This past April my parents celebrated their 50th Wedding Anniversary. The “kids” flew into Charlotte to surprise them for the weekend. Aside from a variety of delayed planes & Boston Bombers, everything went exceedingly well. In preparation of the surprise, I made a movie of old photos from my parent’s 50 years. When I got home, I realized that I had overlooked two treasures that celebrated their wedding. The first was Mom’s engagement photo from the Lynchburg newspaper, The News. This photo was dated Sunday, February 10, 1963.
Betty Lou Sublett
You probably can’t read the small type. But, my favorite part is the cut line, “Miss Sublett betrothed to Lawrence Whitehead.” What a great word, betrothed. It is not often used anymore, but I find it a great word. It simply means the one you are engaged to (fiance, fiancée, intended).
The next photo that I can’t believe I failed to include in my academy award-winning short film on my parents, was the actual wedding photo from the newspaper.
Wedding Announcement
This was printed on April 21, 1963 in The News. These wedding picture clippings are informative to the genealogist. Had this been a more distant relative, they provide valuable clues like parents of the bride-groom. They provided the attendant’s for both the bride and groom as well as the ushers.
When I think of my parent’s 50 years of marriage, I am so inspired by their commitment. I am also reminded of one of my Dad’s useful sayings: “Nothing is easy.”
I find it remarkable that while I am inspired sitting from my vantage point, my father was only 14 years old when he lost his father. His perspective was so much different from mine. My mother had her parents for a much longer period of time about 34 years. My sister has already been married 25 years.
Here are some thoughts on marriage:
“A happy marriage is the union of two good forgivers.” ~Ruth Bell Graham
“We come to love not by finding a perfect person, but by learning to see an imperfect person perfectly.” ~Sam Keen
“Enjoy the little things in life… For one day you’ll look back and realize they were the big things.” ~Kurt Vonnegut
Until next time, I will be exploring backwards.
Exploring Backwards 