Aldrich “Shim” Smith Forrest and Margaret Freeman Forrest observed their 69th wedding anniversary July 15. They were married in 1936 in Emporia, Va..
Both Poquoson natives, they grew up when it was a small fishing village of about 1,200 with ruts instead of roads, when travel was done on the water, doors were not locked at night and neighbors were there for each other. They remember when rules on dating and decorum were strict and social life centered around church and school.
With no movie theaters, television or cars, young people met at each other’s homes for musical evenings and board games. Couples did not go off by themselves but stayed within a group.
“My mother always sat in the side parlor with the door open until 11 p.m. and then the evening ended,” said Margaret.
Once, Margaret, Shim and several other students went to the nearby woods to gather branches and leaves to decorate their school for a special occasion. A girlfriend teasingly shouted for Margaret and Shim to come out of the woods. Margaret said she was mortified, and that if her mother had heard she would’ve come running in search of her.
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