They had "kept company"--as it was called back then--for close to four years. But then he was called away to serve his country. It was to be a short tour of duty, but then he received notice that his term was to be extended indefinitely. He was stationed in South Carolina at the time, and when he called his sweetheart to tell her the news, and that he was to be shipped overseas, she told him she wanted to come right down from New York. So they could get married.
She did--and now many years later, in the second decade of another century, they are preparing to celebrate their seventy-fourth wedding anniversary. She's turning ninety-five, he's ninety-seven. And my wife Linda's Aunt Lil and Uncle Tony still live in the house they've occupied for most of their lives.
This last week of the sabbatical includes the usual measure of study as I continue to focus on the abolition movement, but it also involves some family visits in upstate New York and Kentucky. And today's visiting was highlighted by our lunch with Tony and Lil.
While we were chatting the conversation turned to rings. And Uncle Tony told us a story. He loves to tell stories--and he often tells good ones!
Tony served as a medic in the War. (For his generation "the War" always means World War II). And his time was largely spent in the European theater. Part of his time he was stationed in northern Africa.
"It got really hot there," he told us. "We used to keep thermometers in a glass jar filled with alcohol on a stand. When a sick soldier would come into our tent, we'd take one of them out, shake it off, and stick it in his mouth. Well one day, it was really, really hot--something like 115 degrees. And the thermometers only went up to 108.
"So this guy comes in, and I stuck one I his mouth. Suddenly he says, 'Ow! That pricked me.' I took out the thermometer and it had broken. I looked at the others in the jar of alcohol, and when I stuck in my hand to check them out, they were all broken. They had exploded in the heat! And my hand was covered with mercury. We didn't know it was so poisonous back then." Tony wiped off the mercury, but his gold wedding ring had turned all silver."
The next morning, when he woke up, the ring had turned brittle, and broke into three pieces.
"I sent it home to Lil," he told us. "I wanted her to get it fixed."
"Yeah," she said. "But it was going to cost as much as a new one."
"I know," said Tony, "but I wanted to keep the original."
And, as he twirled the restored ring around his finger, I couldn't help but think it wasn't just the original ring he kept. He, and she, have kept their vows for more years than many people live!
Seventy-four years! Amazing! God bless them both--and God bless all those who keep their vows.
No comments:
Post a Comment