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Show Yunnan, Chaotung, !S3QO03OCg, C H I 1\T A June 29, 1937. Dear Children:- ^ ^ ^ ^ in 1.89 7 had snyone suggested that my (more or less) blushing bride and myself would surTiTe to observe our Rfcby Wedding, I would have considered that he was merely making a r o u t i ne remark. Sad i t b^-en s t a t e d that 40 years l a t e r we would be in nigh inaccessible Western China, i t would have indeed seemed strange. Bat t r u t h i s ever stranger than f i c t i o n . Though we two ( r e a l l y OHB by a b e t t e r arithmetic; wire today the tetely Americans in an area as large as Massachusetts we found the jjjnglish friends (seven of them in town) joining h e a r t i l y with the Chinese in observing the Day. Hospital matters, as well as construction of b u i l d i n g s , continued much as usual, but some f i f t y invited guests began to a r r i v e at five o'clock. Grace Feng, the nurse who has entered so fully into family a f f a i r s of recent years, had. seen to i t that the leaders in church, school, and medical MM&%M$M work had been informed and i n v i t e d to what might be c a l l e d a "family dinner". The handsome waiting room of the Hospital, just f i n i s h e d , was used for the f i r s t time, some forty odd persons s i t t i n g about the 3ix large t a b l e s . The room was finely decorated with trimmings sent by Aunt kyra Sawyer, and with numerous vases of flowers. Before s i t t i ng down, of course the assemblage had to have a p i c t u r e taken, and so we had to pose in the center of the throng, Hev. Mr, May o f f i c i r t i n g , and the two l i t t l e May boys, each with a bouquet, posed as pages. kX,_ l o u r mother held a huge b r i d a l bouquet. You axe familiar with Chinese f e a s t s , and so I need not say t h a t there were about t h i r t y different dishes, and a l l of them most t a s t y. 72 i - x o ^ 0 S p i t a l kitchen, and the serving was done by t x housenoia ::- •_. ai w S i l e ^ e S d not expected i t (and would have objected had we had the chance] f i i m b e r i n s i s t e d on giving us mementoes of the occasioh There w ^ e s e v» eral t - a - p o t s and tea-cups, two large vases, a p i e c e of very fine silk fcivpn/hy an aunt of the governor of Yunnan), a p i c t u r e a l a ohineae, cusn-ion covers, a breakfast set, etc. Grace shared in a ruby ring, which 1 ^ rave vour mother, and she also gave two ruwy-colored beads as appropriate to the occasion. We e s p e c i a l l y appreciated a handsome g i f t (m U.S. gold) fromXxilliam and Salliefc as also a timely telegram from Margaret at J«oo-chow." But of course thfe best contribution was the oride h e r s e l f , - and she"looked queenly indeed in a black dress ornamented m j e t , - but, I 11 •-•*et into trouble if I attempt to describe dresses'. Anyway the guests ate waterpEeloB seeds, and many other things, and seemed to have a good time, •/"conclude that the f i r s t forty years is the hardest, and now we Kara/ pp s - t t £ p down to the r e a l business of l i f e , - which i s LIVING fand l e t t i ng others live) . Surely there was never a better- wife and mother, and words f a l l me in any attempt to p r a i s e . God for the 14,609 days that have passed and for the days yet to come. Good "health has blessed us most of these many days, and in a r%m or two or three Jre will l i k e l y " r e t i r e " and twirl our thumbs. I r e c a l l that 40 vears a,go as our excursion t r a i n wended through Nebraska (on our honeymoon t r i p "to C a l i f o r n i a ) , I introduced my new wife to a &M&m t h a t came to one of the s t a t i o n s to see us, as "Miss Boose". They tnought She i s an expen- >rth many times cash' , namely an ^:oj""ding""place"in the h e a r t s of men, women, and children who need the X u n d a n t l i f e " which she l i T . . , - a f f e c t . Q n a t e f X f 5. |