A Quiet Kind of Loving

They sit very close to each other on the bench.

They don’t say much but listen anyway.

It starts raining heavily. They look out of the kitchen window together.

Their footwear and umbrellas lie unused in a corner.

They ask each other what day of the month it is.

They think about the first time they met. It's been almost half a century.

 

.....

His mother had met her mother when she had gone to visit her cousin’s new-born baby.  His mother proudly talked about her only son who was a teacher. Her mother talked about her daughter who was a teacher too.
The two matrons were thrilled with the prospect of a suitable match.

.....

She’s so fat – he had thought when he first saw her. Yet there was something appealing about her rotund plumpness.

She hardly looked at him but noticed that he had a wonderful voice. They had met at her aunt’s house. Other relatives looked on as they sat close to each other.

They didn’t say much.

So the marriage was arranged.

.....

He was not a king and she was not a queen.

They had four happy children.

When I married their son, they welcomed me like a daughter.

Today I light candles with a prayer on my lips for their good health and happiness.


(This post is an offering of love and respect to Teresa and Joseph Lemos.)