On a sunny day in May 1963, my Aunt Sandy and I were about to return home from a visit to a neighboring town for a day of shopping and dinner at one of our favorite restaurants, well-known for their delicious hot roast beef sandwiches covered with fries and drenched in gravy. A real treat!
As we stood at the bus stop waiting for the bus to go home, a white 57 Ford Retractable pulled up to the curb. Wow! that car sure was a beauty! The driver rolled down the window and started talking to Sandy. As they were talking, I stood there trying to decide who was better looking, the car, or the guy driving it. Little did I know that it was the day I would meet my forever love.
The good-looking guy in the awesome car was her neighbor Sam, someone who I had never met before. He told Sandy that he was on his way home and he asked her if we wanted a ride home. She motioned for me to come over to the car. I hesitated a bit because this guy was a stranger to me and I was not sure if it was safe to get in the car with him. She assured me that she knew him and his family and that he could be trusted. I did trust her judgment, so I agreed.
We got into the car and began our drive home. Sandy introduced me to Sam and the three of us laughed and talked the entire trip home. She was right, he seemed like a nice guy and handsome to boot! He had a gorgeous head of hair, a muscular build, and a look of total confidence that gave me the butterflies.
When we arrived home, I asked Sandy a million questions about him and found out that he was about seven years older than me. I was disappointed, thinking that he was a little too old for me, so I put Sam out of my mind even though that would be difficult. I’m sure he thought that I was just a kid and way too young for him anyway!
I was spending the summer at Sandy’s house and during the next few weeks, I saw his car drive past Sandy’s house a few times. I found it odd that I had never noticed that car before because it was a car that you could not help but notice! It had a beautiful blue interior with rolled and pleated seats and always looked like it had just been washed and waxed with every inch of chrome gleaming in the sun.
One day my grandmother sent Sandy and me out to the front yard to pick cherries from the black heart cherry trees that lined the yard next to the road. Sam happened to be driving by and saw us there and he stopped to talk and eat some cherries. He said that black heart cherries were his favorite. It was that day that he asked me to go out on a date with him. With Sandy’s encouragement, I said yes, despite my concern over the age difference. He was just so darn good-looking, I couldn’t help myself!
On our first date, we went to dinner and a movie and spent hours talking and sharing stories about our lives. We had a great time getting to know each other! As time passed there were more dates and I found that I truly enjoyed his company. I always looked forward to being with him and secretly hoped that there would be many more dates to follow. Fortunately for me, there were!
In addition to a mutual physical attraction, Sam and I had many things in common. We both loved music from the 50’s and we both loved to dance. Unlike many guys my age, he was a great dancer. We went swimming, dancing, skiing, ice skating and motorcycle riding on his new Honda motorcycle. We went to drag races, motorcycle hill climbs and drive-in movies. We also enjoyed spending time just hanging out at my house or my grandma’s house with my aunt. They loved him!
As the weeks and months passed by, our relationship had reached the point where we spent every moment that we could together. When he was not working, he was with me, and when he was not with me I missed him. We had been dating about a year and a half when Sam announced to me that we were going to get married. He didn’t ask me, he told me! But, I guess he knew that I was in love with him, and I knew that he loved me too!
We had a huge wedding shower in May and we were married by a justice of the peace a few months later, on September 18, 1965, with just Sandy and Bob (a friend) present. We had a small celebration dinner at my grandmother’s house afterward. At the time, Sam was living in an apartment with my mother-in-law. She was moving to a smaller place, so we just assumed the rental, and it was there that we began our married life together.
Our daughter was born 10 months later. When she was 19 months old, we had twin sons and when our twins were 2 years old, our youngest son was born. The years we spent raising our four children were some of the best years of our lives. There were some tough times, but mostly good times spent together and always loving it that way. I don’t think either one of us could ever imagine life without the other.
We were married for 45 years when Sam passed away. It has been 14 years now and I still miss him. I am focused on finding happiness in the little things in life and I am grateful for each new day that I can share with my children and grandchildren. I am grateful for the many years of happiness that Sam and I shared together, grateful for the wonderful children that blessed our lives and grateful for having experienced a love that will last me until it is my time to be with him again. My forever love!
Photo by Gabby Orcutt on Unsplash
