Finalist Entry - Willa K.

I am 78 and my husband is 79 and we will soon have been married 4 years.  Six years ago, I was widowed after more than 54 years of marriage.  About a year-and-half later, I received a phone call from the daughter of a deceased friend asking if my husband could have

When he arrived in Washington, he called and we had lunch together, after not having any contact in more than 30 years.  (I didn't know until he came to pick me up at my house and we became reacquainted that he was widowed from his second marriage.)  It was love at second sight and we knew almost instantly that we wanted to spend the rest of our lives together. 

He hurried back to Arizona, sold his house and rejoined me in Washington, 

He was nearly killed in the Oklahoma bombing of the Federal Building.  He worked for the Journal Record newspaper in a building directly across the street and was standing in the window facing the Federal Building when the bomb exploded.  After time in ICU and a year in rehab, he moved to Arizona.  We feel that he was spared for a special future.

We made a wonderful, magical trip to Hawaii and spent 10 romantic nights at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel.  Apparently, people noticed our "glow" and kept stopping us to ask how long we had been married.  They loved hearing our story and we were pretty much walking on air.

We've been back to Hawaii several times.  We love Waikiki and will continue to come as often as possible. 

We are living happily ever after, and, Hawaii and our travels there will always be a most meaningful part of our lives.

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