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Thursday, February 16, 2023

I Like Thursdays 2-16-23


It's Thursday and time to make a list of my likes! I like this event hosted by LeeAnna of Not Afraid Of Color, because I am more aware of finding positive things during the week.

Our best news of the week: our DIL received the results of her lumpectomy - all clear! She will have some radiation to remove all "shadows", but she will not need further surgery. Thank you so much for all your well wishes.


In honor of the "Love Month", LeeAnna asked us to tell about a time when we knew someone was for us. That is a photo of my husband and me during a college dance in the late 1960s. Randy and I have been together since we were freshmen in high school. We got engaged during our junior year of college, and everyone in our small town expected we would marry shortly after graduation.

So imagine everyone's surprise when I broke our engagement to date the preacher's son! "Butch" was a soldier who had returned home after being in Vietnam, and when he saw me in church, he decided to pursue me, even after he found out I was engaged. He sent me flowers the day after meeting me. I was pretty much swept off my feet, and our little town was scandalized! 

Butch and I dated for a couple of months, and just had fun being together. We made each other laugh - a powerful draw for me - and I enjoyed the attention of an "older man" - 25 to my 21! And I loved his parents - the preacher and his wife were close friends with my folks and were so much fun to be around.

During that time Randy tried very hard to win me back, sending me flowers, calling me, writing me love letters, even talking with my Daddy about what he should do. My Daddy was not happy with me at all during this time. He liked and trusted Randy, and he knew nothing about Butch. My friends told me Butch was the wrong guy for me - even my college roommate was against it. And I had not stopped loving Randy. We still saw each other frequently since we drove to and from college together on weekends. I was only seeing Butch on weekends, and I began to have doubts about what I was doing.

One day I talked it over with my Mom, who was amazingly diplomatic. I asked her how to tell which one was "the one". She asked me to think about what I liked about each one. The first thing I said was that I had never been bored with Randy, and she said "well I think that's a pretty good sign".  I don't even remember what I told her about Butch.


Shadow Mountain Inn is now a sushi restaurant!

One night after that, Butch and I had dinner at Shadow Mountain Inn, a romantic restaurant in Tulsa, on a hill with views of the city. Coincidentally, Randy had a weekend job at a filling station which was down the hill from the restaurant, and I didn't realize he was working that night. As Butch and I enjoyed our dinner, I happened to glance out the window and down the hill, and I saw Randy. He was hunched over from the cold, cleaning a windshield, and my heart just melted. I knew in that moment I'd rather be standing in the cold with him than where I was. I soon broke it off with Butch and never looked back.


We will have been married 54 years in October!
 
Do you have a story about how you "knew"? Or maybe your story is simple, like one of the trending abbreviations in social media - "IYKYK" (if you know, you know). Leave your answer in the comments, and then be sure to check out other "likes" on LeeAnna's post - right here!

14 comments :

  1. Such a great story! I love how diplomatic your Mom was!

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  2. What a great story, Linda! I loved your mom's advice to you, and so glad you made the right decision for you. That's such good news for your DIL and the whole family, too. Happy Thursday!

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  3. OMGOSH I was hoping to see lots of stories here after your lovely invitation so I'll have to check back.
    Your post was super!!! I loved every word. What a writer you are and what a life lesson for others your open and honest talk about how a young woman seeks love and the right thing. Your parents are great, holding back but being supportive. Letting you find your footing. Expressing your values. I felt all of it.
    Randy... I see it from here. A man doing his work, doing the right things, not pushing but waiting.
    Lovely, I wish more men had this quiet integrity
    LeeAnna

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  4. That is such a great story! Not a bad thing to have another person to compare-and-contrast, and it's obvious you're something special. How wonderful to be together after all these years. And yay for your DIL. I'm sure that's a weight off for everyone!

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  5. Thanks for sharing your story. It is so interesting how different each of our lives are, but finding love and hearing the story retold is priceless and warms all our hearts.

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  6. My gosh, I so enjoyed this post, Linda. What a good storyteller you are! I loved seeing your photos too, precious!

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  7. Oh I love your story! I was rooting for Randy from the moment you mentioned Butch. Poor Butch, I bet he was devastated. You are a wonderful writer and I wanted to read more.

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  8. Aww, Linda!! That is the sweetest story I've ever heard about two people who were meant to be together. AND Thank you, Lord, for the fabulous news about your daughter. What a relief. {{Hugs}} a bunch for all of you. I know there were some sleepless nights. ~smile~ Roseanne

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  9. What a wonderful story and i like the photos! I'm sure you are still happy you chose Randy all those years ago. Sure was nice to read that you DIL is all in the clear. I hadn't been here in awhile so I didn't know there was something that you were probably very worried about.

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    1. Most days I'm happy I chose him - LOL! Glad to see you back Sandy. :)

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  10. Linda I am so happy to hear your DIL's news. What a blessing! I loved the story of your courtship, a break and then how you just knew Randy was the "one". Thank you for sharing a bit of your story with all of us.

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  11. Life is full of twists and turns. Obviously you made the best decision. I had a similar experience, but I did not go back like you did. We never forget our first love, or other loves that come into our lives from time to time. Hugs

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  12. What a sweet love story! Yes, sometimes it in those moments of service that our special someone melts our hearts! Beautiful story! Thank you for sharing!

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