Eli and Mary Murphy had raised six boys in the small community of Little Valley and all but the youngest, Adam, continued to live there. Indeed, Shamus, Peter and Simon still lived at home with their parents although this was about to change. It was in late April of 1952 that Simon announced that he and his girlfriend Sadie Morris were going to wed in August of that year and would be living with her parents until they built a place of their own. Two weeks later Peter informed his parents that he too would be getting married that summer. Mavis Peters, whom he’d been dating for nearly three years, already had a house that had been willed to her by her maternal grandparents. Not surprisingly, the four agreed on a double wedding, hopefully on August 22, should the parish priest be free on that date.

Adam received the news in a letter from his mother on May 1 and both he and Mona made plans to be in Little Valley for the occasion. He remembered his mother mentioning that Shamus had not dated since he and Millie Oldford had broken up more than a year ago, and she had left to work on the American base in Argentia. It looked like Shamus would be the only son living at home after August. Eli still went fishing sometimes, but this year found him spending more and more time ashore. Mary now received a pension of twenty-five dollars per month, in addition to the forty dollars received by her husband and both felt more financially secure than at any other time in their lives.

The spring and summer flew by quickly and Mona and Adam found themselves back in Little Valley on August 18, just four days before the double wedding ceremony. The couple were looked upon as celebrities in the little community, Mona being a nurse in St. John’s and Adam, well no one seemed able to fathom the amount of education that the young man had, and him still going to school! Neither spoke of their plans to come back to the coast except to their parents who were bubbling over with excitement, but nevertheless promised to keep it a secret.

The new priest, Father Francis O’Leary was a young man who had been born and raised in St. John’s and seemed to have a problem getting his sea legs. Adam met him on the morning of the wedding when he and Shamus went in Eli’s boat to Petersview, to fetch the youthful cleric. Adam, who knew nothing of seasickness, nevertheless felt sorry for the young man, whom he guessed to be about twenty-five, as he watched his color change from a robust red to white and all shades in between. The priest appeared quite happy when they arrived in Little Valley, though unsteady when he first stepped upon the wharf. Adam took his bags and as they walked up to his place of residence, the priest apologized for being such wretched company and expressed the hope that they might be able to talk again at a more opportune time. It was clear to Adam that the young priest found the time long in such isolation, and that he wanted nothing more than the company of someone of his own age with whom he could relax and be himself.