Mom & Dad, Golden: It’s Just About… Life.

50 ways to leave your lover? How about 50 ways to stay together?

Today marks the 50th wedding anniversary for my parents, Bonnie & Robin Brodinsky. Their Golden Anniversary. It’s truly an accomplishment to pause and view with respect and admiration.

For three-quarters of their adult lives, they have been together. Since they were young adults they have been a couple. They have raised a son, a daughter, two dogs, and each other. They have been through it all, the peaks, valleys, storms, sunny skies, turbulent times, celebrations, death, and the beauty of new life. Any partnership can be challenging. Put that partnership under the same roof for 50 years straight, and make it through, that’s something to be proud of. To stand the test of time, to face life’s greatest challenges, and yet still make it through as a union of love, hope, and faith.

I’ve never asked them what the secret is. I don’t know if there is a secret. I do know having lived under their roof for twenty-one of those 50 years, and having been in my own marriage for fifteen, it’s much about compromise, comfort and never giving up. Sometimes men and women living together are like cats and dogs. But most of the time, if you are willing to see the other person’s point of view, to bend where you used to break, to show concern and compassion, and to love like there’s no tomorrow, (because we’re not even sure there is), then you have got a shot. In this case, not just a shot, but right on target, 50 years and counting.

My parents don’t do everything together, but they do a lot and I know they share enough common interests to keep going. I also know the one thing they have in common that counts the most, is their love of family, especially for the grandkids, Sophie and Emily. Now that I am a parent, I get it. The thought of being a grandparent and seeing the next-generation live and flourish is one of life’s greatest gifts. To be able to stand together and witness those moments is impossible to adequately put into words.

Tonight we will celebrate together, a special dinner with myself, my wife, my daughters, my sister and her husband. It is certainly reason to rejoice. What began as two people coming together 50 years ago, has expanded in life and love many times over, from our immediate family to the extended families that result from lives intertwined. Not to forget the many friendships they have forged over the years as well. It’s just as important, your friends are the family you meet along the way.

50 years. A half-century of life. It can make you, or break you. On June 2nd, 1963, my Mom & Dad forged a union and have forged ahead. Together through these years, they built the foundation, and more importantly the example of partnership, of sticking together no matter what baggage you bring to the table, nor what obstacles life is going to hurl in your direction. While maybe not perfect, they have proved perfectly that it’s worth the effort. One team. One dream.

Two lives together, for 50 years.

Bonnie & Robin, Mom & Dad, thanks for being there and showing us the way. I love you with all my heart.

Until next time, thanks for taking the time.

Mark