A Pleasant Experience

A Pleasant Experience

A particularly pleasant experience happened 23 years ago when my new friend and I spent a weekend at the ocean.  She wasn’t really a new friend because we had met nearly 15 years earlier in Alaska. 

I was invited to sing with the Anchorage Symphony, and Meg and I had the opportunity to sing together.  At that time, Meg was my newfound friend and for some reason we kept in touch for nearly 15 years. 

Meg was married and I was involved so our relationship was purely platonic and long distance.  Fifteen years passed, and then Meg’s husband died suddenly.  I found myself unattached and because we had kept in touch, I invited her to come to Seattle.  Another two years went by before she accepted my invitation and when she arrived it was if we had never parted. 

It was blowing and raining at the ocean, so we had to prepare for the cold and wet.  In our parkas, we walked the beach and bent our bodies to the wind and rain.  The expression on Meg’s face was magical, and I knew something wonderful had happened.  She said that for the first time since her husband’s death she felt free and that the burden she was carrying had been lifted.  She felt that she could at last shed the sadness of the past.  Our relationship grew, and I knew I wanted to share more of those magical moments with her, so I asked her to marry me.  She accepted and we have been able to weather storms and sunshine for nearly 20 years.

by Jerry Thorsen

Jerry and Meg