Thank you very much for sharing this special occasion with my family. It is our utmost honor to have you here tonight.

　When the children reminded me our 35th anniversary is coming up immediately, two thoughts came to my mind. First, "Oh, how can I forget this again?" Second, time really flies; I have known Sylvia for 37 years.

　The private conversation that I had with my Father-in-law prior to our wedding is still vivid in my mind. He told me four things:

　First, they understand that a soldier's salary is not high. He suggested that Sylvia could have a career to help out.

　Second, one must learn to control his temper when faced with setbacks at his work.

　Third, Sylvia is a sensible woman, and when there are issues, we can discuss together.

　Lastly, he suggested that we set the wedding date on May 5th. According to the Chinese calendar, the year is 55th year; it will be easier to remember in the future. At the time, I just could not foresee the possibility of forgetting this important day.

　The truth is that I never remembered our anniversary. My parents-in-laws are wise. They saw my shortcomings and paved ways for solutions. They knew I would not have asked Sylvia to work due to my pride, they saw my forgetfulness and bad temper. Maybe Sylvia did not want me to feel that I have so many weaknesses, she told me that my bad temper was the indirect reason for her to notice my existence. I would like to push the time back to give you the full picture.

　After graduating from the Military Academy in 1961, I was assigned to the first line of defense, Kinmen, as a platoon leader. In front of my position on the beach, there was a mine field. The mines often caused unnecessary casualties because the locations of the mines were not properly marked on the map due to frequent troop movement. My main mission was to fix this problem. After completing the mission in an innovating way, my life was quite peaceful other than some occasional artillery bombardment from the other side. There was only one thing that really bothered me daily, the propaganda warfare. The sound of the loud speakers from both sides broke the morning silence at 4 am everyday. The voices sounded like ghost howling. I thought that my alma mater really did a great job by training the commanders of both sides to be equally fatuitous. It was then that I decided to apply for training as an Air Borne Ranger in the U.S. I knew the training was to be extremely rigorous and tough, but never imagined that for nine months I was to be left in the wild to survive. Finally, I was able to pass the training and became a U.S. Air Borne Ranger.

　Upon returning to Taiwan, I was assigned to Infantry School. I became a trainer and did a lot of field exercises in extreme condition. In early 1964, I was lucky to receive the National Defense Scholarship to study at Columbia University. A letter from the U.S Military Advisor Corp. arrived shortly before my departure, and nicely reminded the need for me to report to local military base as a U.S. Ranger. Further more, since I am also an Allied Officer, they appreciated if I contact ROTC office at Columbia University. When I went to ROTC, I was received by an older officer. He greeted me warmly, and told me that they have been notified of my arrival. He gave me an orientation of the ROTC program, and said "Sir, Welcome Aboard." I felt as if he wanted me to volunteer my services in Vietnam. I explained to him that I have been in the fields long enough and I am here to study and to understand the American culture and value. Then he asked me with interest if I have met the Foreign Student Advisor. I quickly replied that I was fine and in no need of an advisor. He smiled and told me that the real boss is the F.S.A. The Colonel who is in charge is very experienced and he too, is a U.S. Ranger.

　Colonel Freeman took me under his wings. He arranged many special activities for me to learn more about the U.S., such as home stay. He called me up to run errands when he wanted to take a break, and I gladly assisted when time allows. I helped him sort out his paper work or monitored the performance of the ROTC students. He often gave me concert or opera tickets donated by charity organizations. The seats are not the best, but a ten-dollar ticket was already unthinkable for me at the time, more than my monthly salary of eight dollars back in Taiwan.

　Once he asked me to lead a troop of Boy Scout, because his friend Mr. Fox, who used to be Senator Goldwater's co-pilot in WWII, an International Loan Officer at Chase Manhattan Bank, was tight up and could not take his troop to National Boy Scout Jamboree. He asked me to talk to Mr. Fox, and this was my first encounter with a banker. We had a pleasant lunch at the top floor of the Chase Building, and he wanted me to meet with all the parents first to see if they were comfortable with the idea. He would take care of my room & board for the two weeks, and I would be paid $200 dollars. I thought this was a good deal, and all I had to do was to lead a group of kids. I could live in a tent, not on a tree at night, and I could save on grocery bill, and even get paid for doing so. At Valley Forge, my troop won the first place, and we got the honor to raise the flag on closing day. Mr. Fox was really happy and asked me out gliding a few times. Until today, we keep in touch with Mrs. Fox. At Valley Forge, I also got to know the leader of our country's scout team, Mr. Hsieh Yo Hwa, who later became the Deputy Minister of Education. He sure was wondering what I was doing among the New Jersey Scouts.

