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Bill, Jean and Happily Ever After

September 18, 2010 By Tammy 1 Comment

Today, Tom and I are going to visit Bill and Jean.

Bill is an older professor at the Physics Department of UBC who has taken a liking towards Tom. He must be in his late 60s, if not a bit older. Jean is his gracious wife, tall and regal. A perfect match for her husband. They live in a quaint house near the university – a bus ride away for Bill, who also takes his bicycle. They have an old school radio, tuned into an AM station, that they listen to in the evenings and don’t see the need for mobile phones. They have a beautiful garden, filled with a variety of flowers, with a nicely manicured lawn. The coziness of their home a reflection of their own warmth and hospitality.

They were among the first set of colleagues that I’ve met. They invited Tom and me for dinner when I came to visit in May, then prepared a little gathering of UBC friends to celebrate our marriage when we arrived last month.

That very special evening was quite perfect for the patio set-up they had – a nice cool, rain-free evening. Jean started off by offering alcohol-free punch. Each dainty punch glass had a surprise for the drinker: the ice cubes had a blueberry frozen inside. I took a mental note : Should do this too! Tom had bought ten pounds of fresh blueberries and we were popping them like there was no end (and really, ten pounds made it seem like there was no end).

We knew that it would be a small gathering – the team that Tom worked with:
Ron and his wife, Hala
Mary Ann and her husband, Alex
Gerry
Bridgette
and of course, our hosts, Bill and Jean.

From our end, they had invited Manay Kat, Kuya PJ and Xave.

We knew that they were going to offer us the yummiest of desserts. ๐Ÿ™‚ And there were yummy desserts! Fresh fruits, pastries, cake, wine, coffee and tea. The best was the lemon cake that had a huge “Congratulations Tom and Tam” written on it!

What we didn’t know though was that they had prepared games and a little something for us as well. ๐Ÿ™‚

Each of the couples present gave us some advice on how to make our marriage a better one.

Ron and Hala were hilarious. After reading their seemingly serious note (white note posted above on our board), they ended it with two rules:
1. The wife is always right.
2. When the wife is wrong, see rule #1.
This knocked everyone off their seats. As Ron read these lines, Hala was just nodding her head with pride and approval. She says he has been trained well.
Bill, seated on a stool on our right, shared with us Shakespeare’s Sonnet 116. He said he didn’t want to really give advice but wanted to share with us something he liked. That’s the yellow note posted on the board above!
Most of the their advice had to do with respect and communication. Those are two things that have helped them grow in their marriages.
Amazing really. In a country where separation, divorce or the desire to remain uncommitted are the norm, we were in the presence of couples that have made it work and continue to work at making it work. It was never difficult for Tom and me to find role models back home – our parents and grandparents are clearly our source of inspiration – but being able to find another set of fun, loving and inspiring couples here in Vancouver is really a blessing.
So today, Tom and I are going to drop off a bottle of Pinot Grigio and a freshly baked pound cake at their quaint little home. A simple thank you gift to the most gracious couple we have met here, for showing us that happily ever after does exist in the West, and that happily ever after is a constant work-in-progress.
~~ found this on my climb up ~~
http://windingstaircase.blogspot.com

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Filed Under: love, marriage

Comments

  1. maymay balatayo says

    September 20, 2010 at 2:35 am

    yey!! found you here ate.

    im reading the rest of your blog entries tomorrow. and i’m definitely adding you to my bloglist.

    happy that you’re happy there. would’ve want to know you better and work with you in GK but God must’ve other plans, waaay better. waiting for it to unfold. and I’m excited for you and whatever God has in store for you and your future family.

    God Bless.

    Reply

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