Guess who is celebrating a 50th wedding anniversary! Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip of Great Britain. I was delighted to read that they are giving a big party at Buckingham Palace for all couples who were married in 1947. I was reminded of the couple in their upper 70's who were celebrating their golden anniversary. It was a wonderful day, but long and tiring, with guests from out of town. Finally, the husband and wife were alone at the end of the day. The husband was hard of hearing and often guessed at what was being said. The wife said, "I'm so tired; finally we're through." He replied, "Oh yeah, well after 50 years I'm a little tired of you too!"

A long and happy marriage is a glorious but difficult achievement. Nowadays the very institution of marriage is under attack. The veiled …