But Then What Happened?

I should clarify something at this point. These feelings and thoughts about Jeana were not 24/7. It was not an obsession. They generally resided in the back of my mind. I went about my life in a relatively normal fashion and built my relationship with my girlfriend as one would. But on occasion, I would be struck with these thoughts about that pretty, blonde haired girl. I graduated from high school in June of 1977. Jan and I were still together. We had been an item for nearly two years at that point and people were beginning to get the idea that we would eventually get married. I suppose that was a reasonable assumption. I was starting to think the same thing. Baptist Community Bible Church was the hub of my activities and social life. We had a very active youth group that had a Sunday School class on Sunday mornings, youth choir and youth group meetings on Sunday nights, a Wednesday night church service, Thursday night volleyball and then other regular activities most wee...

We pulled into her driveway and I turned the engine off. 2735 Walker Avenue, Ontario, California. (You have to be impressed that I still remember that address after all these years) The early afternoon, Southern California sun was shining brightly. It was late in the year, 1979… October or maybe it was November. I’m not sure. I just knew that we hadn’t been dating very long… two or three months at the most. I tried stalling her as best I could. I didn’t want her to go in yet. So, I searched my mind for interesting or clever things to say. What I really wanted to communicate was how deeply I felt about her. Man, I was totally smitten with this girl. She had everything a guy could want. She was beautiful, charming, smart, charismatic, enthusiastic, energetic, extroverted, very well-liked by everyone and she was sincerely committed to her faith… our faith. But it was too soon for the “L” word, right? I mean, common sense relationship rules forbid declarations of “love” dur...