Happy 35th Anniversary

This is the happy couple, my husband, David, and I, who are celebrating their 35th wedding anniversary today. There is an amusing story of our meeting which has become part of the family lore, and I would like to share it with you.

One day, in the fall of 1972, my mom, Mary, was happily playing golf with three friends: Bette, Dorothy and Peggy. As mothers are wont to do, Mary and Bette found themselves discussing their grown children who were as yet unmarried. They were walking toward the clubhouse where they planned to have lunch together. Mom pulled out a photo of me and showed Bette. As they enjoyed lunch, phone numbers of their children were exchanged, and a plot was hatched to get us together.

The idea was to get David to come up to the ranch and pick some persimmons for his mom, Bette, and I would just happen to be there. That didn't work out because by the time David got there, I had already returned to Sacramento where I was working on getting my teaching credential.

During the winter David called me and we had a date, which wasn't all that successful. He talked about his old girlfriends, and I was dating someone else at the time... However, when June rolled around, I was out of school for the summer and no longer involved dating anyone. SO...a voice whispered in my ear, "What about Dave? You never really gave him a chance..." I wrote him a little note and invited him to come down for dinner. He called, we set a date, and he arrived with a bottle of wine in hand on June 9, 1973.

I served a scrumptious dinner of Beef Stroganoff over noodles, steamed broccoli, salad, and for dessert, chocolate fondue. That was a stroke of brillance! I don't know if it was me, tanned and glowing with my long, blond hair, in my long, halter-neck dress, or the chocolate fondue, but it was a magical dinner and I think it was a done deal from that evening on.

We had a wonderful summer, dating and meeting each others' families and friends. One memorable Saturday afternoon we took a large tractor tire inner tube up the river a ways from my parents' ranch, and put in just above a small rock dam. We had a t-shirt for me in case of sunburn, and a six-pack of cold drinks for the river float which should have taken an hour or two to get down to our sandbar. I was seated across from Dave, balancing on the tube, hanging on to my t-shirt, as we started to go over the dam.

Somehow disaster struck and I was flipped right over Dave's head and we both ended up in the river, the t-shirt and drinks sank to the bottom and the inner tube quickly deflated. There we were, in the middle of the river, treading water and trying to figure out what happened. I still remember the man sitting in his boat about twenty feet away with his fishing pole in his hand. He glanced at us once, with the most remarkably unconcerned look upon his face, then he turned back to his line in the water and completely ignored us. I've often wondered, if we had started floundering and flailing, as if we might actually be drowning, what he might have done?

There was no where to climb out as the banks were covered with blackberry vines, so we just floated in the river all the way down to our sandbar. It wasn't a problem because we were both strong swimmers, but we were very cold by the time we got there!

One night in September, Dave took me to see the movie, The Sound of Music. To this day, it is one of my favorite films. When he drove me home, we were talking out in the car in the driveway, and he asked me to marry him. There wasn't a moment's hesitation! The answer was "Yes."

I couldn't wait to tell my mom the next morning that Dave had asked me to marry him. She was just as happy and excited as I thought she would be!  My dad, known for his reserved ways, was very pleased. It was decided that Dave should come a little early for our date that night so that he could "speak" to my dad~ you know, ask his permission to marry his daughter. Dave arrived, and mom, dad and I were duly assembled in the living room. Small talk ensued, about anything and everything as Dave no doubt searched his mind for an opening on the subject at hand.

My dad must have thought the subject would never come up, so he got up off the sofa and went in to the kitchen where he started opening the mail. We three followed, Dave finally broached the subject and the congratulations were given. What joy!!

We chose a date in the middle of October to have our engagement party in my parents' home on the ranch, and picked out our engagement and wedding rings at the local jeweler's. I was so excited, I had a hard time at first paying attention to my student teaching which had just begun! I remember looking down at my engagement ring often during each day, and feeling SO happy...

My mom wrote a poem called Persimmon Time for the engagement party. She typed it on the old typewriter and put each copy in handmade persimmon-shaped folders. On the outside it said, 'David and Sylvia will wed on February 9, 1974.' Here is the poem my mother wrote...

