Inspiration

Inspired by the 50th anniversary celebration of my husband's aunt and uncle - both are in their late 70s and have lived through some wonderful times but also some difficult times, most significantly WWII and the aftermath. Hearing the story of how they met and how they fell in love was something I'll never forget. Gerd had just gotten out of the army to find that he had lost his entire family in a bombing of his village. He was standing on a street corner, literally the day he had completed his service and was unsure where to go next - when the father of his future-wife-to-be - Fried, saw him standing there and offered him some work on their farm. Gerd had spent years in a POW camp and was near starvation -- in his appreciation speech and toast to everyone there that day, he retold the full story and ended with the best toast I had ever heard.. the last lines were about never having to go hungry for food or love again. Real tear-jerker moment.. and well to see the two of them on this special day, surrounded by family and friends was very sweet, very memorable.
This was also my first time trying *real* caviar.. maybe it is an acquired taste, but it wasn't for me for sure. *s* A special gift was made to them of a bottle of champagne from the year they were married. I'm no champagne afficionado, but I learned that a champagne of a particular year (a good year) is called a Millésimé champagne.. thus the name of the golden colour in the palette. *s*