ONGOING LOVE STORY

YOU SEE, I GUESS I WANTED TO WRITE OUR LOVE STORY, BECAUSE WITHOUT IT THERE WOULD HAVE BEEN NO BOBBIE JO. SO, TO EXPLAIN HOW SHE GOT TO BE WITH US, I WILL CONTINUE TO WRITE OF DAD'S AND MY LIFE TOGETHER AND HOW SPECIAL IT IS.
WHEN LAST I WROTE, I TOLD YOU OF THE WONDERFUL GIFT OF MARTIN'S INTUITION IN KNOWING THAT I WAS ALONE AND NEEDED SOMEONE. NOW, LET ME TELL YOU THAT I WAS NOT IN ANY DANGER, HOWEVER, I WAS WORKING MY WAY THROUGH HIGH SCHOOL BECAUSE I HAD DECIDED AT THE AGE OF 16 TO GO IT ALONE. LOOKING BACK, I REALIZE HOW INCREDIBLY NAIVE I WAS, BUT ALSO STUBBORN AND HAD MORE GUTS THAN SENSE. I SHOULD ADD HERE THAT WHEN I DECIDED TO LEAVE HOME, MY STEP MOM JOIDA, TOOK ME IN HER ARMS AND TOLD ME THAT IF I NEEDED HER, SHE WAS THERE. SHE SAW THAT I NEEDED TO BE OUT IN THE WORLD, AND HAD FAITH ENOUGH TO LET ME GO. SHE BELIEVED IN ME. I NEVER DOUBTED THAT I WOULD BE ALRIGHT, AND SO OFF I WENT. I WAS IN THE 11TH GRADE WHEN I LEFT HOME, AND MET MARTIN IN MARCH OF MY SENIOR YEAR. LET'S CONTINUE. I MET MARTIN ON MARCH 18, 1972. I HAVE ALREADY TOLD YOU HOW I THOUGHT HE WAS THE MOST WONDERFUL THING IN THE WORLD, BUT I HAVE TO SAY THAT I DID NOT HAVE THE SELF ESTEEM TO THINK HE WOULD FEEL THE SAME ABOUT ME. ABOUT 3 WEEKS AFTER WE MET, WE ONCE AGAIN WENT TO THE BEACH. THIS TIME IT WAS NOT GALVESTON, BUT ANOTHER PLACE CLOSE BY NAMED SURFSIDE. IT WAS SPRING BREAK, AND WE WENT TO HAVE A FUN DAY TOGETHER. NOW, WE HAD SPENT A LOT OF TIME TOGETHER, AND LEARNED THAT WE CAME FROM VERY DIFFERENT BACKGROUNDS. WE WERE LEARNING WHO WE WERE, AND THE MORE I LEARNED ABOUT HIM THE MORE I LIKED HIM. THAT PARTICULAR DAY WAS SUNNY, BRIGHT, THE SKY WAS INCREDIBLY BLUE AND WE WERE YOUNG. WE WENT WITH THE SAME COUPLE THAT WENT ON OUR FIRST DAY WITH US, AND AS USUAL, THEY WANTED TO BE ALONE. SO OFF WE WENT. ON THIS DAY, I WAS WEARING A NEW SWIM SUIT THAT I HAD SEWN, AND IT WAS A TWO PIECE. THE TOP WAS VERY LOW CUT, AND I WAS FEELING QUITE SEXY. WHILE WE WERE WALKING, MARTIN LOOKED AT ME AND ASKED IF I WANTED TO SWIM. I SAID, "NO, NOT YET, (ACTUALLY, I WAS KIND OF INTIMIDATED BY HIM, LOOKING SO GOOD IN HIS SWIM TRUNKS, REMEMBER THE LOW SELF ESTEEM THING?) ANYWAY, HE SAID, WELL I'LL JUST TOSS YOU IN THE WATER THEN! I LOOKED AT HIM AND SIZED HIM UP- THEN LAUGHED AND SAID, "WHATEVER BIG BOY, I'D LIKE TO SEE YOU TRY!" (REMEMBER I AM NOT A LITTLE THING, AND ALTHOUGH I WAS NOT HEAVY, STILL I WAS A TALL LARGE GIRL. HE WOULD PROBABLY BREAK HIS BACK) HE DIDN'T SAY ANTHING, JUST THREW ME OVER HIS SHOULDER, AND, WHOOPING LIKE AN INDIAN, RAN TO THE WATER AND TOSSED ME A GOOD 25 FEET INTO THE OCEAN! NOW, THE PROBLEM WITH THIS IS THE LOW CUT SWIM TOP I WAS WEARING. NOT EXPECTING TO BE PICKED UP, WHEN HE THREW ME, MY ARMS FLAILED OUT AND GUESS WHAT POPPED OUT?!!! YES, YOU GUESSED IT, BOTH