Sunday, May 4, 2008

Anniversary celebrated; divorce postponed

Husband and I were married ten years ago at the ripe ages of 41 and 36, respectively. And thank goodness for the institution of divorce, or I'd probably be single still. A case of engagement cold feet was cured for me when a coworker pointed out to me "If it doesn't work, you can always get divorced." Alrighty, then! Maybe it was because I waiting so long to get married that I was particularly attached to the "options always open, anything possible" frame of mind. Maybe it's that I was marrying someone who did not exactly fit the picture of spouse I had carried for so long. (I dated a bunch of those pictures, some for quite a while; they didn't work out.) At any rate, I hurled myself into marriage feeling free, not bound. Free to embark on new adventures and free to relax into some relationship security. But also free to walk away if I needed to. Because in my mind, there's no point or joy in staying if it's because you have to.

Obviously I'm still here, and we've enjoyed laughing about my divorce fantasies: "So, do you want a divorce now?" "No, maybe later." "Would you like a divorce with that?" "Hmm. That might be nice. Let me get back to you."

And I think Husband was entertaining a divorce fantasy of his own when a year ago I suffered from a small spell of jewelry lust. I'm not really a jewelry person. In my ears I wear a pair of diamond studs that Husband gave me for our fifth anniversary. Around my neck I wear a silver chain with a locket holding Sophie's picture. My engagement ring is a platinum band with channel set (really teeny) diamond, and my wedding band is a plain platinum one. That's it, every day. It's not that I don't like jewelry; I love pieces I see on other people. It's more that it's part of accessorizing in general, which I'm too lame to handle. If I've got on underwear, clothes, and shoes, I think I'm doing pretty well. Jewelry, scarves, belts, and the like are just too much for me.

But a girlfriend of mine planted the idea of a more significant ring in my mind when she received a diamond engagement-type ring from her husband for an anniversary. How wonderful for her, I thought. Soon after, Sophie and I were window shopping down on Fourth Street, and I saw in the window a ring that I thought might be wonderful for me. So we went in and both tried it on. Just for yucks. When I floated the idea of an anniversary ring past Husband, he glared at me and observed, "You don't even wear jewelry." But Sophie and I made a habit out of visiting "my ring" from time to time. Then one day we went in to find they had swapped out the diamond for an aquamarine. Quite lovely and much more affordable. I floated the idea past Husband again. Again, no dice. And the next time Sophie and I went to visit the ring, the salesperson told us another couple had bought it. End of the ring visits.

Fast forward to last Friday night. Our anniversary is this Friday, and we have reservations to go to one of our favorite restaurants on Saturday. Husband insisted on taking Sophie and I out to our favorite tacqueria so we could "celebrate our anniversary as a family."

What a nice idea, and how exciting that Husband's favorite special, tamales, was on the menu that night.


But I noticed something was up with Sophie. We got our food, sat down, and she started tapping her fork on my beer glass. She had an announcement. She stood up and very formally began her speech, which she had obviously rehearsed: "Remember when we went to the jewelry store and the lady said another couple had bought your ring? Well, that other couple is sitting right here. It was Daddy and me."

She handed me a box.


My ring.
Really, our ring.

My husband. My daughter. My family. Ten good years, with more to come.


34 comments:

tulipmom said...

Oh Cindy this was such a beautiful story! What a wonderful surprise! Happy 10th Anniversary.

Anonymous said...

Oh my!!! It's beautiful and wow, way to go Sophie (and Husband!!) Wear it in good health and with great happiness...

Happy Anniversary.

Unknown said...

What a story Cindy! Is the ring the one in the middle?

I love Mexican food as well and think it is spicy too just like you demonstrate in your photo. tip: drink milk to alleviate the spice NOT water.

Jen Yu said...

omg, i love that picture of you! it tells the whole story (well, mostly). your little girl is one smart and sneaky kid. if that ring had come out of a cracker jack box, i'd love the story just the same. happy 10th and here's to at least 40 more. xxoo

Monica said...

OMG...that picture made me choke up. How cute of your husband and daughter to do that!

Jenn said...

Awww, what a fun, sweet, memorable presentation of the ring! Yeah, he's a keeper all right! Happy Anniversary :)

Libby said...

Just splendid, Cindy! And the photo of you really does capture the emotion of the moment. Happy anniversary my friend, and here's to many, many more. :)

Anonymous said...

Cindy that was fantastic!!!
Oh I've got a great big toothy grin on my face!! (and a tear in my eye)... Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!!!

The Mrs. said...

I am just bawling!!! That is so sweet!

Belle said...

I'm crying. You just made me cry. That is the SWEETEST story EVER! Happy anniversary! It's beautiful. You deserve it!

MMM said...

Such a sweet story! Thanks for sharing! I love the pic of you, it really says it all.

Maria said...

That is lovely! That picture of you is beautiful.

Happy Anniversary!

Angelina said...

I'm so happy you got the ring!! What a wonderful anniversary present from your family!!

I'm still waiting for my ring. I'm not very demanding when it comes to jewelry, I do love to wear it but generally I'm just as happy to have costume jewelry as I am to have the real stuff. I told Philip he didn't have to buy me a fancy ring right away but I want him to buy me one diamond ring.

What a great day! Divorce staved off and all.

Kate said...

Beautiful story, beautiful ring! Glad the divorce didn't pan out;)

k e r r y said...

What a wonderful story! Happy Anniversary!!

KatieGirlBlue said...

Oh, what a beautiful family. What love and admiration and respect. You guys rock.

Tears. Right now, in a public place, tears of joy at your wonderful story. Raising a glass to you.

Trish said...

Happy Anniversary! What a wonderful story. And kudos to Sophie for keeping such a huge secret!

Jackie said...

Happy Anniversary! Beautiful ring and story.

I also am extremely jealous of your tamale dinner! :)

Anonymous said...

What a pretty ring -- and an even more lovely story to go with it!

Happy anniversary!

dmmlandcruiser said...

It's not a good thing for me to be crying at my desk! Happy Anniversary to a great wife and mother!

gwendomama said...

S is a good guy.
at least he listened to one of his girls.

Kate said...

Aww! This story makes my eyes well up.

Anonymous said...

That is wonderful!!

QueenJanine said...

Congratulations! And congrats to Sophes for keeping a secret for so long - that's impressive. Happy Anniverary. 10 years....wow..... seems like just yesterday. XO Janine

David James said...

Wow, that is a fantastic story. I love the photos, too. Happy (belated) anniversary!

And now I'm hungry thinking about the tacqueria ...

Beth said...

Oh my gosh-that is soooo sweet! You are one lucky lady! Your family and the ring are beautiful!!!

J said...

Happy anniversary! That is so sweet, I got all teary just reading about it :)

lisagh said...

Perfect.

KathleenKMM said...

I started crying in the library when I read this! How sweet. Happy anniversary!

Unknown said...

Thanks so much for making me cry at work! :) Congratulations and best wishes to you, my blogging friend. Many, many more happy years!

Ned said...

That is the sweetest story ever! I too have a aquamarine ring in a plat. setting. I love it even more than a huge diamond!

Preppy Pink Crocodile said...

I have tears in my eyes- beautiful story!! And I love the ring too!

Woman with a Hatchet said...

That was incredibly sweet!

Happy belated anniversary!

jillskict said...

Oh that made me cry a river. You have the sweetest daughter, the sweetest family, I LOVE the ring! I am not a jewelry person either, but I love your taste, that ring would make me want to wear jewelry AND it is my birthstone! Here is to another 50 years!