Persimmon Time

'Twas persimmon time in seventy-two
When Dave and Syl began to woo,
Introduced by the mothers, (the plot was well hatched),
As is often the case with two people well matched.

Slow off the mark, the pace became hurried,
To and fro from Sacto the innocents scurried.
There were river floats and barbeques, and picnics on the bar,
With sand in the hair, and eyes on a star.

The mothers were ecstatic, the fathers content,

A beautiful thing, this romance heaven sent!

Though great confidence in this couple was centered,

Into the mind odd thoughts sometimes entered.

Could he with his skiing, bank-building, shop-talking,
Get used to lawnmower, garden hoe and dog-walking?

Would she with her photos, music and trunk-gilding,

Take to stove, mop, and humdrum nest-building?

Yes! The two decided they could pull together,

In double harness, through every weather,

For love conquers all and Mother Nature's so smart,

She knows all the answers in affairs of the heart!

When Persimmon Time once more rolled around,

And Fall's gay carpet lay on the ground,

Syl's father and mother were proud to say,

"The lovers will wed near Valentine's Day."

When the date was set, and the news was out,

While joyous sounds rang round about,

The dads shook hands, and the moms agreed,

"It's been a long, long year indeed!"

By Mary H. Jenkins

I love you, Hubby.

S'Mores Indoors!

A few days ago my great-niece Elizabeth came over to visit after school. We had a nice fire going in the fireplace, so we decided to make S'Mores.

My sister, Jan (Elizabeth's grandmother), and I have fond memories of making S'Mores from our childhood. Our mom, Mary, started a tradition that has lasted for decades in our family. Our family farm extends down to the river where we have had many happy hot dog roasts on the sandbar over several generations. All we needed to do there was build a fire, cut a stick off a bush and we were ready to roast and toast. In the wintertime, Jan and I would put our marshmallow on a fork and toast them over the electric burner on the stove. At my house, we toast them over the fire in the fireplace!

We don't know why or how it happened, perhaps it was born of necessity one day when she didn't have all of the ingredients, but mom always made S'Mores with Ritz crackers instead of graham crackers. Now, before you run screaming from the room at the very thought of S'Mores without graham crackers, consider how good a golden, flaky, lightly salted Ritz could be with a piece of melting chocolate and a warm, toasted marshmallow. Oh yes!! This you just have to try. Friends who have tried our S'Mores over the years were quickly converted to "our" way, so it will probably work for you as well. The combination of the lightly salted not-so-sweet cracker with the chocolate is unbeatable!!
                                                               The important ingredients

Lay out the crackers, marshmallows and chocolate pieces on a sturdy plate. Have a lot of napkins close by as well! I selected Hershey's milk chocolate bars for the sake of tradition, but whatever your favorite kind of chocolate is will do. I did not pick a thick candy bar because I've found that the pieces are too thick to melt and too hard to bite into. The thinner piece will melt as soon as the hot marshmallow is placed on top of it which makes it better.
Elizabeth tried out the long fork and learned to hold the marshmallows over the hot coals instead of the flames.
Watch them very carefully so they do not get burned, which is not healthy for us to eat.
Just perfect, Lizzie!! Hot, puffy, and lightly toasted.
Lay those marshmallows on the chocolate, put on the top cracker, and take a bite of your S'More. I asked Lizzie if she had ever tasted anything more wonderful in her life, and she said, "Oh, wonderful world!"
What fun, what fun. Thanks, Mom, for the memories!

Note: Did you notice a little Christmas tree on the fireplace bench behind Elizabeth? That is my angel ornament tree, the last little bit of Christmas decorations left up in our home. I can't bear to take it all down at once, so I leave the little tree up for awhile in January!

Luke 2:1-20 The Birth of Jesus

                                           

In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) And everyone went to his own town to register.

So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

The Shepherds and the Angels 

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy. that will be for all the people.

Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.

This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."

Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

   "Glory to God in the highest,

        and on earth peace to men on

                whom his favor rests."

When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let's go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about."

So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

Luke 1:26-38 The Birth of Jesus Foretold

In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord be with you."

Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end."

"How will this be," Mary asked the angel, "since I am a virgin?"

The angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God."

"I am the Lord's servant," Mary answered. "May it be to me as you have said." Then the angel left her.