An Auspicious Beginning (Beshert)

The Yiddish word beshert means destined, or fated to be. Mom believes that meeting my dad was beshert.

The story goes that Mom (C) went to a frat house to return a borrowed book. Returning after a baseball game, Dad (E) screeched to a halt as violins were heard in the distance, and hummingbirds and butterflies flew overhead.

E accepted the book on his frat brother's behalf, then inquired how C was getting home. "Oh, I'm taking the bus," she replied. E saw his chance: "Wait right here a minute," he said, "and I'll give you a ride." He took a twelve-second shower, changed into clean clothes and bounded back down the stairs.

And he gave her a ride...to the bus stop!

Oh, my poor Dad has endured some teasing about this over the years, as you might imagine. But the truth is -- and he's never offered this in his own defense -- I'm sure the truth is that Dad was very much a gentleman, and he simply didn't want to ruin his chances with her by being too "forward."

And Mom...why did she go out with him after that? "Oh, I thought he was so cute and had such a good sense of humor!" Yes, it's true, fellas: we all want a guy who can make us laugh.

E wasted no time pursuing C. Parents were met, approvals were granted. E and C were engaged two months after they met, then married two months later. So it was a bit of a whirlwind romance, certainly by today's standards.

And if she'd if she'd borrowed the book from a different student... or if she'd returned the book ten minutes earlier or ten minutes later... or if Dad's game had gone into extra innings... who knows? But it was beshert.

Last month, they celebrated their 56th wedding anniversary.