I’ve always loved looking through my parents’ wedding album. I couldn’t even begin to guess how many times I have studied each of the black and white photos of the two of them surrounded by their friends and family in all their wedding finery.

My mother, looking like a young Elizabeth Taylor, was nothing short of breathtaking in the simple, yet elegant gown designed for her by Gessy Lopresti, a dress designer who grew up next door. My father was dashing in his morning suit and cravat. Actually, I think he was drop-dead gorgeous, but I might be biased.

To my eyes, they are both incredibly, almost unbelievably young in these pictures. My father was not yet 25 and my mother just 23 on May 9, 1959 when they said their vows. This past Saturday, they celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary.

Fifty years, five decades, half a century – no matter how you say it, it sounds like a long time. But my parents say it seems like it was just yesterday that they met, fell in love and made their way down the aisle at St. Ephrams in Brooklyn.