Another Kind Of Marriage

Saturday morning - my sister arrived early to help me get ready and to stop me spinning on my whirling axis..

The family sent gorgeous flowers....I laid the table with the  beautiful cotton lace cloth my Aunty Margaret gave us for a wedding present....crocheted by the women of  South Africa. I baked two cakes. One decorated with cape gooseberries and one 

with my father's raspberries.   Our guests arrived, a friend picked up Robin from the home,

and they toasted us in Prosecco, drunk out of Robin's grandfather's precious green cut glasses.

 Robin drank an Innocent banana and pineapple smoothie out of another green glass with a straw. And said quite distinctly,

Enjoy your alcohol!

We opened  gifts and cards with loving messages inside and

tucked in to the anniversary tea ...sandwiches and biscuits and all things gluten and dairy free kindly contributed.... Robin ate an egg sandwich and a green olive and a spiced pecan nut fed to him by whoever was sitting next to him.

But what he really loved was the singing .....our friends sang to him in their beautiful voices.... his favourite song  Nkosi Sikeleli Africa..... he used to know all the  words....he doesn't remember the song now but he remembered something ....the tune....the feeling in the music.... the love in the room... which made him cry. And me too.

Then I cut the cakes and we fooled around with the roses.

 He ate one mouthful of the chocolate olive oil cake but then he was tired and wanted to lie down. The  hospital bed has gone to the home. He can't go upstairs so we bribed him with a short drive and my sister took him back.

Everyone stayed and helped clear up and wash up and we divvied up foil parcels of egg sandwiches and farina lavender shortbread and chocolate cake to take home.

And when they had all gone and I'd hoovered up the crumbs and the house was quiet I poured myself a glass of Prosecco and sat on the sofa and re- read all the cards and cried a bit.

 Even though it's the end of our 30 years I just feel so grateful for what we did have and so blessed by so much love and care and support in our lives now....an unexpected blossoming out of an unexpected axe blow...life shortening and life enhancing all at the same time. Another kind of marriage - a kind of miracle.