It was our 22nd wedding anniversary last week – cue my annual joke about there still being no sign of parole for good behaviour – and we didn’t celebrate it in the conventional way. In fact, we didn’t really celebrate it at all.
Being the Twitter addict that I am, I noted this with a tweet that seemed to resonate with quite a few people.
It’s our wedding anniversary today – so obviously my wife is out for a girls’ night while I’m watching Avengers films with the kids. Who says romance is dead? 🤣 pic.twitter.com/dQAqERrRRS
— Tim | ThatchamDad (@thatchamdad) August 9, 2019
Let me set the record straight here. Heather was out with my knowledge and approval, meeting friends she rarely gets to see. I would never claim to be a romantic person even at the best of times. And we had actually celebrated our anniversary the day before.
Even that hadn’t been a particularly big celebration. We had a ready-made moussaka and a bottle of wine, then flopped on the sofa in front of the TV.
We don’t do extravagant gifts either, just cards and token presents. (A small box of truffles for her, a coaster and coin tray for me.)
That’s just how it is round our way.
Of course, there are lots of reasons for this. Big gifts seem unnecessary when both our birthdays (as well as my mum’s and my brother’s) fall within four weeks of our anniversary. The date always falls just as we’re gearing up for our big summer holiday. And even with the kids growing up, it’s still a faff to get a babysitter for the evening so we can go out.
We’re both happy enough to have a quiet, low-stress evening without any of the usual distractions or chores. That alone is quite a treat. Or, as this year, to mark the occasion the day before and do separate things on the day itself.
Does it really matter? Not to us. Years of wrestling with young kids mean we’re used to prioritising pragmatism over romanticism. Maybe that’s us being a bit lazy – but it also stems from being comfortable. And – a bit like Valentine’s Day – I do strongly believe that what you do on one day of the year matters rather less than what you do on the other 364. Celebrate the successful completion of another year, not the single date it falls on.
That’s my excuse anyway, and I’m sticking to it.
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