Sunday, December 22, 2013

Do you believe in love at first light?


On our pie date
This all started because I wanted to hear their love story.  I scheduled a coffee and pie date and picked them up.

“Tell me your story.  How did you meet?”
Grandpa, 94, responds, “My memory is so poor I could hide my own Easter eggs.”

It was November 20th, 1941.
Grandma has moved to Asilomar with her friend Louise, following high school graduation.
Grandpa, originally from Colorado, had been drafted into the army, he was stationed at Fort Ord.

The Lodge at Asilomar
Grandpa’s friend Milt had a car, which was rare, and they found themselves at the Asilomar lodge “We’d just heard there were girls there.”  As fate would have it, grandma had heard “quite a few soldiers spent time there, so we went to check it out.”

A special thank you must be extended to Milt; first, for having the car, second, for the courage to approach the girl at the desk and ask if she would like to go for a ride.  We must also thank Louise for not giving Milt the cold shoulder. 

Not much has changed from 1941 regarding guys calling dibs, because that is exactly what Grandpa did.  He told Milt “I want that one,” gesturing to Grandma.
“Milt was almost bald headed and short, I didn’t think much of him.”  But beside Milt stood Bill (grandma) and “He was SO cute!” gushed Grandma.

Grandpa recalls they attempted to go to a bar for a drink, but the bar refused to serve the girls because they were under age.  Instead, they went to a restaurant down the street for hamburgers (I’m not buying this whole poor memory thing).

During the conversation grandma mentioned the light bulb in her apartment had burnt out.  Grandpa excused himself to the restroom and returned carrying a small paper bag.  Inside the bag was a light bulb.  He had raced down the street to the hardware store…wasn’t this a bright idea (get it?!).  “He bought me light bulb, so that I could see to read.”
“It was the smartest purchase I’d ever made.”

Grandpa said several times, “In the short time I knew her, I knew she was very special.”
I asked grandma, “Did you know right away?”
“I was so PLEASED to see him.  He was so cute, so handsome. And polite. held the chair for me, open the car door for me, his manners were so good.” (I swear, Grandma, they don’t make them like this anymore.)

They met on November 20th 1941, and went on 3 dates before Grandpa was deployed November 29th 1941.  While he was in the Aleutian Islands they corresponded by letters; Grandpa smiled as he said, “She wrote good letters!” When he returned from his first deployment Grandpa asked Grandma to marry him.  They were wed July 19th, 1944, in San Francisco.  He was deployed to the south pacific shortly after.  Grandpa returned to San Francisco on their one-year anniversary for he had been wounded in battle.

“All the way through you can see” (gestures towards the heavens). “Everything worked out exactly right.  It was perfect for me.  I just happened to fall into, no, luck into it.  All of this, her." (gestures towards grandma)

Grandma and Grandpa’s love story filled my heart with hope, peace, faith, and above all, LOVE.  Hope that one day I’ll get to share my love story with my granddaughter.  Peace knowing all good gifts comes from above; my future rests in the creator’s perfect hands.  Love stories revive my faith that my love story is being written, even though my relationship status remains very single.  I left our pie date with a heart overflowing with admiration for the love my grandparents share, their love has survived  many trials, and yet at 69 year married they are still clearly smitten with one another.

Do you believe in love at first light?  I certainly do. 






1 comment:

  1. I like this a LOT. I can hear your humor in your grandpa's joke about the Easter eggs. Such a wonderful story, and an even more wonderful family.

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