It's a great day to read a love story

Happy Valentine's Day, darlings! May this day bring you lovely surprises. Be loving and be loved :)

I heard a real life love story on the radio this morning so beautiful that it brought tears to my eyes. It was a classic boy meets girl, boy loses girl, after 45 years, girl finds boy, girl and boy marry. The story began in the 1950s, Charlotte was 16, the beautiful daughter of a strict missionary in Taiwan. Tony was 21, a military officer stationed there. They met at a party. Charlotte in a gorgeous curve-hugging white Chinese sheath dress caught Tony's eye. It was love at first sight. They secretly dated, they were madly in love, they were each other's first love. Tony proposed to Charlotte after only 4 months. When she showed the ring to her father, he was enraged and did not acknowledge their engagement and forbade her to see Tony. Shortly after, on a fateful night, Charlotte fainted and was rushed to the hospital. It turned out that she had been pregnant for 2 months and had a miscarriage. Imagine the wrath of her father! He threatened to file charges on Tony for saturetory rape. Charlotte stood up to her father but eventually had to agree to go back to the U.S. in order for him to drop the charges. She kept the miscarriage a secret from Tony and left. Tony was devastated but there was nothing he could do. He thought she didn't love him the way he thought she did. For the next 45 years, they each had many hardships in their lives. Charlotte's marriage faltered. Tony was an alcoholic for 20 years and two of his daughters died. Charlotte kept searching for Tony, sent numerous letters that were returned because he changed his station frequently, she even hired private investigators to no avail. Then one day, she saw an ad for reconnecting people from your past on Internet. She signed up for the service. Lo and behold, the service provided her with a phone number -- Tony's! She called and left a message. Tony couldn't believe his ears when he heard it. He was stunned and incredibly happy. They reconnected by emailing each other. She finally told him the secret she carried solely for so many years. He felt shamed, guilty and tremendous responsibility to make her happy again. She asked to see what he looked like after so many years. He was shy to send her his pictures because he had ballooned up to 260 pounds. Charlotte still remembered the 21-year-old Tony with a lean and healthy body and with those striking blue eyes. He was a hunk! When he did send her pictures, Charlotte said her feelings for him did not change from the feelings she had for the handsome young man she loved. But she encouraged him to lose weight. He lost 100(!) pounds in 4 months. He jokingly said she would not marry him if he remained fat. They married after 6 months and lived happily ever after. This story re-enforces my belief in the notion of "Love conquers all". When you have love, what problem can't be overcome? Time, distance, even weight, can not stand in the way of love.

If you are in the mood to read a love story, may I recommend Enduring Love by Ian McEwan?