I noticed this morning, as I was walking from
the kitchen to the livingroom, that the neighbor had parked her car with the
nose towards the street … that’s part of Bob’s legacy going forward: he always
parked his vehicles backed into the parking space – and he always told me to do
the same thing; it makes leaving the driveway easier, and safer, too. So, that
is how I have parked for decades. Ever since getting my driver’s license.
She’s been here, in the Park, about a year;
and this is the first time she’s backed into her carport. But she sees me do it
every time I park. She’s never seen, or met my husband – she moved in after Bob’s
graduation to Heaven: but backing into parking spaces is Bobs thing. It became
my thing. And now, it’s her thing ;-)
Our kids and grandkids may not want to
emulate Bob, but it warms my heart to know that someone, besides me, does.
Love lives on :-D
Though Bob & I met in March 1974, and
started dating April 19th … the month of May was really the month “it
all came together”.
May was the month “US” was forged.
In every way.
We were living dangerously – Bob could legally
had been arrested for dating me: I was 17; he was 24. Despite the cultural
revolution, 1974 was still a dangerous time to be “active’ in love.
While we were becoming a solidified couple,
Bob lived to get home from work and see my face light up with a smile when he
came to fetch me in his horseless carriage … I lived to see his 2-tone red and
white ’56 Ford show up with my smiling Magic Man.
The '56 FORD. Gloria had left Bob in November 1973 taking his green Nova, and filed for divorce April 1, 1974 claiming the car in the divorce settlement: she wrecked it a month later. Bob bought the Ford from his Dad in 1973.
I loved that old truck – I like
vintage stuff ;-)
We started dating in the 2-tone, and kept it
until 1981. A lot of good memories happened in that truck.
Bob would pick me up after my shift at the
local Nursing Home, where I worked in the kitchen with my Aunt Hellenn; or he’d
pick me up when school let out around 3 PM on days the woods were shut down for
humidity (fire danger), or an accident happened on site and the work day
ended early. I loved seeing that truck parked and waiting for me :-D
My Magic Man – Bob 1974.
Me 1974. Bob put that smile on my face, and the sparkle in my eye … Bob animated me with his love.
We couldn’t stand to let a day go by without
being together: from 3 or 6 PM until midnight curfew, every day; no one (family,
friends, foe) saw either of us because we were always with each other. And
because the time was so dangerous for us, we didn’t spend a whole lot of time
hanging around the hometown stomping grounds.
Love was blooming and taking root … and we
were trusting it to get us safely grounded (https://jeastofeden.blogspot.com/2019/08/we-learned-love-from-each-other.html).
We kissed as a couple, for the first time,
April 19th, 1974:
Our life together was beginning.
I kissed him for the last time, at OHSU,
December 14th, 2018 ...
Our life together came to an
end: Bob’s life on Earth was over.
But for me, love lives on.
I love you, Babe.
Always ~ OX
