Grand slam gold

This weekend saw my in-laws celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary. It was a particularly busy weekend to choose, but as the anniversary fell exactly on the Friday, we had to go with the flow.

As a consequence I was unable to take my place on the traditional Paris trip for France v England in the Six Nations, nor was I able to follow my adopted Birkenhead Park RFC as they stuck one over Twickenhams near neighbours and fierce rivals, Staines, in the EDF Energy Intermediate Cup. We had dinner invites and weekend house guest options, all on the same weekend. See what I missed in Paris here.

In addition, I had been searching for weeks to obtain tickets for the Carling Cup final at Wembley given I had been granted dispensation for that one if I was successful. As it was I was allowed down the pub to watch, leaving the oldies and youngies to their Sunday follow-up party. Argyle, England and Spurs in one weekend is a pretty good treble though.

50 years married is not to be scoffed at, and far be it for me to do so. Marty and Win were married at about 18, and have raised four children to adulthood. The oldest, my wife, assures me she was a honeymoon baby, and given her 50th is later in the year, who am I to doubt her!

The era in which they were starting their family was, however, full of traditional values, and a community spirit which is less prevalent today. Parents and grandparents lived close by, as did uncles and aunts, and cousins and friends. As a nipper you would get a clip round the ear if you stepped out of line, administered by whichever relation caught you out. Often, as in the case of Marty and Win, you would start married life staying in a relatives home, until you could get something sorted out for yourselves.

Liverpool is a traditional catholic city, so the temptations of the flesh, and the associated divorce opportunities were frowned upon by the community. If you had problems indoors, then generally they stayed indoors, and people learnt to adapt and put up. Compare that with these days where many people choose not to get married at all for fear of failing to make a crack of it, or if they do, they find divorce is so easy to instigate one would expect Tesco to have a leaflet for it. I have many friends who have had long successful marriages, and I hope to get to a few 50th anniversaries in years to come.

The long distance relationship which my wife and I have enjoyed for nearly twenty years must have been in the genes, as Marty worked abroad for years in Saudi, and rendezvoused with Win in all sorts of towns and cities half way between. Maxine and I are counting our anniversaries from when we met, as its the only hope we have of a 50th!!

So well done to them, it is a notable milestone they have passed, and its an event well worth foregoing a rugby international for.....and those that know me understand that not much makes me miss a game!