Yesterday was my parents 30th wedding anniversary. Thirty years ago, almost to the day, my parents were married, and four short months later I was born. My dad cleverly covered up this little known fact during their celebration yesterday stating that “Sławek is with us now as he was with us then…” everyone laughed… almost everyone 😉 But I shouldn’t make this all about me…

My parents did not have a big wedding back in 1981, pretty much no one in the country did at that time because of a tough political atmosphere Poland was in. Polish citizens battled communism with all their might and martial law was about to be imposed to crush any movement against the government. Times were tough to say the least. My parents’ were one of many couples wed that day in church, followed by a small house party with only a few people present. To make up for that, they went all out on their 30th anniversary.

A dance hall was booked back in March, so was the band and a church service at our local parish. Catering service was arranged and close to a hundred friends and family members were invited to party like it’s…1981. And party we did. The evening began with a church mass where my parents renewed their wedding vows. Then everyone drove to the dance hall where the food was delicious, alcohol was consumed in moderation, and the wedding band played till 3am while the dance floor was full till the last song.

Staying true to a wedding reception my parents played wedding games soon after midnight. My cousin Frank from Germany caught the tie while another cousin Karolina caught the veil. It was funny to witness the reaction on the face of someone who has no idea why he’s all of the sudden dancing with a stranger while his girlfriend watches on. My dad however was the hit of the evening when in the game of ‘knee recognition’ he did not pick my mothers leg opting out for cousin’s Ula knee instead.

I drew the short straw on the designated driver duty because, well, Tequila was present and my copilot Karolina has a soft spot for that particular drink. I kid of course, she has driven me home plenty of times and it was only fair that I return the favor. A nice addition to the party guest list was our family from Germany. My dad’s cousins who haven’t been to Poland in two decades and their spouses who’ve never been to Poland at all danced the night away at times not knowing what everyone around was singing about.

A couple of days before the party my dad called me and asked if I could help him do a little picture show of the last 30 years. The idea was taken from an American wedding where first you show the brides side of photos, then the grooms, then some photos taken together finally ending with the wedding. Because my parents have known each other pretty much all their lives and have been together since about 18 years old, getting photos prior to that would be pretty much impossible. I focused on the pictures I already had scanned in long time ago and came up with around 60 photos to post on a collage of memories. It turned out to be a hit and everyone loved the idea.

It was a great night. I wanted to thank my parents for all their work and support, for raising me to be who I am today, and I would like to wish them another 30 years of happy married life.