Till Death Do Us Part - A Real Life Romeo & Juliet Story
The Berringtons
(Image from The Calgary Herald)
Last Thursday in the Canadian Press a love story so sad held me captive. It had nothing to do with Rhett Butler and Scarlet or Edward Cullen and Bella Swan. Allen and Margaret Berrington passed away in the Alberta back country and they had been married for almost seventy years.
I don't know of too many people these days whose relationships last that long and chances are if you do hear of such tales they come from the old school of marriage.
What happened between the generations? Is it just too easy now to not work at things and separate at the first hint of trouble?
Well , it's obvious to me that the Berringtons defied trouble and worked at their marriage. Allen and Margaret met each other at a High School dance in 1939 and for the next seven decades word was they had a love affair that you only read about in books. Margaret was a housewife and Allen who was a former air force pilot worked all his life for Telus. They had three children which spawned many grand children and great grand children that were the love of their lives.
They were inseparable throughout and in their Golden Years had perfected their weekly routine. They loved Red Lobster, slot machines and the seafood buffet at the Grey Eagle Casino. No more , no less.They had each other and their family and that was all that mattered.
The sign on the winding road between the Ghost and Red Deer Rivers states that what they were traveling on was not recomended . Even the off roaders that enjoy that area use it at their own risk. There is also no cell phone service on Hallow Creek Road where their car was found. No one that they knew , could figure out why they were in that dangerous area. It is hard to drive on back roads in the darkness of night and I know this for a fact.
Last September while leaving my son's wedding late at night I turned the wrong way and found myself heading down a narrow dirt road straight for the river. If people still attending the reception had not seen the car lights traveling down towards "no where" I would have landed smack dab in the rushing currents of the Clyde river. So, if you don't know exactly what kind of road you are travelling on you can get into big trouble, let alone if you are in your nineties like The Berrington's were.
No one will ever know why they got lost that day nor why they decided to venture where they did.Was it the weather or the blackness of night? Or were they on their way to visit long distance relatives and made a wrong turn ? What coud have possibly led them to believe they were on the right road to anywhere?
Their family held out hope for a week that they would be found and they knew their father always insisted that the gas tank be full any time it was taken out.But the weather did not co operate and back roads become impassable, and that particular road they were traveling on narrowed to the width of an alley. They probably found themselves not able to turn around and were unable to call for help and decided to wait it out.
According to the police, dirt bike enthusiasts found their car parked in the woods. There was no damage, no sign of any crime but the gas tank showed empty. No one knows why Allen and Margaret made the decisions they did that night but everyone agrees. They made them together. I asked myself why there was no note left for their families . Simple, they thought their love would pull them through this problem.
You see, Allen and Margaret probably spent their last bit of time together huddled in the car trying to stay warm with the engine running. They hoped that help would come and knew that when the gas ran out their only last option was to try and get help. They walked about 1.84 miles into the "bush" as we Canadians call it and made final peace with their higher being together. I am positive that their age, the elements and the terrain made their last steps come quickly. The Berringtons were found dead, but were only inches apart from each other. No one will ever find out their final story and one does not want even to fathom the tragic scenario if one died before the other.
They were inseparable in life and are probably still inseparable where ever they are now. The fact that their family is combining their ashes says it all. To me they are right up there with all the literary characters of Wuthering Heights and Jane Austen.
Allen and Margaret Berrington were a couple that had undying love . They could not live apart so life made sure they did not end their life without each other. No one knows why things happen the way they do but they happen for a reason. While I am so very sad they died I am relieved one did not die without the other. That's how I want it to be.
Linda Seccaspina
No comments:
Post a Comment