THE GETAWAY AND HONEYMOON chapter 90

From our now deteriorating scrapbook. I had to redo the title and lettering.
They were to far gone to be readable at this size.

By the time the reception was coming to a close, there were many rumors about plans to stop us from leaving on our honeymoon. We could not distinguish fact from fiction. We could not get out of our mind the story Bob Willoughby told of his wedding day, when “friends” stole his bride and kept her the entire day. Dan (quickly becoming my arch enemy) has talked about that story and he thought it sounded like fun. I disagreed with his assessment and considered it mean if not criminal.

We had our own plan to thwart his plan. We never left the church building until it was time to go. We changed and said our goodbyes inside the church. People were gathering outside to drown us in rice. We left by the back basement door and slipped into Brian’s car. He had no part of the wedding party and we were certain would not be suspected of helping us get away.

We got into the back seat of his car, slide down so as not to be seen went up the hill behind the Red Deer Alliance Church, then out to the highway #2 bypass and came back into town through West Park road and right to the heart of the city where our first night was spent at the Granada Inn, Red Deer’s newest and most modern hotel (now Stanford Inn and hopeful remodeled inside). I trusted my best man and it paid off. Our luggage was there and in tack, except for one thing. One third of a Saskatchewan license plate was inside my suitcase. I blame it all on Shirley, except that it was the third that was last given to Laruel (see chapter 85). They must have worked together.

Sunday morning we walked up south hill to get our car, then drove to Della’s house for breakfast with her and my parents. Since we were in no hurry to leave, we opened many of the wedding gifts before going on to Calgary for a couple of days at the Continental Motel.

Sunday night we visited Calgary Alliance Church. Rev. Young greeted us by name after the service. I was shocked. I had never met him. He might have known me by reputation, but — he said he saw our pictures in the yearbook. Wow! Can all pastors do that? I knew I was in trouble.

We spent Monday at the Calgary Zoo, had steaks that night (hers burnt, mine medium well) and they I took her to the very first movie she had ever seen. We were off to see the “Sound of Music” then in its second year at the Odeon. I don’t really know if she enjoyed it as a lot of guilt goes with being told movies are of the devil, which many may well these days. When the film first became available on DVD, we purchased is and watxched it every Christmas.

El Cortz Motel, Waterton National Park

The deer outside out door.

Della at the top of  Cameron Falls

Tuesday we left for Waterton National Park on the Canadian/USA border. It backed up to Glacier National Park. We checked into La-Cortez Motel where deer came to our front door every morning. You could open the door and they would just stand and stare at us. We were as much on display at they were. With coffee in the room we purchased some rolls had breakfast n bed every morning.

After four days at Waterton we went on to Cranbrook, BC and attended church Sunday morning. The pastor invited us to lunch after church and we did everything but scream “NO” to get out of it, but so as not to offend went for soup. They had our day planned. I was expected to walk to the park with him as he pushed the baby carriage and Della was to help in the kitchen cleaning up. Hurt feelings, rudeness or whatever, this time we held to our guns and left. Neither of us cared any longer what they might have thought of us. We had to get back to the Holmes Motel and our Magic Fingers Bed where for a mere 25¢ you could have the bed tickle you silly. We could not stop laughing.

One must shower somewhere.

From there were went on to Banff where we intended to stay a day or two, but it was so crowded we went on back to Red Deer where we returned to a charivari. We expected it.

Add sweet rolls and you have breakfast in bed.