LaWanna and Phillip Rolack: The Lifelong Learners

hospital isn't the most ideal place for a meet-cute. But it happened back in 1978 for LaWanna and Phillip Rolack, who met in a now-closed Detroit hospital when they were both laid up for respective stays.

"I saw this pair of legs sticking out," Phillip, 62, says, "and I said, 'let me step over here and talk to her.'"

They married a few years after dating, raising three children along the way. Now, they bask in the first part of their retirement years.

"I truly love him," LaWanna, 59, says. "Love survived, and it's not just for the good times. I guess it was his upbringing – he's a good husband, and a good father."

Patience is a virtue in marriage, Phillip says. "When you're dealing with another person, you have to take that person and what they like into consideration."

LaWanna echoes that. "When you're dealing with another person, you're not going to always agree. You're not going to like what they do, and they're not going to like what you do. But don't let the disagreement go on for days and weeks."

"You think you know each other, but you are constantly learning each other," Phillip says.

If there's one thing they've learned from each other, though, it's that they appreciate the small things they do for one another.

"I'm not a flower girl, and he knows that. But if he walks in with my favorite chips or a bag of candy, that means the world to me."

A couple in their 50s or beyond can face challenges with longevity; the Rolacks have seen it with other couples. "An older couple has to find ways to rekindle the relationship to keep it from becoming…"

"Stale?" LaWanna asks, while Phillip searches for the word.

"No, stale's not the word."

"Monotonous?"

"Monotonous is close to it."

And for the Rolacks, they're far from monotony. A recent two-week long vacation far from their Southfield home rejuvenated the pair.

"I didn't know we needed that. It was like we were young again," LaWanna says.