THE GIRLS WENT FLYING! I AM STILL IN THE AIR WHEN I REALIZED THEY WERE FREE, AND THANK GOODNESS HE WAS STILL IN THE PROCESS OF TURNING AROUND TO SEE HOW FAR I HAD FLOWN- ANYWAY, I SCREAMED, CROSSED MY CHEST WITH MY ARMS, AND UNDER I WENT. HE HEARD MY SCREAM, AND THOUGHT I WAS IN TROUBLE, SO HE, (LIKE TARZAN) CAME RUNNING, DOVE INTO THE WATER AND WAS RACING TO SEE WHAT THE TROUBLE WAS. MY CHOICE WAS, SWIM AND LET THE GIRLS FLOAT, OR KEEP MY CHEST COVERED AND SINK. YOU KNOW HOW THINGS SEEM LIKE THEY GO ON FOREVER WHEN IT IS ONLY A FEW SECONDS? SO, NOW HE IS UP TO WHERE I AM COVERING MY CHEST AND TRYING TO STAY AFLOAT BY KICKING MY LEGS. HE SAID, "OH, I DIDN'T KNOW YOU COULDN'T SWIM! HERE LET ME HELP YOU!" I JUST STARTED LAUGHING, ( I AM A GREAT SWIMMER) AND TOLD HIM TO TURN HIS BACK TO ME, WHILE I STARTED TUCKING THE GIRLS BACK IN. IT TURNS OUT, HE IS THE ONLY ONE ON THE BEACH WHO DID NOT SEE THE GIRLS POP OUT. THERE WERE PLENTY OF HUMOROUS GLANCES IN OUR DIRECTION- AND I FINALLY TOLD HIM WHAT HAD HAPPENED. HE WAS SO EMBARRASSED FOR ME, BUT I TOLD HIM, "WHAT THE HECK, AT LEAST I HAVE SOMETHING TO POP OUT ON OCCASION!" AFTER THAT, WE GOT OUT OF THE WATER AND BEGAN A STROLL DOWN THE BEACH. WE ACTUALLY WALKED FOR ABOUT AN HOUR, AND THEN DECIDED TO COME ON BACK. WHILE WALKING, IT FELT SO RIGHT BEING WITH HIM, IN HIS SHADOW, UNDER HIS ARM. HIS STRENGTH WAS EMPOWERING FOR ME, AND I FELT SO SECURE. AS WE TURNED TO WALK BACK DOWN THE BEACH, I LOOKED UP AT HIM. HIS HAIR WAS GOLDEN IN THE SUN, HIS EYES A STRIKING GREEN, AND HIS FACE ALIGHT WITH A TENDER LOOK ALL FOR ME. I REACHED UP AND GAVE HIM A LITTLE KISS- AND SOMETHING HAPPENED TO ME. AS I RESTED BACK ON MY FEET, I REALIZED THAT I WAS IN LOVE. SHATTERING LOVE, ETERNAL LOVE, DESPERATELY, GIDDILY, WICKEDLY IN LOVE WITH THIS MAN. THIS TALL GIANT OF A MAN, A MAN FOR WHOM ANY WOMAN WOULD PRAY FOR TO BE IN HER LIFE. WAS THE SUN BRIGHTER? THE WIND FRESHER? THE SEA MORE CRISP? THE SAND WARMER? PERHAPS, BUT IF THAT IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU REALIZE YOU ARE IN LOVE, THEN ALL OF IT WAS TRUE. I REMEMBER CLEARLY THAT AT THAT MOMENT, I DID NOT KNOW WHAT TO DO, AND SO, I DID SOMETHING THAT UP UNTIL THAT MOMENT IN MY LIFE I HAD NOT HAD MUCH EXPERIENCE WITH. I FELL SILENT. NOT A WORD- JUST SILENT. MY MIND WAS RACING. WHAT DO I DO NOW? DO I JUMP AND YELL FOR JOY? SHOULD I JUST WALK LIKE NOTHING WAS NEW? I DID NOT KNOW WHAT TO DO, AND SO I JUST SMILED AT HIM. AND FOR THE REST OF THE LONG WALK BACK TO THE CAR, I REALIZED MY LIFE WOULD NEVER BE THE SAME. I HAD FOUND MY LIFE PARTNER (I HOPED) AND WOULD DO EVERYTHING I COULD TO MAKE HIM REALIZE IT. BUT FOR THAT MOMENT IN TIME, I HUGGED MY SECRET TO MY HEART AND TREASURED THE FEELINGS OF LOVE AND COMFORT THAT I HAD NEVER BEFORE KNOWN. MORE TOMORROW, LOVE, NANA