Loving Her, Seeking Her

Once upon a time, I landed on a tiny Caribbean island called Grenada. It wasn't the usual place that a Wisconsin boy would seek to relocate, but somehow I felt a call in my spirit that led me there. I landed with the Peace Corps, intent on teaching, my Spanish-English dictionary in tow (I thought the Island was Spanish-speaking), and my backpack. I wanted to teach English, but everyone on the island spoke English, so I decided that teaching Spanish would make me more welcomed.

​My assignment was the Anglican High School or AHS as we called it. I entered the classroom that first day and was greeted by a ball of light, a cute Caribbean island girl whose aura knew no bounds. I stood transfixed for longer than was "cool" and watched her smile as they all stood, for standing was the protocol when any teacher entered any room. She bowed and pressed her hands together as they all prayed before the class began.

The next few years were anything but normal as I walked between desire and intent, not ever wanting to betray the trust, yet wishing she was older and a peer. I waited and I waited for that graduation day, letting her know without a doubt how much I truly cared. I watched for every sign that someone else might steal her heart, and dreaded when I heard she'd starting dating. My mother said I needed to request her folks consent, but little did she know that mothers there would never have agreed to my desire, regardless of how innocent and pure.

So when her mother said that dating was a "no" I knew that every tear I shed was tears that would forever send a message to her aura that 'twas me that she should wed. I followed her to college town to see if leaving home had warmed her heart and set her on a path that led to me, or whether I should pack my heart on ice and wait some more. So I packed my heart on ice and planned to wait, but fate revealed that God her heart had hid, so that none should know that she was really his, and his alone. Fate nonetheless was kind to me and led me to the woman who bestowed on me a love that none should ever hope to know, a love that knows no bounds, a love that when combined with mine has led us to the Lord's eternal bliss.

Jim