Sunday 10 January 2010

My First Girlfriend



(Pic; Diane Arbus.) (I am not in this pic.)

Her name was Josie Coady.
She had come from the U.K. to stay with her Auntie Rosy for the summer.
Rosy lived right across the street fom us.
A big jolly lady, always clothed in a floral housecoat.
One of my favourite neighbours.
She never had her own kids, but did adopt the bestest of my friends!

Anyway, Josie arrived , and instantly we fell in love.
She was staying for eight weeks!
And we spent most of those sixty plus days together!
And it was magic.
And then she had to go home.
Tragic, heartbreak!
But she swore she would return.

We swore to write, and she did.
And I replied.
For weeks, months even!

But sometimes absence does not make the heart grow fonder!
And the miles between us severed the love.

She did come back the following summer.
And we hardly had a smile to pass between us when we met.
But that year had made us both so much older.
More aware of life.
More mature!

That year we both turned Eight.

22 comments:

  1. I almost want to cry, Map: think of all the good crayons you used up writing to a doomed love.

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  2. Live and Learn, eh, Map? Some things are just not meant to be...

    Otherwise you'd be married to Josie, have seven lazy, loud-mouthed sons and work as an accounts clerk at the local grocery.

    How boring would that life be! It was a blessing, hon... a true blessing. Because now you have your darling Annette and your bonnie daughters and a career as a bare-headed, silver tongued songster. ;-D

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  3. Those holiday romances leave such great memories. You brought one of mine flooding back

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  4. y'all had me going there, sugar! great story and well told, too. ;~D xoxoxoxo

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  5. The Daughter just turned 8 and I can see the little gears starting to mesh in her head. It seems to be one of those threshold ages. Heaven help me.

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  6. At least you were writing letters to your first love... I think I was playing Doctors & Nurses with mine... :D

    Having said that, I was a "good girl" until I turned 18 - some would call that being a tease!

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  7. My "first" boyfriend, 5 years old, kindergarten sweethearts... it ended badly.

    I let him hold my toy because he was being punished and not allowed to go out for recess... he broke it. He was "moving" and I was so angry I didn't say good-bye.

    I still remember his name.

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  8. I guess even at the age of eight it must have been a bit of an oul shock for her seeing you covered in the local girls, all screaming at you for your auty-graff.

    I hate to tell you this my favourite wee pal, but she only stopped writing to you after she came visiting her auntie in Glesga for the long weekend.

    What can I say.... it must have been my smile?

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  9. What is it about 8 year olds and their promises of love?

    That's the age we were, Gary and I, when the military shipped his Father back to his Mother's homeland of England. As soon as he arrived, Gary wrote me a letter. He promised, "One day I will come back and marry you."

    I still have the letter. [Mom put it in my baby book]. Never heard from him again.

    I do wonder if that's where my love of redheads began. :)

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  10. Charlie; To this day the smell of crayons brings me back to the heartbreak! :¬)

    Pon; Life's twist and turns eh?
    I wouldn't change what I have today hon! :¬)

    xxx

    Lulu; Good memories I hope! :¬)

    xxx

    Sav; Thanks hon. :¬)

    xxx

    UB; I'm saying nothing pal! (Except 'it's all ahead of you!) :¬)

    AJ; Would you like me to find out? :¬)

    xxx

    helga; I have three daughters. There is absoloutley NOTHING wrong with being a good girl!! :¬)

    xxx

    @eloh; Aaaaah! Did ye ever meet again?

    xxx

    Jimmy; Bastard!

    You did me a favour in the long run pal, so all is forgiven!

    Pint?

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  11. hope; Maybe he's still trying to work up the courage? :¬)

    xxx

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  12. Sitting here with a big daft grin on my face. Loved this one, Map.

    Ah yes...eight years old....John MacKenzie...{memory lane}

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  13. Tiffin; Did I bring back some good memories? :¬)

    xxx

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  14. Tssk! girls are such fickle things. Are you sure she knew how to spell your name?

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  15. St Jude; Never thought of that!

    But I think I'm over her now! :¬)

    xxx

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  16. rofl well I think I've looked for old friends/boyfriends. I've found some and not others, and some I CHOSE not to look for. LOL

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  17. AJ; Some people are better left in the past!!

    :¬) xxx

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  18. Ah, your taste changes when you get to eight---there is that period of time when you would rather throw stones at them----then they start to blossom and become interesting

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  19. Clyde; I have never thrown a stone at a lady!
    Tricycles maybe, but never stones! :¬)

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  20. You were both 8? I still thought boys were nasty little creatures when I was 8 :-)

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  21. nursemyra; And I was! It must've been my singing that charmed her! :¬)

    xxx

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