Wow - it's been a month since I last posted; I've had a lot going on, but nothing seemed like a good topic!!

A year ago today, Mom had her stroke. As I was getting ready for school, Andy's brother called to tell us she'd been taken to the hospital after a bad fall. As soon as we could get away, we got to Houston. At first, it looked like we would lose her, and in some ways, we have....

Mom was a fastidious house keeper. All meals were set on the table, and everyone sat there, together, to eat. She never sat down to "visit" - and current events and social topics were the conversation of the day. That part of her is gone, but she is so much better than we ever thought. Healthy, home cooked meals have given way to poached eggs or take-out pizza for dinner, and their once valued independence has been replaced by a 24/7 nurse in the home.

My father- in- law misses his wife a lot. Over the year, we've seen such frustration in him, and yet we've also seen so many instances of tenderness and love that were kept private between them all the years prior. It's truly been a learning experience for us all!

So, as we begin this next year - we are grateful that Mom is better and at home. We miss the mom she was, but we relish the Mom we have now. We are thankful for this year and all it has shown us about our family.

April 12, 1947

Happy Anniversary, Mom and Daddy! Today would mark 63 years for Graves and Margaret Young, who married during a terrific rain storm at the home of the Justice of the Peace. Mom wore a blue jersey knit dress, and Dad had to take a bath in a tub in the kitchen at Mamaw's because Grandma Annie was so against the marriage. As mom told it, they stepped over grandkids who were sleeping on mats on the floor. When the 5 minute ceremony was over, Daddy was too shy to kiss Mom, and the Best Man said, "Well, Graves, if you're not gonna kiss her, I sure will!!" Thus began a tumultous life together on the corner of Ave. B and Boyd St. in Poteet. As the family grew, so did the house, and they never lived anywhere else as long as they were together.

Daddy died in 1990, and Mom lived until 2001. I miss them, and with time am growing to understand more and more the dynamics of their life together. They loved each other passionately, and were very committed to us and our lives.

There was more good than bad.

Not quite what we'd planned

On this day in 1960, Frank LaMore married Anne Marie Slors. It had been a quick courtship, and the group in attendance was very small. Two of the guests were little boys whose lives had been in turmoil for the last 2 or more years, and I'm sure they had no idea what was going on. All they knew was that their mother was gone and now, here was another woman to live in their house. It was to be their greatest blessing.

We'd planned to have a nice, family dinner - the twenty or so of us who have been the result of this union of necessity. The bride and groom didn't want a big show; they just wanted us around them to celebrate the passage of 50 years together. There are 4 children, 3 in-law kids, 11 grandchildren plus 2 spouses, and 3 great-grandchildren. The lives have been very blessed, with no major illnesses or catastrophes. Life has been calm and good - just as they had hoped it would turn out.

And then, Mom fell.

So. Today has been a quiet day or reflection and blessings counting. No big dinner is in the works; a vase of flowers from the children is the only "celebration" to be seen. They made it to 50 years their own way, and now face an uncertain future. What is to come overshadows any party we may have planned.

The main thing I take from this day is that a marriage on necessity that grew into love and respect shows me that too often people give up and quit. They put themselves before others and don't see that with determination and committment, you come to the last years of life with a love so strong that it can't be broken by a fall in a dark bedroom.
To see them together today is to see a victory in two lives.