Beloved grandparents, aunts, uncles, and my father, are no longer here to love and guide us. New family members have been born. Little did we know that we would be become parents to five WONDERFUL people. Now we are the grandparents.

Life was full of hope and promise the day we married. It did not always turn out the way I envisioned. I never thought I would out live a grandchild. Ella Goodwin should have been five years old 10 days ago. I never thought one of my children would frequent the inside of a jail, or marry a tattoo artist in a drunken stupor in Vegas. However, in many ways, life has turned out more wonderful than I could imagine. I did not know then that we we would have a daughter grow up to become a civil engineer, or a daughter major in pre-law, or a son graduate from the Metropolitan Las Vegas Police Department. I did not know that the three daughters I would have would become my best friends, or that I would learn to love my son's wife, Racquel, so much. These wonderful, talented women have filled a long standing gap in my life because I never had a sister.

The man I married 36 years ago is no longer a young, skinny, youth. His hair is now white instead of the dreaded red color (I always liked the color of his hair). Through 36 years he has remained faithfully by my side, helping and comforting me, always working to support his family. He has proved to be the best husband and father. I chose well. We have weathered many trials and sorrows, but still laugh together. The past 36 years have taught me that life is not just learning to dance...it's learning to dance in the rain.