Falling

(Note: From now until Valentine's Day I will be chronicling how Mr. Blue Eyes and I met, as well as sharing some personal journal excerpts from the early days/weeks/years of our relationship. WARNING: Journal excerpts will contain large amounts of over-the-top, thick as maple syrup, fresh from the pine tree SAP. I was young and in love and I wrote about it shamelessly. If you are allergic to sap you may want to take a Claritin or just avoid these posts all together. If not, read on or click HERE to see a list of the archived posts.)

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After a year of almost missing out completely on my chance with Mr. Blue Eyes, and now several weeks since our three-hour phone call, the time had finally come for us to get together. I was a jumble of emotions, but I was also a young woman enjoying a summer of freedom... Even though I already felt connected to him, the tumultuous couple of years preceeding made me reluctant to hope for anything permanent.

A mutual friend was having a party, and Mr. Blue Eyes called to let me know he would be there; to let me know that I should be there too. My niece was visiting for the weekend so she came along. Good thing she was such a good sport, because as soon as Mr. Blue Eyes and I saw one another, there was no one else around as far as we were concerned. I remember sitting at the table and talking -- for what seemed like a long time -- and being completely oblivious to everything going on around us. Finally a friend interceded and suggested that we set a date to actually go on a date. We agreed.

Then we decided to get some fresh air and leave the party scene. We drove down to a pasture where my family kept some horses a few miles away. We walked through the tall grass and talked. We found a place to sit and talked some more, looking up at the stars. I don't know how long we sat there; I just remember it was so peaceful. And comfortable.

And he was a perfect gentleman.

I was a little confused... Where was the guy from the lake who couldn't seem to take his eyes off of me? Not that I wanted him to be that forward, but it was a change. And that's when I learned something: alcohol makes you do funny things. Alcohol makes you act like someone you're not. Alcohol releases your inhibitions. Who knew? ;)

I was glad.

(I mean, I was glad that he was a gentleman. I don't mean that I was glad that alcohol makes you release your inhibitions. Just to be clear.)

We went back to the party, but we weren't ready to rejoin the crowd, so we took a walk. We stopped at the end of the driveway and stood facing each other, talking about... Who knows? It was a long time ago. What I do remember is once again this feeling of... falling... being pulled into one another... as if it was some force of nature or gravity or something I couldn't understand. All I know is that we moved closer, and closer, and closer, until...

Our first kiss.

Now that I remember.

And it was... everything... a first kiss... should be.

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The following night: first date. First real date.

The restaurant (a.k.a. fast food joint): Taco John's.

The movie: Dr. Dolittle.

Sounds kind of not romantic, right? But hey, when you live near a small town, your options are pretty limited. And we were young, so you could have put us in a gravel pit together and we would have had a good time. And even though it might not sound quite so romantic, it really, really, actually was. I was leaving for college -- three hours away -- the following day, but one thing was clear. We had to find a way to see each other again.

Journal Excerpt, September 1... "Talk to me," he whispered. "What do you want me to say?" I asked. He said, "Tell me you'll come home to see me on the weekends," and I said, "I will."

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I know... I KNOW! Sappy... But I'm laying my heart on the line here, people. And it's almost Valentine's Day, so when better to share our sappy love stories? Right? Can I get a shout out?

Besides, I'm in too deep now. No turning back.

Tomorrow: The early days of Mr. Blue Eyes and Farmer Gal... A journal excerpt expedition.

Warning: The sap factor is about to increase.