The Deepest Love

Papa & Mimi When They Were Dating

 Today is my maternal grandparents' 56th wedding anniversary. I cannot tell you how fortunate I am to be the granddaughter of two people so in love, but I'm going to try anyway. 

I've wanted to write about my grandmother, I call her Mimi, for so long now. Every time I think of what to write, though, I'm at a loss. Words cannot fully describe how perfect this woman is.

Mimi graduated high school early, so she could get married. Right after graduation, though, her grandmother got hurt and her mother was often absent taking care of her. My 18 year-old grandma got a job at something like a Dairy Queen & took care of her younger brothers for most of that year. I can just picture her, making lunches, looking over schoolwork, all the while she was supposed to be marrying my grandpa & starting her own life! When she told me this story, she talked about how fortunate it was that she finished school early, so that she could be there to take care of her family. Mimi is all about taking care of her family. She is the perfect wife, mother, and grandmother. My mom tells me stories about how Mimi always looked beautiful for Papa, and the two of them would often dress up & host cocktail parties. I love to hear about these times, because I was born in the wrong era & should have been living them!

My grandparents were married when Mimi was 18 & Papa was 19. Last year, Mimi told me about the first night of their honeymoon. The place they stayed was freezing cold, and it seemed like everything that could go wrong did. They just laughed and laughed, nothing can be bad when you're married to the love of your life. They bought some cider in a glass jug on that trip and, when they came home, Mimi put it under the kitchen sink. Well, something funky happened under there, because it exploded! They laughed some more & talked about the wonderfully funny memories they made their first night as man & wife. The early years of their marriage had all sorts of mishaps like that. My grandma was jumping on the bed & broke it...twice. That must be where I get my silliness.

Their amazing attitude toward marriage helped them again when Papa's rheumatoid arthritis finally forced him to stop working in his thirties and become the word that could never describe this man, could never describe his spirit or anything else about him: disabled. I can't imagine how hard it would be to be a man in his thirties during such a traditional era & be forced to stay home while his wife earned a living. I'm sure it took its toll on Papa at first, and I'll bet Mimi was just torn to see her strong, amazing husband be so sick. They both were going through a hard time. One night, Mimi asked Papa to grab his coat, told my mom & aunt not to kill each other, picked up a bucket of fried chicken, and drove to a nearby park. She & Papa made an agreement that night. They decided that if one of them was down, then the other had to be up. They made a tight pact to support each other, even when things got bad. Because remember, nothing can be bad when you're married to the love of your life.

To be near them is to feel the overwhelming love they have for each other. When I grow discouraged with the idea of marriage & all its hardships, I think of them. While I think they are the most extraordinary people I've ever known, they will be the first to tell you that they are ordinary people. But together, even they can't deny, they are something special.