“It reinforces our sense of how fortunate we are in our neighbors! And how gifted some of them are! It has also contributed an element of happy surprise to our golden anniversary. Especially in this pandemic year, we weren’t planning on a big celebration (very much not our style) and have been surprised at how many people congratulate us and think the fifty-year mark is exceptional.”
Whose idea was it for a portrait session to celebrate your fiftieth anniversary?
“Last summer, Marla offered to give us a portrait session when she heard it was our 49th. We suggested waiting for the 50th, and all three of us remembered. We are very grateful.”
How did you end up wearing your original wedding dress and veil?
“When I hung the dress and veil up after cleaning back in summer 1971, I recall thinking it might be fun to try it on again — perhaps after 50 years. It was actually Marla’s suggestion on the afternoon of the photoshoot that I might see if it would still fit. Fortunately, it did, and the dress itself added to the joy of the occasion. I’m glad it is a relatively simple sheath and not an elaborate gown and train.”
Elderly man walks with a cane and kisses his wife's hand on their 50th anniversary
Marla Michele Must, MPP
Do you have any relationship advice for the younger generation?
J — “Of course, I wish them happiness and hope their relationships develop into strong marriages. A piece of advice I occasionally gave my student friends continues to apply: keep your attention focused on forming and sustaining a marriage rather than on planning the wedding.”
What is something you have learned about love over the years?
J — “Love of all kinds sustains us from birth to death. I am grateful for the love of parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles now gone, for my sister’s steady and supportive love, for the love of friends, and especially for Bob’s love and respect. As an English teacher, I tend to look to literary sources for insight and especially like the standard of marital happiness Jane Austen held out at the end of Pride and Prejudice: the ability of each partner in a married pair to contribute to the happiness of the other. And I can’t resist quoting my favorite poet, Emily Dickinson, who wrote:
Love — is anterior to Life —
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