Day to Remember

April 25th is an important day in Australia, commemorating the ANZAC landings at Gallipoli in 1915. But for Jo and me (and for all of you, too, I suppose), 25th April 1956 was especially important because it was the day that Jo agreed to marry me, half a century ago, and this phase of the Dahl family began.
My submarine (HMS Thorough) had arrived from Singapore the previous day, and Jo had diligently filmed the arrival on her 8mm camera - unhappily with the lens cap on! We then met each other for the first time in two years and talked and talked. Next day (25th April) Jo came down to the boat, and we went ashore to look at Sydney - Circular Quay, the Harbour, Bondi, Manly, stuff like that... (not the Opera House, that hadn't been built). I don't remember much touristy stuff, because I had proposed marriage at 11:00 and, receiving a non-commital answer, continued to propose every hour on the hour until Jo finally gave in at either 15:00 or 16:00 (neither of us can remember which). About my only recollection of Sydney on that ANZAC Day was of a piano playing in a crowded pub and a little old lady standing unsteadily on a table belting out songs.
We celebrated Jo's acceptance by dining at some fancy restaurant and getting our picture taken by a wandering photographer. You can readily see that I was not accustomed to civilian clothes and still had a lot to learn about wearing a shirt with a collar attached (not uniform, you understand). Note the bare chin—that would disappear within a year under the beard I wear to this day. I sent the champagne back as not being cold enough; the waiter claimed it had been on ice for hours, but if a man cannot be masterful before he's married, when can he be?
The next day we went out to buy the ring; it was christened "April" because it saw off that month's pay in its entirety.
Thank you, Jo.