I haven't posted in a while. I have been writing stories and poetry as well as reading poetry at different venues. The following short story will be submitted to a contest shortly


FIRST LOVE
Girls! What good were they? They couldn’t play basketball. They couldn’t fight. And worst of all, they threw like, well, girls. That’s what I thought back in 1955. It was the summer of my twelfth year. Puberty was doing a real number on me. I was skinny, my chest no wider than my waist. My voice was changing. I was getting occasional zits. I admit I was noticing that girls were starting to change their shapes and this intrigued me. They were getting these bumps and curves. I snuck longer and longer looks, but that was the extent of my interest. Then I went on a weekend trip with my folks to a small town in northern Michigan. Puberty was waiting there with a sledgehammer!
The sledgehammer’s name was Linda. She was thirteen. She had the most beautiful smile I had ever seen. Blonde hair, blue eyes and brand new curves and delightful small bumps completed the package. It’s a good thing she carried our first conversation ‘cause I was having trouble remembering my name. She might as well have had me on a leash. I would have followed her anywhere. Our vacation would be over in two days and I already knew that I wanted to spend the rest of my life just looking at this girl!
We spent almost every waking minute together. I had a feeling that she was somewhat smitten with me too, but neither of us said anything to each other about our feelings. Both days were gone in a flash. It was already Sunday afternoon and I would be leaving for home early in the morning. I said goodbye to her and nothing more. But I needed desperately to tell her how I felt. So that night I summoned up my courage and walked through the pouring rain to her house. I rang the bell and stood there soaking wet with trembling knees. What if she laughed in my face?
The door opened and there she stood. With my heart pounding I blurted out "I have something that I need to tell you before I go."
"What is it?"
"I just wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed our time together and that I -I -I- think I love you."
"I think I love you too."
Comets! Meteors! Birds singing in the dark! Shooting stars! Back flips! Summersaults! And an exploding heart!!! Feeling bolder now, I stammered "Can-can-can I kiss you goodbye?"
"Yes."
I leaned forward and gently kissed her lips. Wow! She tasted like chocolate covered strawberries with whipped cream and a side of hot fudge covered spumoni ice cream. And her scent! Ahhh, her scent! Never have I smelled anything more delightful. Angels were perched on her shoulders softly singing Ave Maria. I distinctly remember a halo!
We exchanged addresses and promised to write. I kissed her again and said a painful goodbye. Traveling home the next day, I suffered in silence. I couldn’t have endured the teasing if my folks had known about my love. Linda and I exchanged a few letters. Then our writing gradually trickled off and stopped.
Five years later I traveled to the same town with my folks for a long weekend. I was not the pubescent boy any longer. I had made it through in tact. Well mostly. I combed my hair, put on my varsity jacket and went to her house. Three girls about my age were gathered on her front porch. None of them looked like the Linda that I remembered. I asked them if she was home and they said no. She had just left with her boyfriend. I asked them to tell her that Tom Ryan had stopped to see her. They said they would tell her. I never heard from her.
It’s been fifty-one years since that kiss. I can still taste her lips. When I heard of the movie "Scent Of A Woman" I immediately had a flashback to the very moment when I kissed Linda. It’s as if the whole scene took place yesterday. I no longer cared that girls couldn’t play basketball, fight or that they threw like, well, girls. My life had been changed forever with just one kiss.