A woman is angry and hurt when her husband forgets their 50th wedding anniversary and throws his belongings in the gutter — until he comes home with an unusual excuse.
Betty Carmichael was sure her husband had forgotten their anniversary yet again, only this time she wasn’t going to take it lying down. She had been married to Donald for fifty years and she deserved better!
She had stood by his side through thick and thin and given him three children and the best years of her life, and what did she get? Not even a bouquet of ratty daisies, let alone red roses.
Donald hadn’t brought Betty flowers in years. | Source: Pexels
Betty looked at the wall clock and frowned. 21:30. He hadn’t even bothered to come home for the special dinner she’d prepared! This was the last straw!
Trust is the cornerstone of any relationship, and doubt wears away at the love that holds it together.
Two hours later, Betty heard her husband’s car pull into the driveway and smiled grimly. Donald wasn’t going to enjoy his evening, not one little bit.
She immediately heard a shout: “BETTY! What is going on here!”
She marched outside and stood on the porch, her fists on her hips. “What do you want?” she asked.
Betty prepared a romantic dinner but Donald didn’t come home. | Source: Unsplash
Donald was standing in the garden and he looked very angry. He pointed a finger at an old worn-out recliner sitting on the lawn along with several boxes of books and bric-a-brac.
“What are my things doing out on the lawn?” he asked. “Have you run mad, woman?”
“Mad!” screamed Betty, and the lights went on in the house next door. “You are the one who must be mad! Do you have Alzheimer’s or amnesia? I’m kicking you out. I’m divorcing you!”
“Divorcing me?” gasped Donald, flabbergasted. “I’m seventy-eight years old and you’re seventy-five and you want a DIVORCE?”
“Yes!” cried Betty angrily. “Do you think that just because I’m seventy-five I’m no longer a woman? That you can take me for granted? Well, I won’t let you!”
Betty was sure Donald didn’t love her anymore. | Source: Pexels
“Betty,” Donald said. “Be reasonable. What is this all about?”
“You forgot our anniversary AGAIN!” Betty said angrily. “We’ve been together for fifty years and I have to remind you of my birthday. I understand you weren’t there, but you were definitely there for the wedding!”
“Bets,” Donald protested. “That was the happiest day of my life…”
“Then why don’t you remember it?” Betty asked. “Why don’t you bring me flowers or take me dancing? You don’t love me anymore. You haven’t loved me in years.”
Donald shook his head. “I love you, Betty,” he said. “You are the love of my life…”
Betty brought Donald’s favorite chair out in the street. | Source:Source: Unsplash
“Then why didn’t you come home for dinner?” Betty asked. “I made a special dinner and lit candles and set out flowers and you didn’t show up! Where were you? Out with another woman?”
Donald grinned. “Yes,” he said and stepped aside. Standing there was a slim girl in her twenties with Betty’s blue eyes and Donald’s wide smile.
“Hannah!” Betty cried and ran down the steps. She would have fallen if Donald hadn’t caught her. She threw her arms around the girl and started crying.
“Oh, Hannah,” she sobbed. “It’s been too long! I’ve missed you so much!”
Hannah came to visit her grandparents. | Source: Unsplash
“Hi, Gran Betty,” Hannah said. “I’m sorry we were so late, but my flight was delayed. Poor Gran Donald waited for hours!”
Betty turned to her husband. “You knew she was coming and you didn’t tell me?” she protested.
“I didn’t KNOW,” Donald said triumphantly. “I arranged it! It was supposed to have been your anniversary surprise, but the flight was late… You’ve been complaining about how much you miss your only grandchild, so I sent her a plane ticket!”
“Oh, Don!” Betty cried, and put her arms around her husband. “I’m sorry! I thought… I started thinking crazy things…”
Donald and Betty renewed their vows. | Source: Unsplash
“Betty,” Donald said tenderly. “I haven’t looked at another woman in fifty years and I’m not about to start now.”
“Donald,” Betty said. “What did I do to deserve you?”
“I don’t know,” Don said. “But I can tell you we’re going to have a hell of a time getting all my stuff back in the house where it belongs!”
