Once upon a time there was a Kentucky girl who fell in love with her dark-haired hero in Washington State...Thus begins my own story:) Only I want to hear yours! Thanks to Sylvia, a dear reading friend and blog buddy who suggested this post, I guess I'll go first. This photo looks so old to me though it's only been sixteen or so sweet years. Randy is a little grayer and heavier and I'm... Well, nuff said!
He really is my hero. And only God could have brought us together because it's such an unlikely match. But He knows our hearts and where He wants us, including who he wants us to end up with. And sometimes His best plan is for us to stay solo. I nearly did.
I was fresh out of college and waitressing at Lake Crescent Lodge in Washington State one summer. Randy was working across the lake at Log Cabin Resort in the boat house (sounds like a Lorna Seilstad novel!) but strangely, we never crossed paths. I finished my stint at Lake Crescent and thought I might need to stay a little longer before returning to Kentucky. So I applied for a job at the local rural school. Lo and behold, I met Randy who hadn't graduated yet. He was a little young and not nearly as tall as I liked, but there was a genuineness and humility about him that I loved. Since I worked with elementary students as a teaching assistant, he would stand with me on the playground during recess duty and talk to me. And soon it didn't matter that he was sorta short and rural and had been to Kentucky only once. For two years we simply stood and talked on the playground. No kidding! It was the longest, strangest courtship that wasn't a courtship I've ever experienced.
And then he graduated and I decided to return to Kentucky. Only I decided I really liked Washington and wanted to get a post-graduate degree first. So I left his vicinity for 7 years. No phone calls. No letters. Nada. Zip. Nothing. I'd convinced myself that he was too young. Too unworldy. Too short. Not educated enough. He didn't even like to read!
But God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart. 1 Samuel 16:7.
At the end of that seven year silence something strange happened. I decided it was past time to return to Kentucky. And he, at this very same time, contacted an old friend of mine, got my address, and wrote me a letter. A love letter. His first and only. He wanted to marry me, you see. So there you have the rest of our story:)
I'd love to hear about your romance ~ or that of your parents or grandparents. Or visit author friend, Shannon Vannatter's wonderful blog where she highlights true love stories of authors and writers! I'm so thankful God is the author of romance, whether in real life or in books:).