My sister Joan and her husband Brian are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary. How can that be? We were there when they got married, but it seems like yesterday. They say that time flies when you are having fun, so yes, we must have been having a blast.
One explanation of the 50th wedding anniversary for people so young, is that Joan and Brian were 12 when they got married. Well maybe I exaggerate a little, but they were only 21. I recently asked my mother, who is 100 years old, how she and my father let them get married so young. She said it wasn’t exactly her choice, but she knew they were in love. Fifty years later, one might say, getting married so early wasn’t such a bad decision.
Susan and I followed Joan and Brian at State University of New York at Plattsburgh. When we got to Plattsburgh, they were the old married couple. Here is a picture of the two young hippies in their garden just outside of Plattsburgh.
Joan & Brian in the early 1970’s
The crops from this garden were the ingredients for the first Supper Club. The fact was, we didn’t have the money for much more. It didn’t matter. Joan and Brian had rented a little house out in the middle of an apple orchard. We had many good times and too many good meals there.
For one of our early Supper Clubs, we hosted a group of our college friends at Joan and Brian’s on a meal centered around bountiful crop of late harvest zucchini. We made a dish that our buddy Ron Iles aptly called: “Seeds Parmesan”. It didn’t matter, like most of the meals at Joan and Brian’s table, it was consumed with relish. It is amazing how a little wine can mask over a slight culinary imperfection.
Fast forward over the next 50 years there have been so many great times.
- Summers in Westhampton watching our kids grow up together.
- Holidays between New York, Virginia, New Hampshire and Memphis.
- Most recently, visits to Bayside Island in the Thousand Islands, where Joan and Brian have restored what was Brian’s Great Grand Parent’s vacation home.
Joan & Brian’s Island in the Thousand Island today
To celebrate the anniversary, Joan and Brian’s children, Katie and Emily, hosted a party at the island. Emily created a wonderful meal that centered around a beef roulade that would be the delight of any Supper Club. Both Joan and Brian are better than good cooks and some would say that apples don’t fall far from the tree.
Emilie’s Culinary Masterpiece for the anniversary party
Fifty years have gone by in a flash. Some things change and some things remain the same. Our definition of culinary excellence has changed from Seeds Parmesan to a Barefoot Contessa quality beef roulade. The cornerstone of love that justified getting married fifty years ago is still a cornerstone today.
To Joan & Brian …congratulations on your 50th Wedding Anniversary
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