Love Story Episode 3: Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

That May when classes were ending for summer (2001), I was staying at ACU to be a camp counselor and Richey was off to Honduras to study Spanish and help build a church.  

Richey with some kiddos in Honduras

Richey working in Honduras

Some camp counselor pics I came across-- 

what at FUN summer!  Pardon the quality of my pictures... this was before my digital camera days!

(** any of my blog readers see yourself in these pics??!!)

It was this summer that he and I both KNEW we were falling in love.  He would hunt down Internet Cafes to email me as much as he could.  I would run to my computer daily to see if I got one and write back-- it was so exciting!  His words were always so sweet-- how he missed me, would tell me all about what he'd been up to, and couldn't wait to see me.  He always started those emails with "Hola Princess" :) We counted down the days until he'd be back.  He was going to visit me in Abilene since I was still doing camps before he went home for the summer.   He actually came to Abilene a day earlier than he told me and got my sister to help him with a plan!  She got into my dorm room and snuck in rose petals, chocolate, and a note from Richey.  They were everywhere!

The note said that he was in town, but I had to find him!  It was a Friday night and my campers had just left when I came back into my room to find what was left for me.  He left me clues in the note of where to find him-- like a scavenger hunt downtown Abilene.  I finally found him and was greeted with a beautiful bouquet of flowers!  He took me to Cypress Street Cafe-- a nice restaurant in A-Town.  It was so good to see him!!  

I remember going home that summer and telling my girlfriend I grew up with that I met the man I was going to marry-- even after 5 months of dating him, I just knew.  

That was the not the only sweet surprise... more to come in Episode 4: Adventures Galore!