The Adventures of Larry and Janet

Today, Saturday, December 20, 2014, Larry and I have been married for 42 years.  Whew!  I'm tired. I think I'll sit down for a while.

The actual time of our marriage was at 5:30 p.m. on that rainy day.  Well, we were actually

already married by 5:30 p.m.  We started early since everybody was already at the church.  Gary and Ann Estep were our witnesses, and Rev. Pearly Orndorff was the minister.  He spoke with us at the entrance to the church just before the ceremony and asked if we were both Christians and told us how important that was in a marriage.  He said he didn't tie many slip knots.

When I see how extravagant weddings are today, I'm just amazed.  I had a dress that I had made from white velvet (my mother's idea).  There were corsages for both of our mothers and a bouquet for me.  Larry's sister, Becky, took some Polaroid photos which were the only wedding photos we have.  In the photos everyone looked so somber you would have thought it was a wake and not a wedding.

We first met in June of 1972 when Larry was fresh out of the Marine Corps and still in college.  I had graduated from college in May, and when I went back to Rainelle after graduation, there was Larry all tan and trim.

 Early in our marriage we went EVERYWHERE together, except when we went to work, and even then we commuted together because we only had one car.  Larry took me to work and came to pick me up.  We shopped for groceries on Wednesday evening after clipping coupons from the newspaper.  From Acme Market to Deskins Grocery Store to Kroger's, we could tell you the price of any given item on any given day.

I won't even attempt to write of all the things that have happened in the last 42 years.  We're not extensive travelers, but we've been from Tijuana to Berlin and spent time in Las Vegas, Nevada, and Clearwater, Florida.  We survived ice storms and high school reunions.  We've been through a lot:  having a baby, not having a baby, cancer, the loss of our parents, more cars and trucks and stray dogs and cats than I can even remember, all the major and minor successes that come from hard work, a good many laughs and our fair share of failures.

When Katie was a little girl and we talked about Gary and Ann Estep, she thought "Gary and Ann" was one person.  It's been like that with us.  Like salt and pepper or ham and eggs, the two things are one entity.  We're like knitting needles.  You really can't knit with only one needle.  We're a cord of three:  God, Larry, Janet.

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work.  If one falls down, his friend can help him up.  But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!  Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.  But how can one keep warm alone?  Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves.  A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.  Ecclesiastes 4:9-12