Today is Valentine’s day so I got my Valentine’s letter from Chief out of my jewelry box and sat down to read it slowly, hearing his words in his Southern drawl. He had told me he had no money to buy me a Valentine gift that year so I jokingly said, “Write me a love letter!” So he did. Chief was a romantic in a quiet, passionate way. He never failed to bring me the first daffodil of spring, the first colorful fall leaf he found on the ground, the first ripe tomato from his garden. He’d frequently bring me a bouquet of wild flowers occasionally gathered with a few turnip green blooms. I loved these bouquets and they never never ceased to thrill me. We’d watch the movie, The Notebook, and he never failed to say at the end of the movie, “I love you like that, Mama.” After Thomas was born he told me the first time he met me he knew he wanted me to be the mother of his children. Such a beautiful compliment!

I can remember the first time he told me he loved me. I waited patiently for him to say it first knowing he never said anything he didn’t mean. He was at my apartment in Alexander City, sitting on the sofa, smoking a cigarette after we had eaten supper together. He looked at me and said, “I love you!” I thought he would never realize it, yet say it, because I knew it months before. We were great friends who had fallen in love. Funny thing was one of the mills at Russell Corporation caught on fire that night and Chief was no where to be found. He should have been there with his camera and little notebook but no one could find him. When we went back to work Monday the mill’s plant manager asked us why we didn’t come to cover the fire and take photos, we just smiled. Where were you he asked? Made a great story later years.

You know romance doesn’t have to involve dramatic gestures. To me, small gestures or small acts of affection can be romantic. Something as simple as making a cup of coffee for your spouse each morning can be romantic. Research tell us that love involves chemistry in the brain and not the heart. I agree to disagree. My heart used to beat out of my chest when I heard Chief’s footsteps coming up the stairs to my apartment. I know how true love feels because I’ve experienced it. Those beautiful memories are walking down this path of widowhood with me, holding my hand just like I held Chief’s hand as he left his earthly home.

Psalm 118:24 says, “Smile, it’s the day the Lord made.” Wouldn’t it be wonderful to smile life’s clouds away. Sitting here thinking of the smiles I know that could melt the clouds. I think my nephew and my grandson could melt a few clouds away and in fact, have done so. Their smiles, in overcoming the storms of life threatening illnesses, have illuminated them. Their smiles uplift me and let me know there is always the hope of sunny days ahead. We just have to stay positive during the clouds and storms. There is always sunshine after the darkest nights.

God is so good!

“’Tis better to have lost and loved than never to have loved at all.” — Ernest Hemingway