Thirty Fucking Years, Part I

My parents recently celebrated their pearl anniversary. There is so much I want to share with you - how lucky I feel to have parents who are still happily married 30 years later and how this has been such a milestone for our family - but I think the best way to relay all of my emotions is by sharing the speeches my dad and I made at the anniversary party.





I think they're best appreciated separately, so here's the speech I made:

Thirty fucking years. 29 is no longer the new 30.

And now, the answer to the question on everyone’s mind: what did we get you for your anniversary?

Perri and I thought long and hard about this and we settled on a gift that I’ve wanted to give you for years – but no other milestone or occasion seemed as appropriate as 30 years feels.

Many of you know that my parents met and began their romance at the University of Miami but what most of you probably don’t know is that there is a little piece of property on campus called “The Love Bridge”. This spot is dedicated to all of the loved that has blossomed on ‘Canes territory. It is dotted with bricks that commemorate all of the couples that found happiness during their time at UM.

To celebrate your 30 wonderful years of marriage, we got you a brick on the love bridge that reads “Mom and Dad, UM class of ’78, Happy 30th”. It is the 220th brick to be installed and will be ready for us to visit during our next trip to Miami. In the words of the University, “How nice it is to have two such thoughtful and loving daughters who honor you in this very special and unique way” and we couldn’t agree more!

While it’s been a long time since you walked those grounds as undergraduates, we thought that it would be nice to remind you of how it all began and how 30 years later, you’re as happy now as you were back then. Since the brick isn’t tangible and you can’t look at it every day, we got you these small tokens as a reminder that a part of you is now forever a part of UM.
(We gave them UM Alumni coffee mugs)

And let us not forget that Miami is also the city of two other very important beginnings!
(Perri and I pointed to ourselves) :-)

It is so special to be able to give you a gift that is much like your marriage – strong, everlasting, and weatherproof.
Here’s to 30 more years.

Happy Anniversary! We love you!





P.S. Yes, that is a pearl on the bottom right corner of the invitation. My parents are too cool.