him, he captivated me. The first time we touched, something almost like an electric current passed between us. He must have felt it too, because he stayed with me the rest of the evening.
“He had dark wavy hair and the most amazing blue eyes that twinkled when he was up to something. I learned later that he was always up to something. We danced the entire evening. He held my hand and focused all of his attention on me. No one else existed, but the two of us. Ignored, the girls I came with eventually left us alone. When he took me home that night, he paused in the doorway, took my face in his hands, and kissed me. It was so gentle and tender. That’s when I knew I’d never really been kissed before. All too soon, he released me and walked away. I just stood there, trying to catch my breath. ”
“Wow.” Sara always had a hard time picturing her grandmother as a young girl. Now, however, with the glow of memories radiating in her face, somehow the wrinkles disappeared and the image became clear.
“The next day when I got out of class he was waiting for me. My heart actually skipped a beat when I saw him. We went ice skating, sipped hot chocolate, and walked hand in hand for hours. Then he took me home, kissed me goodnight and was gone again.
“He sounds perfect.”
“It was the strangest romance. He never called, never asked for a date. He seemed to know where I was and when I was free. He would just show up and whisk me away on some new adventure. We went skiing; played one on one basketball; went to baseball games; rode the carousel at the fair. He taught me to surf. He never asked me what I wanted to do. He always had a plan. It never occurred to me to say no. Every time I saw him, it was just like the first time. When we were together, the hours flew by. I couldn’t get enough of him. I would have gone anywhere, done anything just to be with him. Everything was fun. I laughed more then, than I have in all the years since. Once he came over at midnight, sneaked me out of the dorm and we went sailing until dawn.” Helen laughed.
“Why didn’t you marry him?”
“If I would try to have a serious conversation with him, he would lean down, take me in his arms, and kiss me with those same gentle sweet kisses, until I couldn’t remember my own name and my heart was pounding. When I was sufficiently distracted, he would take my hand, and off we’d go again. I only saw him serious once. Coming in from class, I saw him in the common room playing the piano. He played magnificently. He could have been a concert pianist. The music was so beautiful, sad, and yet fierce and passionate. He seemed lost in the music. I’d never seen him look so vulnerable. I stood there watching him for a long time. Then I must have moved, because he looked up. The smile I loved was back. He jumped up, insisted that I change into a swimsuit and we went to the beach.
“He was not like anyone I’d ever met. I never knew what he did when he wasn’t with me. He asked me a million questions, but refused to talk about himself, never introduced me to any of his friends or family. It was always just the two of us.
“After about six months of being together almost every day, I guess his interest in me wore off, because gradually he showed up less and less often, and then he stopped coming altogether. I never saw him again.” Helen sat back, placing her napkin on the table.
Sara sat back, trying to imagine her grandmother as a young woman in the midst of her first love and then dumped like yesterday’s garbage. “You must have been devastated!”
Helen shrugged. “I was. I couldn’t concentrate. I was always looking for him, expecting him to show up any minute. It took me a long time to realize it was over. Then I threw myself into my studies so I didn‘t have time to think about the pain. In a way, I guess I have him to thank for my accomplishments.”
Sara frowned. “Didn’t you ever go looking for him?”
Helen shook her
“He had dark wavy hair and the most amazing blue eyes that twinkled when he was up to something. I learned later that he was always up to something. We danced the entire evening. He held my hand and focused all of his attention on me. No one else existed, but the two of us. Ignored, the girls I came with eventually left us alone. When he took me home that night, he paused in the doorway, took my face in his hands, and kissed me. It was so gentle and tender. That’s when I knew I’d never really been kissed before. All too soon, he released me and walked away. I just stood there, trying to catch my breath. ”
“Wow.” Sara always had a hard time picturing her grandmother as a young girl. Now, however, with the glow of memories radiating in her face, somehow the wrinkles disappeared and the image became clear.
“The next day when I got out of class he was waiting for me. My heart actually skipped a beat when I saw him. We went ice skating, sipped hot chocolate, and walked hand in hand for hours. Then he took me home, kissed me goodnight and was gone again.
“He sounds perfect.”
“It was the strangest romance. He never called, never asked for a date. He seemed to know where I was and when I was free. He would just show up and whisk me away on some new adventure. We went skiing; played one on one basketball; went to baseball games; rode the carousel at the fair. He taught me to surf. He never asked me what I wanted to do. He always had a plan. It never occurred to me to say no. Every time I saw him, it was just like the first time. When we were together, the hours flew by. I couldn’t get enough of him. I would have gone anywhere, done anything just to be with him. Everything was fun. I laughed more then, than I have in all the years since. Once he came over at midnight, sneaked me out of the dorm and we went sailing until dawn.” Helen laughed.
“Why didn’t you marry him?”
“If I would try to have a serious conversation with him, he would lean down, take me in his arms, and kiss me with those same gentle sweet kisses, until I couldn’t remember my own name and my heart was pounding. When I was sufficiently distracted, he would take my hand, and off we’d go again. I only saw him serious once. Coming in from class, I saw him in the common room playing the piano. He played magnificently. He could have been a concert pianist. The music was so beautiful, sad, and yet fierce and passionate. He seemed lost in the music. I’d never seen him look so vulnerable. I stood there watching him for a long time. Then I must have moved, because he looked up. The smile I loved was back. He jumped up, insisted that I change into a swimsuit and we went to the beach.
“He was not like anyone I’d ever met. I never knew what he did when he wasn’t with me. He asked me a million questions, but refused to talk about himself, never introduced me to any of his friends or family. It was always just the two of us.
“After about six months of being together almost every day, I guess his interest in me wore off, because gradually he showed up less and less often, and then he stopped coming altogether. I never saw him again.” Helen sat back, placing her napkin on the table.
Sara sat back, trying to imagine her grandmother as a young woman in the midst of her first love and then dumped like yesterday’s garbage. “You must have been devastated!”
Helen shrugged. “I was. I couldn’t concentrate. I was always looking for him, expecting him to show up any minute. It took me a long time to realize it was over. Then I threw myself into my studies so I didn‘t have time to think about the pain. In a way, I guess I have him to thank for my accomplishments.”
Sara frowned. “Didn’t you ever go looking for him?”
Helen shook her
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