“Te amo.” 10.10.21 (on Sunday)

ONE YEAR

***Chester’s story continues…If you haven’t seen or heard of Chester, I encourage you to learn more about him from previous articles. He is my cartoon self. He portrays my actions, feelings, and big events in my life. It is easier to see what is going on inside my head when I step back and look through Chester’s eyes. I encourage you all to embrace the cartoon character who inhabits your mind. You will find it helpful and fun!

Our story continues as all stories do…but first, a look inside Chester’s heart on the week he first he met Lucy.

When Chester was a young boy, he watched a movie that changed his life forever. He is a romantic, and perhaps this is why. Toward the end of the movie, the protagonist goes to the fair and rides the ferris wheel with the girl he loves. Since then, Chester vowed never to ride the ferris wheel until he was absolutely sure he was riding it with his true love, and never before. Many years passed. No ferris wheel. When Chester was twenty eight years old, he moved to a small town in north Georgia, where he met Lucy. Chester has a friend named Krupa who had a shop called “Roots and Remedies” next door to Lucy’s gallery. Inside his friend’s shop, there was a section by the window filled with models you could build. There was a ferris wheel standing completed and only for show. Chester bought that ferris wheel the very week he met Lucy…

Chester began to really love Lucy. Not in the “We’re just friends,” kind of way. He more than liked her. Not the way people “love” each other when they are infatuated or projecting. He really loved her. He loved her when she was goofy and when she made him laugh. He loved her when she was grumpy and it was his turn to cheer her up. They became so close that they could read each other’s minds and finish each other’s sentences! But he was too afraid to tell her; he was afraid of her rejection. So, hoping she may (or may not) know what it meant, he told her in Spanish.

“Te amo,” he said.

She said it in return.

This went on for quite a while, as Chester built up the courage to tell Lucy that he loved her–in English. Chester’s friend, Diana, told him that it didn’t count until you both knew what it meant and it was said in your native language.

Lucy beat him to it.

They were pulling up to a Mexican restaurant for dinner when Lucy said, “I think I love you,” to which Chester asked, “You think?”

Lucy said, “I love you.” Chester was so relieved. He responded with, “I love you too, Lucy.” From then on, the love blossomed.

This is the beginning of Chester and Lucy’s epic love story.

Five years later, on the anniversary of their first kiss, Chester presented the Ferris Wheel to Lucy, as he had known long ago that it would someday find its way into her hands. Years later, Chester asked Lucy if she did, in fact know what “Te amo,” meant, and she said, “Yes.”

Chester and Lucy have been married for one year!

–SJB

Article 32: “The Taste”

There was a festival in town during the month of September, where locals joined to taste the food of local restaurants. Many people gathered and set up tents to sell crafts and food. The gallery was open for business, and Chester helped Lucy by bringing her lunch and taking turns watching the shop so that they could each have some time to enjoy the festival outside.

When the festival was over, something else began. As they were turning out the lights in the shop, Chester and Lucy shared their first kiss, which launched their relationship. There is more to this story, as there always is, so I’m sure that more will follow…

While it is a joy to remember these special moments in my life, I want to stress the importance of the fact that I do remember these happy moments. My mind has been through so much. Following Chester’s movements is a nice reminder that my memory is still intact. I encourage you to try this method of therapy. It doesn’t matter if you don’t think you can draw, or that you don’t know what you would say. Try to picture yourself from a distance in the form of another character, and in another dimension. Illustrating your life can be fun, and it has been very helpful for me!

Thank you for tuning in this week!

—SJB

P.S. For those of you who are curious…I did get married, but I did not change my name. I am still, and will forever be, Samantha Jane Buice.