Although all of the Valentine's Day love stories in Thursday's Our Town section of the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette were written by couples, love is so much more than that one person you call your mate. I look around at my newly finished decor in the Fayetteville office -- because I am the diva of decor, and I require it to nest and be contented -- and I see:
- A tiny, detailed, delicate pirate ship -- complete with an even tinier Jolly Roger -- that reminds me of a last wonderful day spent with someone who then left my life. It is not a happy story, but this is a happy memory, and I treasure it.
• A wonderful stuffed, sequined birthday elephant from my sister, Pam, perfect for the "inside of a Turkish tent" theme I was going for. But more than that, it's a reminder of every happy concert, journey, meal, movie, Society for Creative Anachronism event and experience we've shared in the last 15 years.
• A bright blue mug -- which says "I'm the cool aunt" -- and a beautiful beaded dragonfly coin purse from my sister-in-law and my niece, Carla Martin and Jess Gray. Not everyone gets to call their Alpha Husband's second -- and perfect -- wife a sister and love all of her progeny, too.
• A picture with my beautiful daughter and friends Dick Titus, Zeek Taylor and Michael Myers -- four of my favorite people -- taken after "An Act of God" at Arkansas Public Theatre. Of course, it kicks off memories of a whole slew of good times and people I adore, clear back to the show "Tribute" in 19-mumble-something all the way through "Jesus Christ Superstar" this weekend.
• A picture with my fiance taken in Round Rock as he shared stories of his life there with me on our first trip to Texas together.
• Pictures of my "granddaughter" CJ and her wonderful mom and dad who live in Austin -- three of the five best things Gordon ever brought to my life. (The other two are his other daughter and her husband who live in Seattle.) Again, not everyone "inherits" grown children and falls head over heels in love with them. I did.
• A series of pictures taken with my baby girl and my sisters at the Still on the Hill "Cane Hill" concert just a couple of weeks ago at the Shiloh Museum of Ozark History -- encompassing not just the wonderful day but all the love I have for that place and the people there and the legacy of my in-laws, who were big Shiloh Museum supporters.
• Pictures of the girl who is my legal ward, who is love personified in her own way.
• And a wonderful laughing photo of me and my best friends Pam and Susannah, the two women who are my sisters not by blood but by love. (Bonus is it makes me think of Susannah's husband and her mom and dad and our weirdly similar childhoods in Southeast Kansas. And of Pam's mom and dad and that trip to their family stomping grounds in Illinois. And four dogs and four cats and 10 years' worth of our trips to New Orleans... And ... And ... And ...)
I say all this today because some people are sad that they don't have a sweetheart on a day mostly intended to promote the sale of cards and flowers. But love is all around us, all the time! How lucky we are!
Becca Martin-Brown is an award-winning columnist and Features editor for the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Email her at [email protected].
NAN Profiles on 02/17/2019