pen pals

This is a post about my parents. And then I'll come in later. Haha.

During dinner, Dad was talking about this pen pal he had in Japan when he was 18 and in the U.S. Navy. He was cleaning out the garage and came across some photos of her. She was a girl--of course. Mom said Dad was quite the ladies' man. I mean, Navy, come on. His ship was heading there, so he got to visit her. Imagine three (she brought two of her friends) cute Japanese teenagers hanging around a sailor. Unbelieveable. I can't even fathom it, but the photos are there.

They asked him what he wanted to do and he answered, "I want a Japanese tea party." I laughed out loud when Dad said that. Just say that sentence out loud, it sounds so ridiculous. Not that Japanese tea parties are ridiculous, it's the sentence that's funny. Anyway, Dad is so hilarious. They had tea at her house. Then they went out into the city and had a grand old time 1960s style--my parents are pretty old. They later lost touch because her Dad didn't really like Americans, especially sailors. Then Mom interjected.

"I had a pen pal, too!" Mom always gets jealous when Dad talks about his past in the service and all the girlfriends he had. She had a pen pal who was in the Army. He'd always send her stuff from wherever he was stationed. He received my Mom's address from his mom who knew someone who knew my Mom's mom. They were trying to set them up, and he wanted to get married. He met my Mom and realized how young she was (she was still in college), and he didn't want to change the future that she had already planned for herself. And that was that.

I was sitting there, listening to their stories, and thought about how lucky I am that my parents found each other. Without their union, I would cease to exist. I wouldn't exist actually. There would be no me. My existence is a miracle, their marriage is a miracle. My brother is a miracle. You are a miracle, and your parents that brought you into the world are a miracle. It's so amazing, those little simple things...like being introduced to someone.

Dad's cousin, who was also a friend of my Mom's, went to pick up my Mom at the airport. Dad was in town visiting, and he tagged along with his cousin. And that's that. They were introduced. That's all it took. It's so beautiful in its simplicity.

Can things still be simple in our modern, fast-paced world? Does old-fashioned romance exist? I think and hope so. Or maybe it's a rarity, as precious as a pen pal letter...