Back when my wife and I were dating, we lived in a town called Laie. We were both going to college at Brigham Young University – Hawaii. She played softball for the school and I played in my band Upstanding Youth. We met, fell in love, and couldn’t spend more than 8 hours apart for sleep. We were constantly together after we started falling in love.
Living in Hawaii, you have more than your fair share of romantic and beautiful locations. Our favorite spot used to be a grassy hill at a beach park called Malaekahana. Late at night when the gate would be locked, we’d park my truck off the side of Kamehameha Highway and take the long dark walk to the hill. The spot was a perfect clearing amongst a bunch of Ironwood trees and at night, you’d often seen the bright moon shining across the ocean, lighting up everything. You’d hear the waves crumbling into each other, you could smell the rich salt, and you’d feel the sticky damp salty air with every breath. We’d sit on that hill for hours talking, dreaming, planning, and falling in love.
I’ve imagined so many times how many other people have fallen in love in that exact same spot, how many people have fallen in love on that beach, and what their stories are. Some time later, it was that exact same spot where I presented my girlfriend with a diamond ring and asked her to marry me.
I want to relive a specific night we were on that hill at Malaekahana with you. Every time I think of how often we were alone in that remote spot and how dangerous that kind of was, it makes me thank God for keeping us safe all those times. Because once, it could have gone very wrong.
The Story of Stupid Love
We were in our spot late at night, the moon was bright, but it was still dark. We were talking and dreaming of our future together when up the hill comes some stranger. He had no shirt on and stared at us for a second. Suddenly he starting stomping towards us with a hostile gait and puffed out chest, but once he got close enough to see us clearly, he stopped and sat down with us.
The guy explained that he had been spying on his ex-wife and lost track of her at the beach. His ex-wife was hanging out with someone this guy didn’t approve of and asked if we had seen her – he originally thought he found his ex-wife when he found us. We said no and he went on his way. That’s it. Things could have been a lot worse. As soon as he was out of sight, we got up and never went back to that spot unless it was during the day.
It’s pretty scary to think of the stupid things we sometimes do when we’re in love. You lose your sense of danger, fear, or surroundings just because you’re so blinded by that amazing starry-eyed phase of love.
So my question to you is, what stupid things have you done because you were in love? I might just write a song about it. #songsbyrequest
-Marc
Marc um dont write a song abt this…but remember when i went with you jan and those two hole boys up to the bunkers… like my first hike ever with no skills and I got stung by a yellow jacket while climbing the side of the mountain…on that trail you made like as we hiked and I fell in the river bed on the way down but acted like I was all fine? Yah stupid crush on the new guys good thing that was when I was younger…lol
Jody!! How classic is that!? I remember you guys wore shorts when I specifically told you not to. Makes sense now 🙂
Probably the stupidest thing I did for love was also the smartest thing: I met my husband. On the surface, it sounds really straightforward, but in fact it was quite a risk for me.
I was 22, working a cubicle job, bored out of my mind, when I clicked the “random entry” button on a blogging site I used. One of his entries popped up. It was interesting and intelligent, about a recent trip to Dublin. I read on and discovered he was living and studying in Italy. Thinking I had nothing to lose, I left a note, something quick and innocuous…at least I thought so. (I have since been informed that it was not!) He got my note, read my blog, and soon we were exchanging notes. A few months later, he returned to the States, and we exchanged phone numbers. We talked for hours at a time about everything and nothing. After another month, we decided we should meet in person. We agreed neutral territory was best and decided on downtown DC as a good spot. I went alone.
I had seen one picture of him, and he said he was tall, but otherwise I had no idea what to expect. Thinking back on it, it could have been extremely dangerous. He could have not been who he seemed, he could have not shown up at all, he could have tried to harm me. But this wasn’t the case. He was exactly the person I had been talking and falling in love with.
I met my husband on the corner of G and 12th. Now we have two beautiful children and have been happily married for 7 years.
What an awesome story!!! I love that you can pinpoint the intersection/street where it all started. Thanks for sharing your story.