Show kathleen norris says about hasty 1 weddings in wartime 0 11 AX A a X A V 01 s A joe walked across the par held his itzo bit hands out to me and said it father here will marry us will you take a chance with me julia by KATHLEEN NORRIS TAST AST week I 1 went to two weddings one was a golden wedding and the other was a war wedding the bride at the war wedding had known her man for something a little less than two months but those who love her and those who know him are not af afraid raid that they are making any mistake the answer lies in the character of the two the man is a tine fine serious affectionate home loving mother loving person who wears the uniform of the united states navy the girl a loving eager generous loyal little creature whose longing through many a happy 3 py giddy time in her dancing and house party days has been true to one ideal a husband to love a home children those are great words she said to me with tears tear in her smiling eyes eye when the exciting moment of going to the marriage license bureau arrived she looked looke d about with radiant approval upon the couples old and young black and white and brown who were streaming into the city hall tor for better or worse let for richer or poorer in sic sickness kriess and health I 1 MEAN those the she told the groom to be 1 I mean them too t he h added gravely grav ely and cherish she said laid laugh tog ing 1 I love that bordt I 1 am sting going to be the cherish ingert wife you ever wl and the most cherished he h told her and when the next day standing in a glowing september garden we heard beard them make the vol dmn prom promises aises we believed them golden welding wedding war Hilr loss laa event erent the golden wedding was v as an altogether more hilarious affair as a gou golden wedding has a right to be sons were there a daughter the tons coni wives the daugh daughters tees husband nine grandchildren and approximately abely 50 uncles aunts cousins coming and collaterals collate rals also a great grandchild named darned julia for her great grand mother aged five weeks old ok there were a great many kisses much blarney bursts of cf laughter attempted silencing of children running up and down stairs me ma wore a plum colored ilk filk a and a real irish lace collar but these prevent her rushing into the kitchen to see to the turkey roast ing or dashing upstairs to bubble little julia after her two bottle bettle ma and dad got get many presents dad has served the city of brooklyn faithfully as a fireman for almost half a century his friends came to in during the day to add their congratulations ions to tho the general uproar and the heap of golden presents grew really formidable as ai the hours went on en goldenrod golden rod and olden golden chrysan the Biumi orange cakes gold cold cakes two gold rimmed plates from the grandchildren gold framed photographs gra piss gold old platters platter and boxes the gold river flowed bowed on In night where did I 1 meet joe foe ma said to me when julia bottled and bubbled had fallen asleep on her experienced perien ced shoulder ch and we had a quiet moment together upstairs well there was wag a time when I 1 have told you but now ru ill tell you how bow it was my cousin anna was going to marry joe and the abe was playing fast and loose she would and she rd id never seen een joe I 1 was to mett meet him at my grandfathers house in cork the might bight of the wedding I 1 was 17 keawe well we all got to the house wd ad no ao anna the priest was there FOR RICHER OR POORER character is the answer ti to the question of whether or not to enter into a hasty wartime marriage here is the story of a couple who spent 50 ideal years together yet they had never seen each other until 15 minutes before their marriage marri agel girls today must realize that their soldiers will return changed some for the better some for the worse bills a small income and sacrifices of the early days of marriage are a sharp contrast to the lighthearted days of honeymooning but strong characters can make mahe these very difficulties a strengthening influence and the family and friends and there stood joe selling sailing that week for america and no anna and the last minute when we were all as nervous as witches annas father stand up and say that to hla his shame held hed have to tell us that anna tied nad backed down she marry anyone and go away from ireland and her mother that she wouldn t no not t for ten joe moores substitute bride well I 1 began to cry and when the priest spoke sharply to me and asked me why I 1 would be crying I 1 spoke up the little shy thing that I 1 wast and said that joe looked like a good man and a kind one and it was a pity a girl like anna would m mist ise himl bun I 1 and at that joe walked aar across D the floor held his bis two big hands bands out to me and said if U father here win will marry us win will you take a chance with me julia and the priest est said to my mother she looked for 20 years shed do no better and joe and I 1 sailed away that week with blessing and me taking asking him on the ship did he take milk in his bis tea or hel and a good goed man hes been to me ended the bride of half a cen tury tears again in her smiling eyes no woman ever had bed a bet terl but id never laid eyes on him until 15 minutes before I 1 married him these two true stories are in answer to the thousands of anxious mothers and wives who write m me about the flood of wartime weddings wedding that are engulfing engulf lne the country my general advice to the girls is not to marry just before the hardly im known own groom room sails away for foreign ser service ive even warned them against engagements for the man who comes back from kiska or guadal canal or naples going to be the man who went away or rather going to be what she thought he was he may be nicer he may be not so 80 nice whatever he be is hell bell be different from your memory ol 01 urn kim ali AH the time hes gone yo tell be imagining him n naturals I 1 alb build him up into something su super par k human u m a n when the other girls ills ask it hes bes handsome generous en erous amus amu lae ing smart your answer will 0 ol 01 course be a dreamy ecstatic yes certainly he was handsome in hit his U new w uniform of course he was generous e OB an that hurried three day honeymoon he must be smart because he was offered a really one fine job when he graduated from tr 01 m c college 0 I 1 only of course being drafted be accept it troubles ahead la in marriage Marr lare but wh when en he be comes back it wont bit be honeymoon your first budget may be 20 a week bills uncertainties tain taint ties les and economies may complicate your first year together tofi ether are you willing to face that courage |