Today would  have been Daddy’s and Mama’s 58th wedding anniversary. Their meeting in Durham, NC when they both were at Duke University – Daddy teaching physical therapy and Mama studying medical technology – was nothing less than a miracle.

Daddy had other job offers but he wanted, after his stint in the Army during the Korean War, as all of us Tarheels long to at some point, go home. Mama was originally supposed to go to Vanderbilt University for her training, but she didn’t have a prerequisite course she needed to get into their program. Mama had all the prerequisites for Duke’s program, so she changed her plans and went there instead.

One of our family jokes was that Daddy picked Mama up on a street corner. In fact, that’s essentially true. Mama waiting at the corner of her street each morning for the bus that would pick her up…