Slow and Simple

What ever happened to slow and simple? I miss those days. I remember my first love as being such a natural process, I didn't even realize it was happening. We met in Trig class freshmen year of college. At the time, I was in a half ass long distance relationship, where I think I was the only half that cared about it. For some reason, the light came on and I finally understood Trig - when I took in high school it made no sense to me at all. I understood it so well, that I completed all the assignments for the entire semester in about 2-3 weeks. I know, what a nerd. Well, I guess Skinny (my affectionate name for him)noticed this and wrote me a note asking for help.

We met in the library and studied some and got to talking. It turned out we were from the same hometown. My mother taught at his high school. Heck, he went to the same school where my half-ass boyfriend went - they knew each other because they were on the same football team. Talking with him that first time was easy - it was as if we had known each other forever. A few days later, he writes me a pull tab note (I wonder if kids still do that) saying that he likes me and did I like him, complete with the check yes, check no boxes. I laughed and laughed when I saw it, because it was just so cute. How could I resist? Of course I liked him. We continued to talk and became friends.

Valentine's Day was coming up and I was so excited that finally my "boyfriend" was coming to visit. He promised. I don't know why I thought that time would be different, but like so many other times, at the last minute something came up. I can't remember what elaborate excuse he used that particular instance because I was numb.

Skinny casually asked me to go bowling and initially I declined. I was too bummed, but he was persistent and assured me I would have a good time. So I went and met a few of his friends and it was surprisingly a nice time. He drove me back to my dorm, and we sat in his car and talked. I completely lost track of time. I found myself wanting him to kiss me. But he was a complete gentleman. I felt like I was going to explode if he didn't kiss me, but I held my peace. And then it just happened. It was great. We continued to talk - I didn't want to leave. We saw a glimmer of the sun and reluctantly parted.

When I got back to my room, my roommate was waiting with a ton of questions. She and her friends ahd already given me the green light on Skinny, so they were hoping it went well. It did. It was the start of something I had never really experienced. Love.

We were together often - usually just talking or hanging out. I absolutely loved being with him. We had fun doing absolutely nothing. Because we had a no opposite sex visitation policy, we would sit out on the set in the freezing cold (well as cold as it got in Tallahassee)just enjoying each other's company. Finally, since his dorm was a little easier to sneak into, I started disguising myself. Baseball cap, baggy pants - and we would play spades with his friends and just chill.

Everybody knew - I loved me some Skinny. He was a true gentleman. Polite, thoughtful and just a great person in general. I still have a bag of his letters. It helps me remember the simplicity and beauty of love. He would send me letters just to tell me he was thinking about me. When I would go home for the weekend, there would be a letter in my mailbox from him. He always surprised me and I loved doing things for him.

It was all so simple. My friends liked him and I got along with his peeps. It was nice. Our first year together was like heaven. We waited awhile before we physically bonded. We planned it out and he made it special. We spent most of our time in college as a couple.

We didn't have the best separation, but the ride was worth it. I learned a lot from him. He was my first true love. There will always be a part of me that loves him.