On Reaching 100

In spite of heavy holiday traffic for some and a summer deluge for others, the group shown below gathered at Emilio’s Mexican restaurant in Hemet, CA, to begin a weekend celebration of my (Chuck’s) aunt Margaret’s 100th birthday. Other guests of honor were Margaret's three sisters, Martha, Evelyn, and Joan and her brother, Hank.

As you can see, our table was in the middle of the dining room.

Not only was I walking around the table during the course of the dinner, but other members of our party moved around the table for brief conversations.

Evelyn, Martha, and Jane (Hank's daughter)

Joan and Tim (husband of Sandra, Margaret's daughter)

Hank and his son Jack

I chose to take photos without the aid of a flash. The result was that some of the photos below are not as sharp as they could have been.

Raina (Evelyn's daughter) and Sandra (Margaret's daughter)

Laura (daughter of Jane, Hank's daughter) and Jesse (husband of Raina, Evelyn's daughter)

Jack (Hank's son) and Linda (Jack's wife)

David (Martha's son)

Margaret began the evening with her once-a-year strawberry margarita. While this drink seemed quite a good size, we saw other customers with margarita’s that were about four times larger!

Tim (Sandra's husband), Sandra (Margaret's daughter), and Margaret

As the meal was ending, an ice cream sundae with a candle in it appeared.

What followed was our rendition of "Happy Birthday," followed by applause and well wishes.

And then came a surprise for all of us.

At one of the adjacent tables, the people had heard us talking about Margaret celebrating her 100th birthday. One young woman asked Kate if she could sing a song for Margaret, and Kate gladly accepted her offer.

The woman's name was Jordan. She walked to Margaret, who held Jordan's hand while Jordan sang "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy (of Company B)", made famous by the Andrews Sisters.

Sandra talked to Jordan and her family and friends and thanked Jordan on behalf of all of us for a wonderful, surprising finale to our evening's celebration.

Congratulations to Raina and Jesse for a well-planned, successful celebration beginning.