Love Never Dies
It Only Grows Stronger

“I wish you were going with me,” Jan said as she looked at Broadway from the curved entrance to her apartment building. The wind was mild, but being in the entranceway, it was as if we were standing in a wind tunnel. Not seeing her parent’s car, she turned towards me, and we embraced. I told her I wanted to go with her even though we had agreed it was too soon for her to invite me home for Thanksgiving. We had only been together for eleven days. 

She pulled away from me to keep an eye on the street. From the first day she talked about her plans for Thanksgiving, Jan had been clear that it was not the time for me to meet her parents.

Until last night, I had held out hope that she might change her mind. We had baked together in her apartment’s teeny, tiny kitchen. I hoped she would change her mind and call them to add a chair to the table. 

The Most Beautiful Things are
Felt With the Heart!

“I would give you a call, but…” I said to Jan as we stood on the steps of SERA in the Bronx, where she worked. Before I could end the sentence, she handed me a folded piece of paper from a tiny notebook she had taken from her purse. I unfolded it, and as I read it, I smiled. Not only did I have her phone number, but I also had her last name. Jan Lilien. Jan Lilien. What a beautiful name! We both had smiles bigger than all of the Big Apple. I placed the paper she gave me in my shirt pocket by my heart. 

We had walked to her job this morning, and it was as if we were the only people on that route. Toward the end, she mentioned how nice it was to have someone to walk and talk to on the way to work. I nodded and said with a wink, “I’m happy to do this every day!”

Wine on my Head and
Love in My Heart!

“You came to my party,” Jan exclaimed with a big smile to greet me. My concerns about needing someone to introduce me to her were no longer necessary. I’ve never been speechless, but in the early hours of November 11, 1973, I could not respond.

Finally, I said, “Hello, it’s so nice to see you.”

I should have stopped after saying hello. Alas, I did not.

“If you had called me in January, I would have been on the subway in a New York minute to see you,” I said.

“You never called me.” protested Jan as her smile turned into a frown.

“I did not have your number,” I responded.