It was during the fall of 1958, around Halloween, and our family was visiting my Dad’s younger sister’s family in Waco. My cousin, Donald Wayne, was my age, but we did not get to see each other very often due to living so far apart. Donald was a big sports guy, playing on football and baseball teams, that won district and many times state titles. His family was very active in the largest Baptist Church in Waco, so Donald was well known in Waco. Our trip was planned for that weekend, so Donald made arrangements for me to be included in the church activities.
One of those activities was a hay ride to the lake. Donald had arranged a blind date for me with a girl that went to the church. I had never had a blind date before and did not know what to expect, especially knowing that Donald might do anything. The hay ride was in the back of a box truck with hay bales and hay all over the floor. It was a full moon and the weather was chilly so they had blankets for everyone.
My date was a very pretty girl that was a lot of fun to be with and we hit it off well together. It was a night that a boy that age could dream about. It seemed like we talked about everything and laughed until it hurt. I saw her again on Sunday morning at church and we talked after church. We both wanted to see each other again and agreed to write. I remember writing the first letter and rewriting it multiple times before I had a version to mail to her. I remember getting her first letter and thinking we could make the relationship work somehow.
I remember one trip to Waco, it was the only time I ever rode on a Greyhound Bus. Dad drove me to the bus stop on Hempstead Highway at Fairbanks to catch the bus to Waco. I remember the anticipation and thinking about our date that night. We were double-dating with Donald and his date. Again, the date and time shared with her were great and we talked more about our relationship and how much we enjoyed the letters. I made another trip to Waco when I was able to talk my Dad into letting me take the car there and we went out to eat and to the movie.
We enjoyed being together a lot, but with both of us in our first year in high school, it was clear that we would have to miss out on many things to continue our relationship. I have a few pictures of us together and these memories of those moments together, but I don’t remember her name. I remember not knowing what to expect before the first date and knowing that we had ended our relationship without ever having a disagreement or being upset with each other. What had seemed possible, a long-distance romance just was not fair to either of us. The truth is, if we had been seeing each other on a regular basis, our relationship may have not lasted as long as it did.
That memory was prompted by looking at pictures from many years back with my Granddaughter, Kaylee.
