© 2012 Michael Fiveson
What can we know about the lives of a married couple who will spend eternity together?
Cleatus was five years older than Elva and if he was 26 when they married, she was 21, and that would mean they married in 1909. When Elva passed away in 1960, they would have been married for 51 years and would have had a grand celebration the year before her death.
One can imagine that Cleatus would have been broken and lost without his precious Elva, but he hung on for another 14 years and at the age of 91 his last thought must have been a happy one, knowing he would see his bride once again.
Lives of long ago, very much the same today.
Mike's Look at Life 
Great thoughts.
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Thanks.
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…a bag of mixed emotions.
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For sure.
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I agree. It is a bag of mixed emotions. It brought to mind the life of Kathy’s parents. Her mom is still alive but is advanced stages of dementia. Her dad has been gone for 22 years, but it was a special love. Thanks Mike.
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Hi Ivon. I agree, aging is often a painful and sad thing. Losing the love of your life has to be gut wrenching.
Sorry about Kathy’s mom, that has to be terrible.
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Nice post Mike. A bag of mixed emotions indeed. Stimulates thoughts for sure and hopes that our society will swing back around to holding onto marriages for the long-term. It takes special love and willingness to work and compromise. 😉 Cease the day! Robyn
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Thank you Robyn.
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Lovely post! It makes me wonder what my own tombstone will tell. Ian and I have been married 29 years, so far, and hope to grow old together… Both sets of my grandparents made it over 50 years together. It’s getting rarer these days.
Blessings ~ Wendy
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It will be 42 years for us next month. Thanks for your comment.
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Where ever they are, they are together. You painted a wonderful story, Mike.
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Thanks Marion.
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My grandmother is still living and well after losing my grandfather in 1985. I wonder now what they will say when reunited. I would imagine my grandfather saying something like “took you long enough” and my Grandmother responding “I was in no hurry”
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Ha! That is certainly an option.
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they adored one another but they said some funny shit
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My grandparents were the same way, saying some nasty things to each other but very much connected.
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That reminds me of an aunt and uncle that said some awful things to each other but they would have killed anyone else that said it to either one. Great post, Mike, thanks for the sweet reminder of them.
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My pleasure, as always. Thank you.
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It truly is a story that gives you a thought to ponder. I walk our dog in the local cemetary each day (its very large) and I have often wondered what stories lay beneath the tombstones and what legacy has been left behind. My parents were married for over 60 years and Mom just passed this past June. I see in my dad that loss everytime we are together, its as if a part of him went with her.
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But yet your lucky father got to be married to his true love for over 60 years. That loss for him must be bone deep.
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Lovely find, Mike.
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Your posts are very much like this one, only with images of those who were alive, and maybe still are. Always good to hear from you Katherine, and thank you.
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Brother Mike….
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Brother mine.
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🙂
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My Dads 92 and my Mums 80, we worry about what’s going to happen when one of them goes. Deep mentally disturbing stuff that’s for sure.
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The loss will be felt in a big way. Part of life, that loss.
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Some things in life suck !
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Oh no doubt about that. To live without pain, loss, illness, and angst is very hard to do. In fact, sensitivity may well lead to a certain amount of angst by virtue of being aware.
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That reminded me of something I wrote awhile back, inspired by a photo I took in a Clinton cemetery. http://thisisbubbasplace.blogspot.com/2011/07/nehemiah-lydia.html
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Aye, Lydia. Yes, similar posts!
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Love is a never ending story….after all they will be together again.
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That is certainly a possibility.
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Weird and interesting. My Mom’s name is Elba. This is the name of the island where Napoleon was banished. My mom is a widow. Dad passed away in February 5, 1995. This is the first time I come across the name Elva, with a ‘v’. I’d like to do some research and see where it comes from and what it means.
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Cleatus is no common name either. If you find anything interesting, please let me know. Could well be that they were from another country, especially considering their birth dates in the 1800′s, when America saw a great deal of immigration. German perhaps?
I remember seeing a photo of your very handsome father.
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Elva meaning and name origin
Elva \e-lva, el-va\ as a girl’s name is pronounced EL-vah. It is of Irish origin, and the meaning of Elva is “white, noble, bright”. Anglicization of Ailbhe. Also possibly from an Old German name meaning “foreign, true”.
Elva has 4 variant forms: Ailbhe, Elfie, Elvia and Elvie.
For more information, see also related names Alfreda, Elfrida and Elvira.
Baby names that sound like Elva are Elvy, Alva, Elvah, Olva and Ulva.
View a list of the 5 names that reference Elva.
Read more at http://www.thinkbabynames.com/meaning/0/Elva#VMSeG6DMYy6YRwrE.99
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I also read that Elva is a town in Estonia and there is also this: http://inheritance.wikia.com/wiki/Elva
So they might have ended up there escaping from the war.
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These kind of posts always make me think & reflect back on life!!! One day it’ll my turn to go six feet under……
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That is a stone cold fact Bashar but it won’t be for a long, long time, so live it up and squeeze life like it’s an orange.
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I would like to make a little tribute to my Great Aunt & Uncle in a similar manner one day. I never knew my Uncle Ben, but in their case it was my Aunt who was alone from age 32 til she passed, childless, at age 58 after my Uncle died in a accident. Righteous women did that back then.
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Yes, righteous women indeed. Still, something very sad about a 32 year old widow, but I respect her decision that speaks of a great lost love.
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