DEAR DIARY:
Love from One
Perspective
“Rachel, come on. I’m not
cleaning this attic by myself. Gran left a lot of stuff up here. Bring the
trash bags.”
“Good grief, Bev. You’d just throw away
everything. We need to go through this stuff.”
“Why?” Bev rolled her eyes. “It’s just old
junk that Gran stuck up here fifty years ago.”
Rachel sighed. “You have no sense of
history. Look at this old trunk. I wonder what’s in here.” The lid creaked as
she opened it.
“Wow!” Bev exclaimed sarcastically. “A
trunk full of crap. Shocking.” As the sass dripped from her lips, Bev dropped
to her knees and reached for a small book with a faded leather cover. Flipping
through the pages she commented, “I think this is Gran’s diary.”
Rachel smiled at her sister’s sudden
interest. “What does it say? And before you get cranky again, think about Gran.
She loved sharing family history.”
“You should know. All that old stuff is
your thing.” Bev passed the book to her sister.
“Like I said, you have no sense of
history.” Rachel opened the diary and flipped through the pages. “Look here.”
She began reading.
“January 21st. Dear Diary. Today I met the most interesting
young man at the church social. We talked for hours. He is so smart. He is
planning to attend college next fall. He even introduced himself to Daddy and
asked if he could come calling. His name is James.”
Bev perked up. “Hey
that’s Poppa.” She no longer tried to hide her interest. “What else does it
say?”
Rachel scanned through
several pages. ”Accounts of their dates.”
February 10th. Dear Diary.
James and I went to the rodeo with Cora and Luke. It was fun. When it got
chilly, James gave me his jacket. He’s a real gentleman.”
“That must be Great Aunt Cora.” Rachel flipped
more pages. “They held hands at a church service. He came to a family dinner.
She went shopping with his sister…blah, blah.”
“Blah, blah? I thought
family history was important. Aren’t you always telling me that?” Bev scolded.
“Now read on. And wipe that smirk off your face. You got me. I’m interested.”
Rachel grinned widely.
“March 16th. James and I
went for ice cream this afternoon. We sat in the porch swing until after dark. When
he got up to leave, he kissed me. Right on the lips. It was nice but I wasn’t
ready. I can do better next time. I am looking forward to kissing James again.”
She laughed out loud. “Go
Poppa! Stealing that first kiss. Don’t you just love it?”
Bev shook her head.
“That’s sweet and all but it took him two months to kiss her!”
Rachel rolled her eyes
and continued reading.
March 18yh. After church
today, James had lunch with us. He and Daddy went down to the barn and talked
for a long while. Cora teased me that he might be asking Daddy if he could
marry me. Turns out that ain’t it at all. James wants to join the Army. He will
be gone at least two years. How can he do this to me? I was so mad I told him
to just go. Then I cried half the night.
March 19th. I’m so mad at
James. Does he think I’ll just wait for him to come home? What about college? Does
he think I’ll just pine away for him while he goes off and gets himself killed?
Well I won’t. There are plenty of fish in the sea.
March 20th. What will I do
if James doesn’t make it home? My heart is breaking. I think I may even love
him. What shall I do?
March 23rd. I saw James in
town today. He said he leaves for basic training at Fort Benning, Georgia next
month. After training, he’ll get one chance to visit home before he ships out over
seas. I tried to wish him well but found myself scolding him for joining up. He
said I didn’t understand. We had a big argument. I never want to see him again.
He can do as he pleases.
April 9th. Today James
left for Basic Training. I wasn’t going to go but found myself down by the bus
station as the boys were loading up for Georgia. I saw James. He looked so
handsome. I waved. He ran off the bus, took me in his arms and kissed me. This
time I was ready. I kissed him back. We kissed until the bus driver honked for
James to board. All the fellows on the bus applauded. I will love him forever.
Rachel wiped away a tear.
“That’ so sweet.”
Bev snorted. “If you ask
me, Gran was a flake. She couldn’t make up her mind.” She placed the diary into
the trunk.
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