Another Celebration-Anniversary is on its way!

Since I got caught short by Bob and Judy's 50th wedding anniversary, I thought that I'd be beforehand with Dwight and Velna's 57th (right?) anniversary coming up on Friday. As Dwight's younger siblings, we felt such a part of his "romance" with Velna, because he was home one spring, doing the plowing and other work on the tractor. Regardless of which field he was in, when Ez came down the road with the mail, he would leave the tractor, and get home extremely fast, hoping for a letter. Also, he would serenade us as he drove the tractor - the sound carried extremely well over the sound of the John Deere. When we knew that they were to be married at Christmas time, we were all excited. Dad had to stay home to milk the cows, so Mother and I set off for Laramie to pick up Dwight. I hadn't learned to drive the car yet, so Mother had to do all the driving - I recall her pulling over in Wheatland to take a long nap. The day was dreary and cold, and everything looked brown. (If only it had stayed that way!). We made it into Laramie, went to Blacks' new home on Sully, and saw the apartment where Dwight was living and where he and Velna would make their home after the wedding. I remember that they had received a toaster as a wedding present, and Dwight loved to make toast. When we got back to Black's, I made things a little exciting by fainting, but I think I was just so excited about everything that it was too mcuh. Both Mother and I went to bed, ready to begin the trip to Salt Lake with Dwight in the morning. Unfortunately, the weather did not stay just cold and brown - heavy snows came, and our trip to Salt Lake with the nervous groom was pretty hairy. (Velna and her parents went on the train.) We had to be in Salt Lake in time for them to go to the courthouse to get their marriage license - and, as I recall, we just made it. And, after that long, hard day fraught with nervous tension, we went to Dwight and Velna's room in the Hotel Utah, where Mother and Dwight changed clothes, and left to walk over to the temple. I can remember looking out the window of the room, down on the temple walls and grounds - the snow was still falling, and the lights glittered - everything looked like a fairy land. The only snafu was that I had a pounding headache that didn't leave until the next day.
After the ceremony, Dwight and Mother came back to the room. (Where was Velna? I don't remember?), Dwight gave Mother a big hug, and we were away, to find a place of our own to sleep. And the place Mother found was a doozie. It was a motel somewhere in Salt Lake City, with paper thin walls. Mother soon fell asleep, probably from exhaustion, but I stayed awake, fostering my headache, and listening to all the goings-on around us. We woke to a new day, and clearer weather, and headed south to Provo to pick up Louise to take her home for Christmas. Provo seemed like summer, compared to what we'd just been through. We found Louise, loaded her into the car, and headed up Provo Canyon to Rock Springs and South Pass. Louise got in the car and slept ...and slept...and slept...I don't know what she'd been doing before we came, but, obviously, it didn't include sleeping. We stopped in Basin to get gas, and they had little Christmas trees for sale, so Mother bought one. tucked it in the trunk of the car, and we went on our way home.
The only thing that would properly finish up this tale would be to have the beautiful wedding picture of Dwight and Velna standing in front of the fireplace at the L.D.S. Institute in Laramie.