true love

My grandmother is 86 years old. We used to visit her a lot when I was younger, but I don't see her that often now. I was lucky enough to get to spend this past weekend at Bald Head Island with her, and on Sunday morning, sitting on the screen porch, I began asking her questions about her life. I feel like there is so much I don't know about her and her past, but I want to know, and I want to hear it from her.

She began talking about her old house in Yonkers, NY, which I remember visiting as a little kid...a great big sprawling house, with an elaborate staircase. She recalled how she and my grandfather saw the house in the paper, and decided just to drive by. They ended up buying the house, even though to this day she says they couldn't afford it.

I asked her how she and my grandfather met. I've seen their wedding photo--he's in a Navy uniform, and she's in a gorgeous white dress with a train sprawling in front of them, but I've never heard any stories. Despite being 86, she is sharp as a tack, and remembers details about her life from high school. I have trouble remembering what I did yesterday.

She was at a dance with her girlfriend, and my grandfather and his friend approached them. He recognized her from seeing her around town, and they had mutual friends, but she didn't know who he was. He asked if he could walk her home, and she declined--her explanantion when telling me the story was, "you know how fellas are, pain in the ass, coming up on the stoop, asking when they can see you again." So long story short, they went on a date 3 weeks later. She wasn't sure she would even remember what he looked like! He joined the Merchant Marines and then the Navy, and every time he came home on leave, he asked my grandmother to marry him. She told him he was crazy, they had no money, and would never survive. He set out to make some money, and they agreed the next time he had some leave, they would get married. Little did I know that fabulous wedding picture was from a wedding that was put together in 3 days, with a dress borrowed from her sister-in-law.

She began recalling their honeymoon, and when telling the story of their adventures in Atlantic City, she began laughing so hard that she began to cry. My grandfather passed away 20 years ago in April, and the memories of him still bring tears to her eyes. This is the kind of love we all dream of, the kind that lasts forever, no matter how long the other person has been gone.

What a special, simple thing love was then. Today's world is so busy that often times people forget what's important. Still in love after being alone for 20 years? Now THAT'S true love.