My husband and I are blessed to have a ninety-two-year-old friend named Fran. She lives in a white cottage in a local beach town with her mini-poodle, Teddy. To look at her you’d think she was a very sweet and friendly older woman. I thought that myself, until we learned about her adventurous life. She’s piloted small planes, was a “Rosie the Riveter” during the war years, became an RN at the young age of 58, served in the Peace Corps, was a ballroom dancer and that’s just to name a few of her accomplishments.
But, the best part of Fran’s life began at a New Year’s Eve Party in 1944 when she was to meet the “The Love of Her Life”, the man she would marry. Fran was twenty-years-old when this strikingly handsome, thirty-year-old Sergeant in the U.S. Army walked up to her, introduced himself and with a smile she would come to adore simply said, “Hello, I’m Johnny”.
On this particular New Year’s Eve Fran’s parents were having a difficult time encouraging her attend the party. She was exhausted and didn’t want to go out, but went, rather than disappoint her mom. Once Johnny escorted Fran to her chair, the two of them remained seated together the entire evening. You see, Johnny was tone deaf and couldn’t dance, but that didn’t seem to bother Fran.
When it was time to go, Johnny asked if he could see her again. Needless to say, the answer was, “Yes”. Actually, that “YES” was only the beginning of what would be the rest of her life. They were married a year later. Like so many, they had their secret ways of expressing their love for one another. Johnny’s was a code. He would gently tap Fran three times on the shoulder. So even in a crowded room, he could use this simple gesture to remind of her his love. He’d “tap, tap, tap” and she’d simply smile. Johnny was also known for having a “special” nickname or saying for “everyone”. In Fran’s case, it was “Peace at any Price Porter”.
After Johnny passed, Fran moved in with her sister, Eleanor. One New Year’s Eve, while Fran was in the hospital, her nephew Dennis heard three knocks at the front door, but when he opened the door no one was there. He called his aunt and said, “I know I didn’t have much to drink, but I swear someone knocked at the door”. A few minutes later, three knocks sounded again. He opened the door quickly this time, preparing to catch the prankster, but once again, no one, and another call to his Aunt Fran. Fran just laughed and assured him, “It was just your Uncle John letting me know that he didn’t forget the anniversary of our first New Year’s Eve party. She told Dennis, “not to worry, he’s just telling me he loves me and wants to be sure I’m alright”.
However, this wasn’t the only time Fran would hear from her Johnny. There were two others as she recalls. Once Fran saw Johnny sitting on her bed. He said, “Do you know that I didn’t think I could ever make it without you”? She responded with, “I didn’t know if I could make it either”. Sometime later, Johnny would make yet another appearance to Fran, again sitting on the edge of her bed. This time he said, “Do you remember you told me you’d love me forever”? She responded, “I do remember that and I meant it”. With that Johnny nodded and smiled. Then he was gone. She has often thought, was they for real? Or was I dreaming? Well, she believes that “either way”, it was, “Johnny’s Way” of letting her know how much he loved her and that he would be with her, always.
Fran forever smiles, even blushes, when she tells stories about Johnny. I could listen to her stories for hours. In fact, I have. Sometimes her eyes glaze over with tender memories. I’d like to imagine that Johnny is with her then, holding her, as she shares her memories. When she tilts her head, I imagine she’s resting her head on his shoulder. Johnny would like that.
Some loves last forever, here and beyond. Tap … Tap … Tap!
https://www.amazon.com/Angel-Bumps-Heaven-Anne-Bardsley/dp/0997587113/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1505241057&sr=8-1&keywords=angel+bumps+by+anne+bardsley