A Massachusetts couple who celebrated their 75th anniversary over the weekend are living proof of the happiness that hard work can bring to a marriage.
When John and Helen Kelly first met, Helen was supposed to be on a blind date with another man at a Boston skating rink. Instead, she ended up hanging out with her now-husband John, and the two have barely left each other’s sides in nearly eight decades.
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The happy couple celebrated their milestone wedding anniversary Sunday surrounded by friends and family at the Mary Ann Morse Healthcare Center in Natick, Massachusetts, the Metro West Daily News reported.
Pictures from their long marriage, including images from a trip to Scotland and a cruise to Bermuda, filled the halls of the nursing home.
One particular black and white photo showed the couple before they were married. In the picture, Helen sits on John’s lap, his arms wrapped around her, with a wide grin on his face.
John hasn’t lost his sense of humor after 75 years of marriage. When asked how long the couple waited to marry after the met, John quipped, “15 minutes.” Then, when asked how the couple has made it this far, John joked, “She handcuffed me.”
When Helen was asked if she’d ever been angry with John, she replied, “Yes” because “he would never go bowling.” Clearly, the two have learned the art of not sweating the small things.
John and Helen have such a close connection that when Helen became ill and needed to move to a nursing home, John only made it six months before he followed his bride.
The couple has five sons, 15 grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren and three great, great-grandchildren.
Their children describe their upbringing as very family-oriented.
And when it came time for John give some sage advice for a long-lasting marriage, he finally got serious:
“Just keep smiling and holding hands,” he said. “That’s all.”
(H/T: Metro West Daily News)