I joined a faith-based singles group a little over a year ago. We meet once a week to share our faith, with a board game or meal night once a month and two activities on the calendar each month. It gives us regular chances to see one another without every conversation having to qualify as a date.
That’s where I got to know Steve. He’d been coming for a while, so he was a familiar face before he became someone I was excited to have plans with. He looks like Kenny Rogers, which makes him fairly easy to pick out of a group.
Over the summer, he asked me to lunch. I was going through something at the time, and I wasn’t attending the weekly meetings. I told him I really appreciated the invitation, but the timing wasn’t good for me. It was an invitation I could appreciate without being ready to accept.
I started going back to the meetings in September. There was Steve: healthy, intelligent, and a real gentleman. Those are straightforward words, but they cover quite a lot when you’re describing someone you might want to spend more time with.
We had our first date last week. Then I invited him over for dinner on Wednesday, and we have another date on Saturday. Suddenly, there are plans to look forward to, and the person attached to them is someone I already know a little.
He’s also asked me out for Thanksgiving and said he wants to invite me to his church sometime. We’re still at the beginning, so I don’t know yet what any of this will become. I’m enjoying having something new to discover about someone who already feels familiar.
At 69, I’m surprised to have met someone this good. There’s excitement in it, certainly, but warmth, too. For now, I have Saturday to look forward to.
