Anniversaries

Today is my parents 64th wedding anniversary. They were married in the Salt Lake Temple. My mother met my father's parents for the first time that day and I believe that they had been married about 18 months before Daddy met my mother's parents. They were both living and teaching in Vernal, UT at the time. Daddy was born in SLC and grew up in Kemmer WY. Mama was born in ElPaso, TX and grew up in Sanderson,TX. Daddy went to the University of Utah and Mama attended BYU. So I figure it was meant to be for them to meet and marry. I didn't come along until 20 months later. World War II had been going on for about seven weeks at that time. Daddy was classified 4F because of his really bad eye sight and because he was flat footed. It was a low blow to him when they wouldn't take him. But they readily accepted it. Because he had gone on his mission to Germany (he arrived back in Kemmer the day that Hilter marched into Poland in 1939) the people there spread rumors thro' out the town that he was a German spy. The Stake President asked Daddy to speak in another ward besides his own one Sunday and went and talked to the people of his ward. I guess they were the worst of the bunch,really giving him a bad time. After that he was a little better accepted. The war years were still hard for him tho' even after he left Kemmer. I think that he was given some trouble in Vernal after Mama and Daddy were married too, if I remember right. Don't quote me on that tho'. My maternal grandparents were both born in Mexico in the Mormon colonies. My paternal grandfather was born in Germany and my paternal grandmother was born in Switerland. Her native tongue was Fremch. They were both 18 or 19 when they came to America. They had both joined the church by then. It turned out that after they met in SLC and got to know each other, they found out that they had come over on the same boat.

The other anniversary? Four years ago today my sister nine years younger than I died of massive pulmonary emboli. (Blood clots in the lungs.) She was very heavy. She had told me just the day before she died that she weighed close to 450 lbs. I had asked her if she had idered gastric bypass surgery. She said that her doctors did't recommend it. I sincerly think that if she had had that surgery, she would be alive today.

Today, I went to my Pilates class again. I can tell that I am getting stronger and can raise up higher than I have been able to before. I told Elena (the teacher) today, that altho' I don't enjoy doing them, I do enjoy the results. It is much easier for me to stand tall now and not stoop and also hold my abdominal muscles in. Time will tell just how much better and healthier they make me.