Dreams Deferred by Susan Aylworth

As Hubby and I approached our 50th wedding anniversary, we promised ourselves we'd do something fabulous to celebrate. Half a century of togetherness seemed worth celebrating. So, to do it right, we planned a trip we'd wanted for years. We planned to visit Hawaii.

When our anniversary came in June of 2020, conditions in the world had changed. Hawaii was closed, as was the rest of the planet. None of us had planned for a global pandemic, and our dream was deferred. 

Time has passed, restrictions have eased, and last month, we pulled ourselves together and got on an airplane. Was it everything we had imagined? No. Not at all. Some parts of the trip were much more amazing than I could have imagined; other parts even disappointed just a little. In both, we are delighted to have fulfilled this dream. 

Here's a little of what we experienced:  To the right, sea turtles sunning on a beach in Maui. 

Below, the central trunk of the banyan tree in downtown Lahaina. Planted 149 years ago, this tree now covers almost two full acres. It's a local treasure and everyone plans to celebrate it's 150th birthday next year. 

Right, the throne room at the Iolani Palace in Honolulu, the only royal palace in the United States. 

These images mark just the beginnings of our adventures. We flew in a helicopter over waterfalls on Molokai, paid our respects to the men of the U.S.S. Arizona, watched fire-knife dancers at the Polynesian Cultural Center, and learned more than we imagined possible about these beautiful islands.

Hawaii may not be everyone's dream, but if Hawaii is on your bucket list, I hope you enjoy it just as much as we did. If your dreams differ, may you not need to defer them long.

Susan Aylworth is the author of more than 20 novels. Over the Rainbow, a prequel to the Rainbow Rock Romances, is available free to everyone who subscribes to her newsletter on her website: susanaylworthauthor.com. Contact her on her Facebook author page or via susan.aylworth.author@gmail.com or join her on Twitter @Susan Aylworth.

March 21: A Wedding Anniversary and #CommonCourtesyDay by Milou Koenings

March 21 is the day my parents got married, back in 1963.  They were married 46 years, until Mom passed away and they were each other's best friend to the very end.  That sounds a bit trite, but it's true.  

Mom and Dad at a reception in honor of their marriage, Belgium, March 1963.

 

Once, a few years before she passed away, Mom and Dad went on a date to an expensive restaurant to celebrate their wedding anniversary.  The way they both told it, they had a lovely, but hardly unusual, time.  

By then, Dad had been retired for a number of years and they'd become used to spending most of their days and evenings together, making up for lost time, for all the years Dad traveled on business. So they talked about us kids, getting the car serviced, which of them had remembered to take what medications, who'd spoken to the grand kids last, about the books they were each reading. (My parents love books and if they aren't reading one, they're probably talking about one!) 

Nothing really special or romantic or extraordinary – to them, anyway.

When they asked for the bill, the waitress told them it already had been paid.  A much younger couple sitting at a table nearby had been so charmed by them, that before leaving, they'd paid my parent's bill as well their own. 

They'd left them a note, too, that said that, being fairly newlywed, they were sometimes afraid of growing old together because, so often, they'd see older couples sitting at tables together in silence, barely looking at one another, as if they had nothing left to say to each other.  But seeing my parents, so obviously still in love, and so deeply in conversation over their meal, enjoying each other's company, had given them such hope for the future.

Mom said that note was one of the best anniversary presents they ever got – and it came from total strangers!

Whoever that mystery couple is, I wish them a long and happy journey, and a joyful growing old together.

They certainly added to why I've come to think of March 21 as one of the most romantic days on my calendar. 

And by the way, I discovered only today that March 21 is also National Common Courtesy Day.  Mom was such a stickler for politeness, she'd have loved that! 

So in her honor, give up a seat on the bus, hold a door open for a stranger, or simply greet someone with a smile today. 

It's #CommonCourtesyDay!

Milou Koenings is a USA Today best-selling author. She writes romance because, like chocolate, stories with a happy ending bring more joy into the world and so make it a better place.  
 

Her Green Pines sweet romances, Reclaiming Home and Sweet Blizzard are available on Amazon and Amazon.uk. 
 
You can find her on her website, www.miloukoenings.com, on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, or Instagram.
 

 

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