I grew up believing that there was one person out there that was meant for us. Sounds hopelessly romantic, right? Guilty as charged. Blame the Harlequin Romances and old black and white movies that I gobbled up as a young teenager.
If a person is to believe that then it stands to reason that our looks, religious background, social standing, even a difference in age shouldn’t and couldn’t matter.
My parents’ marriage didn’t fit in with my romantic ideals, nor were they the best examples of what marriage or relationships were all about. They were just two people living life the best way they knew how while raising a family.
Mom and Dad didn’t discuss their relationship. They didn’t talk about their feelings. I can’t even remember how old I was when I discovered that there was a 10 year age difference between them. Not that it mattered. They were Mom and Dad.
It’s hard to believe that 24 years have gone by since the first time I laid eyes on Will. It boggles my mind that I’ve spent half of my life with this man.
It seems as if it was just yesterday when I decided that my romantic dreams were just that, dreams. There was no Mr. Right out there for me. I would just have to settle for the dead-end relationships that I kept finding myself in.
I was so sure I knew what I was looking for in a man yet every time I thought I had found that someone special, he ended up being more Mr. Wrong than Right.
The ironic twist in my search for everlasting love is that once I stopped looking for Mr. Right, he found me. I just didn’t realize it at first.
Will and I spoke on the phone for 3 years before we actually met. We both worked for the same company – he was on permanent travel status and I was at head office and responsible for making travel arrangements for him and his team as well as processing their travel claim.
We spoke at least once a week. I wouldn’t speak to each individual team member unless there was a specific problem – I would speak to the Project Manager.
He was always very pleasant on the phone. He never raised his voice or got angry when things went wrong (something was always going wrong with so many people being on the road at the same time). He just took a deep breath and then said, “OK, how do we fix this?”
He sounded so yummy on the phone – both my supervisor and I were half in love with him. He always had a joke or a funny story for us. He sounded young and vibrant and tall. I remember asking my supervisor if she knew what he looked like but she didn’t really remember who was chosen after the interviews. Will was hired and sent out to Vancouver immediately.
We were implementing a countrywide computer system back before I knew what the internet or the worldwide web was.
Will was sent from one end of the country to the other and I was always the person on the other end of the phone that kept things organized for him.
Three years passed, the project was successful, and I would finally have a chance to meet Will. All the teams were coming home to attend a party to celebrate the success of the project.
The Project Managers showed up at the office the afternoon of the party for a meeting with the Director and to introduce themselves to some of the staff before the party. It was great finally getting to put faces to the names.
I heard Will’s voice before I saw him. I turned around to introduce myself and managed to keep a smile plastered on my face as I held out my hand.
He wasn’t bad looking. He definitely had a pleasant face to go with his voice but he was short and definitely older than I expected. Ah, well, I thought fantasies never hold up to reality. That’s life.
The afternoon passed quickly and a group of us had arranged to meet for drinks at a local bar before the party. Will and some of the other roadies were invited to join us and it turned out that Will and I were sitting across from each other at the same table.
Of course, we exchanged pleasantries. He was easy to talk to and told great stories. He made me laugh. Everyone at our table started exchanging life histories. I found out that Will was legally separated and had 2 children.
I’ve always looked younger than I really am and he found it hard to believe that I was 24. “You’re just a baby”, he said.
“Well, how old are you anyway?” I countered.
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More to come on this story…