I did the whole flirting thing leading up to V-day. I formerly asked her to be my valentine (with flowers and a card). I was pumped! Valentine's Day had not been a favorite holiday of mine - ever. But now things were different. I was totally smitten and committed to changing my luck when it came to the Dia de Amor. Plus I'd invested a lot of time and money into getting her attention.
Elena had just moved out on her own - sharing an apartment with my best friend's little sister. This apartment was a renovated shot-gun style house just around the corner from my apartment. The house was a disaster site when my friend's dad bought it. I had been helping in the renovations as an excuse to be around Elena. Hours of demolition, painting, tiling and cleaning; pro bono work after my full-time job and going to school. And the hard work paid off. She couldn't resist my charm (and incredibly strong forearms after all of that painting...) Shortly after moving in, for her birthday (at the end of December) I installed a fancy canopy over her bed at her apartment. It was that special touch to make her room feel like her new home. Brownie points achieved.
So I was excited about Valentine's Day. I was hedging my bets on scoring our first kiss. I had dinner reservations. I had a tie picked out. I had Chapstick and Altoids on hand. This was going to be awesome. And then she remembered...
Elena was a secretary for our church and a very involved leader in the youth/college ministry. Apparently she had volunteered to head up a Parents' Night Out for Valentine's Day. So instead of spending a romantic night out with me, she was going to be managing five hours of childcare for hundreds of kids (it was a big church). Childcare is not romantic. Childcare does not get you hand holding and kisses. Childcare is not Valentine's Day compatible.
Or so I thought...
Being the incredible specimen of a Godly man that I was (am), I hastily volunteered my services to help her in this ministry. Well, that's not exactly true. I was royally pissed for about 48 hours. All my plans for naught. But ultimately I figured any time I could spend around her was better than being alone on Valentine's Day. So I signed up to help. At this point I should acknowledge that other than leading VBS I had very little experience in childcare. Kids are sticky, noisy and needy. And worst of all, they distract pretty girls from ME.
That night I arrived to serve and she gave me a smile. I was assigned a room filled with 1st graders - which it turns out, can be a lot of fun! I ran around and played for hours. Every once in a while General Elena (Commander of the United Childcare Forces) would swing by to see how things were going. I got more smiles. As the evening progressed, she spent more and more time in my room. Occasionally her hand would find mine. I didn't understand why my playing with a bunch of kids was garnering her attention, but I was thrilled. I later figured out that I was showing her what kind of father I would be (something guys really don't think about when chasing a girl). It was a sticky, sweaty, hilarious Valentine's Day. It was not the generic romantic evening I had hoped for, but turned into real life - happening with her.
After the parents had picked up the last of the kids and we were busy cleaning the rooms I got the most sincere embrace from my future-wife I had yet to experience. I got a kiss on the cheek and a lot of blushing along with gratitude for being willing to call off a date to play with a bunch of sugar-fueled children. And that was the beginning of me not hating Valentine's Day ever again.
..oh, and I did score that first kiss later that same weekend...
No comments:
Post a Comment