　Eleven years later, I was to help out in the Olympic movement for our Government. Only later did I find out that Mr. Hsieh had recommended me to be the Vice Chairperson of the Olympic Committee. Sometimes I wonder: if Mr. Fox were not the International Loan Officer rather the International Deposit Officer, Ferdie and I would not be borrowing this much money from the banks!

　Few days after the Jamboree, Colonel Freeman called me to see if I was interested to attend a picnic organized by the Chinese Student Association. I had never been to Staten Island, thus agreed to go. Too many people organizing the picnic made it a mess. When we finally reached the picnic site, it was already one o'clock in the afternoon. No one had brought a lighter, then a group tried to start a fire without much success and started to blame each other. Since that was my first time joining such activity, I just sat quietly under a tree. Just then, the group realized that the Bar-B-Q grill was forgotten as well. I, being really hungry and upset, thought if I did not help myself, I will never get to eat, and started working. I always carry a pocketknife when going outdoors. I took the pocketknife, cut a twig, cleaned it, put on some marshmallows and meat and started cooking. I lend my knife to others to do the same. Just then, someone got burned by the fire due to blowing wind. Seeing many people had not eaten, I knew unless I do something, we would not be able to leave for a long time. I asked for the knife back, cut several twigs, and made them into base stands for cooking so several people could cook at the same time without running the risk of being burned. I went back to my nap afterwards without saying anything.

　I was so upset that I did not consider helping others. I was demonstrating my bad temper. I also did not think of helping the girls because I was a professional soldier, due to return to Taiwan in due course. It was hard to imagine anyone would go out with me under such circumstances at the time. I did not know Sylvia was at the picnic that day; she was not impressed by my good survival skills, rather annoyed to see I was such a rude person. I really wish I could go back in time and gave my Bar-B-Q beef to Sylvia.

　I did not know Sylvia until months later, and then my whole world was turned upside down. I lost interest in knowing about the U.S. I went to the library to study everyday because she held a part time job there. I told Colonel Freeman I had to go studying because I met a girl. He was very excited, and started to give me two concert tickets every time. He even went through lots of trouble to arrange special box seats once. When we arrived, the box across from us was still empty. I had a hunch that Madam Chiang was coming. Minutes before opening, there she was with Mrs. Luce, in the box across from us. At the Military Academy, among the ranks, I had many opportunities to see her. I do not know what she was thinking when she saw two young Chinese sitting across the hall.

　I was vacillating when we first started dating, asking myself all the time if I have made the right choice. I was so in love with Sylvia, I even went to Sunday service with her, watching her pray and thinking to myself how beautiful she looked! However, I still could not convince myself. Even though I told Sylvia that I was a professional soldier, but did she really understand that hardship lies behind these words? I finally decided to see her in my uniform. I told myself I would call off this relationship if I sense any uneasiness from her. I kept asking myself if I was doing the right thing and if I really need to do this now. I was so nervous, so unlike the professional training represented by my uniform. These images are still vivid in my mind today. I am forever thankful to my in-laws for agreeing to our marriage 35 years ago.

　I feel my physical condition was not the same as before. Once on the way to a business dinner with my son, the waitress told us at the door our guests have arrived. As she was rushing to lead us, she asked me if the other person was my son. I replied yes. She told me that we look alike but my son is much better looking. I still has yet to figure out the meaning behind this compliment. Few days later, as I was working, I forgot how to write a certain word in Chinese, could not remember the English spelling either, I wanted to check a document from the safe but could not recall the combination, just then my father-in-law's words came to my mind: You can discuss important things with Sylvia. That night, I told Sylvia if I might have Alzheimer's disease. She looked deep into my eyes and said: "You seem fine to me; you never remembered things like this anyway."

　Slowly, I started to learn the meaning of "Grateful". I started to uncomprehend the love from my Parents, the guidance from many elders when I was confused. I am grateful to my partner's and in-laws' timely assistance when I needed them. I am grateful to have wonderful children and their better halves who work hard at their own positions. I feel the presence of God, especially grateful that He allowed me to meet Sylvia.

　"Let Me Call You Sweetheart" is a song frequently sang by my Mother-in-law. I like the multiple meanings conveyed by the title and lyric. To thank you for listening to my lengthy speech, I would like to ask Mom to lead the whole family and sing this song to show our appreciation. Thank you.

May 29, 2001

LET ME CALL YOU SWEETHEART
I am dreaming, dear, of you
Day by day,
Dreaming when the skies are blue,
When they're gray,
When the silv'ry moon light gleams,
Still I wander on in dreams,
In a land of love, it seems just with you
Longing for you all the while,
More and more,
Longing for the sunny smile,
I adore,
Birds are singing far and near,
Roses blooming everywhere,
You alone my heart can cheer you, just you
Let me call you sweet heart
I'm in love with you,
Let me hear you whisper that you love me, too.
Keep the love light glowing in your eyes so true.
Let me call you sweet heart,
I'm in love with you.