Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Nostalgia


When the Matron was a VERY Young Miss--as in high school senior---she was tepidly head over heels in love with her first serious boyfriend.

He used to do adorable things like request this song on the radio. They would listen to it in the tiny gas station where he worked: Young Miss swinging her legs and sitting on the counter, while the boyfriend ran out in snow, wind and rain to pump gas.

And she says tepidly head over heels in love because the boyfriend was always saying this:

"You're going away to college in the fall and you'll leave this small town behind. I'm going to fix freezers and small engines for the rest of my life, just like my father. I'm just a pit stop in your life here. My life is going to be completely forgettable but yours might not be."

Not once--not ever once --did the Young Miss or her boyfriend pretend this was anything but true. Instead, every time he reminded her (them) of her impending departure and potentially heady adventure ahead, they both experienced a moment of somber agreement, recognizing Truth.

They let the song's promise of eternity stand in stark constrast to the reality they shared, without ever commenting on the irony.

She left that small town when she was 17 and never went back. He never left-- not ever. The Matron doesn't even think he went farther than a week holiday in Wisconsin. She wonders how far he traveled and the lives he spent, in his interior world.

Sometimes she thinks about how unquestioningly they accepted their destinies--and how, at 17, how resigned he was to his.

12 comments:

Wenderina said...

sweet young love...even tepid...can definitely pull on the heart strings.

JCK said...

I'm amazed at the insight you both had. Especially him. And the maturity to realize it wouldn't last because of these reasons.

No temptation to look him up on Facebook? :)

I've missed reading your blog. I've been buried. Hope to catch up soon.

Irene said...

He certainly was a realist, which is quite something for how old he was.

Anonymous said...

D and I were JUST TALKING about this perspective--his best friend married his high school sweetheart and they've been together 25 years and never left their small Iowa town. It looks like their sons will be the SAME. Which freaks me out.
D wanted to know what was wrong with that.
Says the man who is so far from that small Iowa hometown and his high school girlfriend.

Daisy said...

Is he happy with his life? Limitations are real, and I wonder if this future is one he chose.

Karen said...

Couple of things strike me ... one, I didn't get the feel from how you portrayed it that he was "resigned" to his destiny, but rather that he was comfortable in his skin. And two, you proved him wrong in one regard. He said his life would be totally forgettable, but now, thanks to you, all of us in blogger-land "remember" him as your sweet, young love.

This is a good thing.

Michele R said...

And yet I like how you were both together for the time being. It does not sound like one of you dropped the other after a couple weeks stating that it would be a waste of time.

Ree said...

What a beautifully written and slightly heartbreaking post.

Jenn @ Juggling Life said...

This fills me with sadness. How could someone be so resigned at such a young age?

Mary said...

Lovely, if I do say so myself!

Anonymous said...

It's kinda nice that he was contented. I've always wanted that. Hopefully, wherever he didn't or did travel, he was happy.

Lovely post Matron.

Anonymous said...

Its a very sweet young love really..
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