3 reasons people tie the knot — in 1950, and today
My parents are celebrating their 70th wedding anniversary this month!
There are not very many statistics on how many couples reach their 70th wedding anniversary but it seems clear, not very many do. At eighteen years old, my mother looked at my dad and made him the happiest man on earth by saying, I do.
My parents married in 1950, a new decade of hope on the horizon with a rising US economy following WWII.
For better or for worse
Her options in 1950 were limited by today’s standards. My mother once spoke about either joining a convent or working as a nurse or secretary. Both jobs were considered ‘suitable’ for a woman. Until she married.
Today, I look at my 18-year-old daughter and see the whole world in front of her. School. Education. Travel. Friends. Career. Marriage is far, far down the list. Not only in my mind but in hers.
If my daughter came to me tomorrow announcing plans to marry, I would consider it a foolish move. Throwing her life away.
In 1950, the day my mom wed my dad, her life began.
At eighteen years old, my mother and my daughter are literally worlds apart.
So, how did our view of marriage change?
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