text: It was April 22 the year was 1962, it was pouring down rain and the wind was gusty, just another day in Centralia Washington. A beautiful seventeen year old Eileen was trying her best to make it on time to her first date and wasn't having much luck. Her tire was flat and she was drenched and a bit nervous about going to meet a stranger. Her best friend Betty, and Betty's fiance, Charles assured her he was a decent respectful young man and that they would be great together, so she pushed her nervousness and skepticism aside and started walking the remaining half mile. In the center of North Gold Street stood a grand Victorian mansion that looked like a miniature castle from a fairy tale. It was made from light grey stones and had beautiful stained glass windows with many steep gabled roofs and turrets and a beautiful wraparound veranda with ornate turned posts and a fittingly elegant black roof. Inside a man was rushing around trying to perfect everything, hoping the effort would pay off. It was his first date and he wanted everything to be magical, "the candles for ambiance check, record with love songs check, roses check." Without warning Lyle was jolted away from the thoughts in his head as he heard a loud almost frantic banging on the front door and rushed to open it. There in front of him stood a soaking wet somewhat muddy, and possibly crazy petite 5' 3" woman. "Hello I'm Eileen" she said as she gazed into the foyer with its gorgeous solid highly polished wooden double staircase real gold and crystal chandeliers and gorgeously designed terracotta floor. Then she looked at him. Lyle was tall 6' 7", handsome with a strong jawline, fit body, jet black hair and piercing green eyes. He invited her in after hearing her explanation and had her brought fresh clothes from his mothers closet. She removed her soaked jacket and hat revealing a head of enticingly curly fiery auburn hair and a ravishing red dress that brought out her lovely shape and made her hypnotic Carolina blue eyes really stand out as she turned to close the bathroom door behind her. One look and Lyles heart skipped five beats "impossible" he said to himself "there is no way I can be in love, I don't even know her", "come on Lyle Johnson, pull yourself together." As she was changing she couldn't help thinking of his handsome seventeen year old face. "YOU JUST MET HIM" she screamed at herself "YOU CANNOT POSSIBLY BE IN LOVE" she scolded herself. "Eileen Dawson you really are crazy". She exited the bathroom and he pulled a chair out for her to take her seat. As they sat together eating the perfectly cooked steak and potatoes with broccoli that this wonderful man prepared for her, they were silent except for there minds. Both of them felt so strongly for the other that they felt they would burst. As dinner ended they sat there in silence looking everywhere except at each other. Lyle finally spoke and said "I wish my mother hadn't insisted on hiring a tutor then I could have met you sooner" her face blushed and so did his, he then dropped the subject and instead asked if she had any plans after high school. "After graduation, I want to go see the world, but if I can't I'll just settle for seeing and experiencing new things like the space needle that opened up yesterday in Seattle," "it looks like fun," she added. " By the way, where is your mother? I haven't seen her" Lyle got a pained look on his face. " she and my father passed away two years ago in an automobile accident, but luckily they were wealthy and wise enough to make sure everything was taken care of financially for me growing up and now I'm set for life luckily" Eileen felt bad for asking and as if sensing her pain and shame for asking he said "really I'm fine, even better now that I met you." Then he simply stood up and walked over to the record player and said while he was putting a romantic song on "I've always dreamed of seeing the world also, but for now may I take you to Seattle tomorrow?" "Yes," she replied "I would love that". Then he grabbed her hand and said "come on" as he led her up from the table and through double doors into a most exquisite and quite expensive looking ball room with arched ceilings and royal blue stained glass windows and four gorgeous silver and crystal chandeliers each with a mesmerizing blue sapphire dangling in the center. "Dance with me" he said and they danced for what felt like hours the sound of their laughter and heels clicking the shiny glass like floor gave new life to the lonely old rarely used room. The next day they went on their date to the Space Needle which soon led to more and more dates. They were married in 1965 and had the most beautiful wedding in the backyard of that grand old house. Three years after their marriage and traveling the world together they had a beautiful daughter they named Betty Eileen Johnson and a handsome baby boy two years after that, that they had named Charles Lyle Johnson after the two people that brought them together. Betty grew up to be a teacher but sadly passed away in 1992 at the age of twenty-four from cancer. And Charles had gotten a lucrative job in New York City at the World Trade Center until September 11th 2001 when he was and his office and tragedy struck. Lyle and Eileen cried as they had to bury their last remaining child who was only Thirty One at the time. At forty years old and going through the second biggest tragedy of their life they weren't sure how they were going to make it but they did Eileen and Lyle stayed together through thick and thin the good and the bad until his death in 2020 he passed from old age at seventy-five years old from a disease called covid-19. Now Eileen sits with not much longer to live looking at the old photo album of Betty, Charles and Lyle reminiscing of the old days and the happiest day of her life. It was the day she vowed to spend the rest of her life with her first and only true love. With no one and nothing left she takes her last breaths staring at that photograph of her and Lyle on their wedding day and slips away to see him and her children once more.