My wife MarySue and I have been married for 31 years, and they have been truly happy, fun-filled years.
We were both married before, and we each have three grown children. She has three sons, aged 51 to 49 to 47. I have two sons aged 52 and 46, and my daughter – who is also 49 – was born in the middle of her brothers.
We met through a mutual friend, who we call our Matchmaker. This Matchmaker was MarySue’s best friend, and they worked together. Ms. Matchmaker, who I will call Donna for the purposes of brevity and anonymity, was a friend of mine through our membership in a local club. MarySue and I had met through Donna, but it was just a brief introduction, nothing more.
Then one day Donna called me to suggest that I ask MarySue out on a double date with Donna and her husband. I said that would be fine with me, but then Donna dropped a bombshell. She said, “Of course MarySue is still dating another guy, but I really don’t think he’s right for her.”
“Whoa Donna, slow your roll here. I would never ask a woman for a date who is currently dating another guy,” I said. I think Donna was a little miffed, but that kind of thing just didn’t appeal to me on any level.
But, as fate would have it, MarySue and her beau did actually call it quits soon thereafter, and I think Donna must have hung up after hearing MarySue’s news and dialed me three seconds later to set up a double date. This time I agreed. But I found out later that MarySue had a lot of reluctance about dating a new guy so soon after a break-up; she told Donna that she wasn’t really looking for someone new, and that she had her pet dog for companionship. I love dogs, but I’m glad she changed her mind!
So we had our date, and more dates soon thereafter, and we discovered that we were highly compatible, that we had dozens of mutual interests, and we were soon engaged. Thank you Matchmaker.
We also found that we were both ocean lovers, and we started going on one-week vacations to Bethany Beach, Delaware. We just loved doing that, but soon one week wasn’t enough for us. So when MarySue retired, she used part of her savings to put a down payment on a condominium in North Carolina, where I can throw a stone from our deck overlooking the Atlantic Ocean and hit the water. That’s how close we are, and it’s Nirvana for us every minute we’re there.
Our condo is located about eight hours from Cumberland, and we’ve made that trip so often we’ve memorized nearly every mile of the roads. Along the way we stop at our favorite restaurants and fast-food places and never lack for something to talk about that is interesting to both of us.
Another amazing coincidence is that MarySue’s cousin lived in Dover, Delaware, and we would often visit. And it turned out that my former sister-in-law, who’s also from Cumberland and with whom I remained friends, also lived in Dover just three streets away from MarySue’s cousin. And not only did they know each other, but also worked together in the state prison on an alternatives to violence project, never realizing the connections they had to us!
We often get together with three other couples for games, cards and even vacations. One time we got together in a rented house at the ocean in North Carolina for a week.
The Best Friends group includes MarySue’s sister and her husband; MarySue’s best friend and her hubby; her best friend’s twin sister, who is also best friends with MarySue’s sister; twin sister’s husband; and us. We’re all really compatible with each other, so our friendships extend beyond our family connections.
On this particular trip we all soaked up the sun and sea, we guys soaked up some suds, and the ladies did their best to keep up with us by draining several bottles of wine. Then somebody hauled out a game called “Battle of the Sexes,” and the party went into liftoff! The game basically tests your knowledge of your partner/wife/husband, which can be revealing, but also unbelievably funny. I don’t think any of us laughed as hard as we did that night.
Like I said, we’re all related, but they’re also the best friends we’ve ever had.