Yesterday marked the one-year anniversary of the second-happiest day of my mom’s life, the first of course being the day I was born: Stephan and I got married! To each other!
In the long, long year since, we have taken to referring to any decision we have made or can otherwise take credit for as “the second-best decision we have ever made.” And it’s so often true.
We went to the Rheinlander for dinner, which is where we had our first date, and the happy Germans made us hold hands while they sang and accordioned for us. They closed with a rousing rendition of “Du, Du Liegst Mir Im Herzen,” which I kind of almost know from family reunions. Only when I tried to sing it for Stephan later, all I could remember was the part that went “Du, Du” in German, which sounds a lot like the English “doo, doo” that one often sings in the place of words one can’t remember. Like in that Maroon 5 song that goes “doo, doo, doo, doo doo doo doo.”
And, let me tell you, when your husband is trying to fall asleep after a long day of adoring you, he may have a hard time understanding that a) you are singing actual German words, not fake English ones, and b) this bilingual phenomenon is, in fact, hilarious.
[Note: These problems with understanding may also stem from the fact that all of the blood is currently away from his brain and busily digesting the gigantic and aforementioned German meal. You know, the one that made his belly stick out to such an extent that he could not look at himself in the mirror without doubling over in laughter, as his body has never known fat.]
So after I already had all of Stephan’s many elaborate anniversary gifts all ready for giving, I did a little research about traditional anniversary gifts. It starts out a little boring with paper, but by the time you put in 75 years, you’ve worked up to diamonds.
And 80 is oak and 90 is granite. I can only assume the first is the coffin and the second the headstone.
So much to look forward to.