With Hannah’s help, Don and Betty got everything tidied up and sat down for a midnight snack. “By the way,” Donald said. “I have another surprise for you. Tomorrow night we’re having a party with all our children and all our friends. I’ve arranged for Father Bartholomew to be there so we can renew our vows.”
Betty and Donald had a wonderful anniversary party. | Source: Unsplash
“But what am I going to wear?” gasped Betty.
“I don’t know about the dress, but I have a ring!” Don said, then he dropped down to one knee and pulled out a little jewelry box. “Betty Delancy Carmichael, will you marry me again?”
The next day, the Carmichaels celebrated their fiftieth wedding anniversary in style and Betty looked lovely in a pretty cream suit and a little veil. As Donald kissed her, she vowed never to doubt him again as long as she lived.
What can we learn from this story?
- Trust is the cornerstone of any relationship, and doubt wears away at the love that holds it together. Betty started imagining that Don didn’t love her anymore, and didn’t realize he had a sweet surprise for her.
- Marriage is about every single day, not just the special occasions. Betty forgot that Don was there for every difficult day and stood by her through thick and thin.
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If you enjoyed this story, you might like this one about a man who was shocked and hurt when his wife of thirty years asked for a divorce even though he’d always been a faithful husband.
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Betty, Dublin Zoo’s longest resident and oldest chimp in human care, dead at 62 — rest in peace
Betty, the chimpanzee that had been at the Dublin Zoo for the longest and the oldest living chimp under human care, passed away last week at the age of 62. She was one of the zoo’s most cherished and well-known inmates.
A zoo blog article claims that Betty had age-related ailments that were impairing her quality of life, and the tough choice to end her life was made to spare her from suffering in the future.
Although it is heartbreaking to lose Betty, she enjoyed a lengthy life that exceeded the average lifespan of a chimpanzee in captivity. According to the zoo, she was also the oldest chimpanzee in human care at the time of her death.
Team leader Helen Clarke Bennett of Dublin Zoo, who has worked as a zookeeper since 1987 and has known Betty for many years, paid tribute to her.
In 1964, a West African chimpanzee named Betty made her way to Dublin. Bennett notes that Betty participated in archaic practices like “Chimp Tea Parties” and that the Dublin Zoo continued to operate in the “style of the early Victorian era zoos” throughout that period.
Betty saw major advancements in zoo standards throughout her decades-long confinement. For example, in the 1990s, the chimp habitat was transformed from a metal-barred concrete “pit” to an island with trees.
Bennett claimed to have known Betty since the zoo’s early years since Michael Clarke, Betty’s father, was looking after her at the time. The chimp was “always strong-minded,” according to him, and would not give up on her goals.
After Wendy moved in 1964, Betty’s best friend, Wendy, became an integral part of her life for the majority of it. One of the cutest pairs in the zoo was formed by the two monkeys.
“Wendy had a cheeky side, but Betty could hold her accountable!” Bennett penned the piece. “When Wendy was obstinately refusing to go outside while the habitat was being cleaned, Betty putting her arm around her to encourage her to go outside with the rest of the troop will always be one of my favorite pictures.”
Betty and Wendy celebrated their 50th birthdays together in 2012 at the zoo. The zoo workers believed that Betty, who was devastated by Wendy’s death in 2014, wouldn’t be far behind.
She even managed to live on for a further ten years, rising to the rank of dominating female chimpanzee and earning the title of longest-serving inhabitant of the zoo.
Bennett stated that Betty experienced reduced kidney function and chronic arthritis in her latter years, which affected her weight and mobility. She was also under continuous wellness management.
They had to make the tough but humane decision to end the beloved chimp’s life after all medicinal and surgical alternatives had been tried. Even though Betty is no longer with us, she will always be cherished as a unique original and a zoogoer’s favorite for many decades to come.
“Although I am really saddened to bid farewell to a friend I have known since I was a young child, I am sure that Betty’s euthanasia was the right choice, ensuring that she didn’t suffer needlessly and preserving her dignity to the very end. That gives me a great deal of comfort,” Bennett wrote.
“Everyone here at Dublin Zoo as well as the many generations of visitors who were fortunate enough to know her will miss Betty terribly; there will never be another like her.”
Peace be with you, Betty. You lived a very long life, and it’s obvious that your loved ones and caregivers cherished you.
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