Hi Huron,
Welcome to JavaRanch.
Take a look at the Recertification section in Sun's
Certification FAQ.
Basically between September 2002 and August 2003, certifications were issued with an expiry date. Certifications outside that date range do not have an expiry date.
The good news is that you can write to Sun (details given in that link above) and ask for a replacement certificate without an expiry date free of charge.
Regards, Andrew