ladies choice

At our school, in the early ’50’s, we roller skated in the school gym a lot.

This being a church school of the time, we had a long list of rules guaranteed to keep boys and girls at a fair distance, but when we skated we could actually hold their hands, under the kindly gaze of the faculty. We might even bump hips as we skated, and if one was really lucky, your arm might graze the bottom curve of her breast.
It was racy stuff.

But I was tall and awkward and gawky and the girls were my friends, but they ignored me otherwise.

Then one day I was sitting next to the consummate school jock. Gene was a good guy, and besides being a great jock, he was handsome and scared to death of girls. I was not a jock even remotely, but he and I were friends. We visited, it was ladies choice, and we both were destined to sit this skate out.

Something caught my attention and I looked up.

There was the red head, asking me to skate with her. (years later I learned that when she left her seat on the “girls” side, she had intended on asking Gene to skate with her, but when she was 10 feet away, she chickened out, and asked me. Gene, I owe you big for that one! Sorta bait and switch!).

I stood up, rather awkwardly (8 tiny wheels on my feet did not make me more graceful), took her hand and was instantly in love.

We were 15.

I have never stopped holding her hands or loving her.

That was 54 years ago.