Calling it Puppy Love

In the car, while taking the kids back home, Natalie pointed out a church on the corner and said, "That is where Oma and Opa got married!" I agreed that, yes, that was the church. She was quiet and suddenly asked, "When are Oma and Opa going to have a baby?" Smiling, I told her they were probably not going to have a baby. (I do not know why I said probably) She asked, "Why not?" I told her that they are too old. "Then why did they get married?" she wanted to know.

I wondered what I was getting into now. I told her that they wanted to live together and to live together they should get married. She thought about that and must have remembered another discussion on marriage. She told me that her mom had told her that she cannot marry her cousin or brother or anyone like that. Her mom said that it has to be another friend or someone she meets. I agreed. I told her she would meet many friends yet.

"But I already know who I'm going to marry," she said, and added, "They have three boys, and his name is Owen." I asked her about where he lived and such and then she said, almost to herself, "Oh . . . and there is Neil. Maybe I should marry Neil. They look the same."

In the meantime she also made some suggestions for Landon and he came to a final decision, a final answer. He would marry Annie.

I drove down one more street. And then they were home  . . . barely in the door, throwing down their stuff, showing off their leaf raking wages from Papa and, I assume, more stories behind closed doors.''