Although it has been more than a month since the surprise party, today is the actual 50th anniversary of the wedding of John V. “Jack” Carney and Carrie Jones.

I have many reasons to celebrate said wedding, not the least of which is that I and my siblings would not exist without it.

Dad, a retired United Methodist minister, has been filling in at a two-point charge in Rutherford County, so the parents will have their own celebration starting tomorrow: they’ll drive to Montgomery Bell State Park, which is where they had their honeymoon.

I will be feeding the various cats in their absence. The outdoor cats, and the last remaining member of the last batch of kittens, are presumably still in a bad mood from a little medical procedure that they went through this week.

I’d like to wish my parents a very, very happy anniversary.