Anniversary a time to reflect on the joys of life
Advice from mom
By Rita Lessard
February is the month for love and sweethearts as we celebrate Valentine’s Day this week. February is also the month Tom and I celebrate our anniversary, celebrating 45 years February 8th. I imagine in this day and age, that’s quite a feat.
Tom and I got married in Germany, where Tom was stationed with the army. We had to get married twice: once at city hall (the legal ceremony), which we did in the morning, and then the religious ceremony in the afternoon.
We did have a few snags that day. For instance, I forgot to order the flowers, the bakers dropped the cake, and Tom dropped me when he was carrying me over the threshold I only weighed 105 lbs., so I don’t know how that happened; maybe it was the champagne or the beer, which were very cheap in Germany. As a matter of fact, liquor was cheaper than coffee in those days.
Despite the rough start, through the good and bad, sickness and health, richer or poorer, we’re still together.
We’ve had many blessings over the years, and the best of all was the great gift of our five sons, Tom, Glenn, Mike, Bill and Casey.
When Tom Jr. was in university and short on Christmas funds, he made us three family albums and described all of his brothers as he perceived them.
Casey was labeled Mr. Brain; when you look at Casey, you can see in his eyes his intelligence and the joy and happiness he has and gives to people.
Bill was Mr. Hockey or Mr. Sports; Bill loves sports and he was and still is quite an athlete. There was a time when I think he wanted to be a professional hockey player, but in the end he decided on a career in computers.
Mike was Mr. Lover. Mike loves life, and he especially loved the women; as a matter of fact, he had a girlfriend in kindergarten (Marion Steffans), who was the light of his life. Mike is always smiling and when you’re talking to him, even his voice smiles. From the time Mike was only a few days old, he smiled all the time. I kid you not! Maybe he was a comedian in a former life.
Glenn was labeled Mr. Ambition. This is very true; Glenn was always a hard worker and never afraid to get his hands dirty. When he was 10 years old, he helped me clean offices in Huron Park and in the summers, we cleaned the college for the hockey school. He made some money and that made him happy. By the time he was 17, he bought his own car with his savings. Although he was a metallurgist when he came out of college, he ended up in the banking business, which proved to be quite profitable. Tom was right when he said Glenn was Mr. Ambition because as of today, he has owned and sold six houses; not too bad for a 43 year old (as of February 19).
Tom described himself as an all-around great guy (Editor’s note: of course!), and this is so very true. Tom was my first child, and one of my greatest joys. Tom loves to play games; from the time he was 13 years old until he was 19, he played scrabble with me three or four times a week. He was always a good sport considering I beat him a lot. He’s gotten smarter over the years and I imagine it would be quite a challenge to play him today. Tom’s a super dad, a sweetheart of a husband, a great son-in-law (according to his father-in-law), a very kind, gentle, giving and caring son, and I might as well throw in handsome and distinguished man, too. So yes, an all around great guy.
So much for all of the sweethearts in my life. Happy anniversary Tom, happy birthday Glenn, and happy Valentine’s day to all of you!