Destie and Jack: A Wonderful
Love Story
I love to read. Love it, love it
love it. Mostly fiction, but I am a fanatic about the morning paper. I don't
read romance novels. That is not my genre. I sometimes fantasize about writing
a great novel, or just writing in general. But, nothing I write would do
justice to what I was privileged to experience first hand. My parents – Destie
Monnig and Jack Nagle.
They met decades ago in Iowa City.
My Mom was an undergrad, and my Dad was in law school. There is some confusion
about how it all came about. Newman Center picnic, my Grandma telling my Mom...
Jack Nagle wants to go to the picnic, why don't you pick him up? My Mom,
driving the family car, picking my Dad up, her younger 12 year old brother
needing a ride to boy scouts and asking my Dad (in the passenger seat) for the
$.05 dues. All these years later, I like the idea that my Mom was driving and
embarrassed by her pesky younger brother.
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| Nagle wedding |
They settled in an apartment in
Davenport. They were a family. And, they starting expanding that family. They
had kids, moved a few times, had more kids, bought a bigger house, the family
grew, they had more kids, and settled on building a house (which my Dad helped
design) as the ultimate home.
Ok, my parents were great parents.
But, but, but, they loved each other and they were the best life long partners.
That was the best thing they did. They loved each other. They supported each
other. My Mom did so much and my Dad supported her career pursuits. He was so
proud!
My parents loved each other. They
were each other's rock. There was romance. There was passion. There was - as my
favorite uncle pointed out before my wedding –friendship. Friendship is what
its all about.
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| Dancing to their song |
One of my favorite stories....years
ago, my parents were spending the winter in Florida. I flew down for a couple of
days to spend time with them. We were out at dinner with an old client of my
Dad's – a woman I had just met that evening. A song came on and my parents
looked at each other and immediately stood and said “This is our song, we have
to dance.” I had not known that before that night. They had a song. But, I
always will have a soft spot for Tony Bennent singing about leaving his heart
in San Francisco.
My parents set the foundation. There
IS such a thing as life-long love stories. They were married 65 years. My Dad
died last January. November 23rd would have been their 66th wedding
anniversary. I like to think that my Dad is listening to Tony Bennent. And
dancing.
A special thank you to Therese Nagle-Kiser for sharing the wonderful love story that was the foundation of the home in which my growing family now lives. I don't know if we will ever be as big in number (they had TEN kids!), but I pray that we will be as big in love as they were. Today as we celebrate our twelve years together, Matt and I will be thinking of the example that Destie and Jack set. Happy Anniversary, Mr. and Mrs. Nagle.
