Back in the summer when I was 13 years old, we lived on the east side of Small Town Anywhere, U.S.A. I rode my bike a lot; almost every day. There was a girl my age that lived a couple blocks away; a pretty little blond haired girl named Judy, and sometimes as I would ride past her house I would see her, and we would wave to each other and smile.

One day as I was riding by her house, I saw her out in front, and I got up the courage to stop and say, hi. Then I asked her, "What ya do'in?"

She replied, "Just playing," and we looked into each others eyes and smiled.

I got all nervous and said, "Well, see ya," and rode away. I knew there we something special about this girl; something I really liked; but I wasn't sure what it was, or what I could do about it.

Then one day as I was riding by her house, Judy called out to me. She was there with some friends and she said they were going to play hide and seek and wondered if I wanted to play, too.

So someone started counting to 100, and we all scattered. Judy and I ran down this alley, and we found a cardboard box between two garages. It was just big enough for us to get into. Judy seemed so excited to find such a good hiding place, but I didn't care about anything except that I was now alone with Judy, and that we were so close I could feel her at my side. We looked into each others eyes and smiled and then we kissed! I don't remember anything else about that day, probably because I was left in some kind of daze.

For the next few months I gave a lot of thought to the subject of boy-girl-attraction. I studied romantic scenes in movies; I took mental notes when I saw affectionate couples; I pondered it all, and I especially wondered about the excited feeling I got in my stomach every time I thought about being with Judy.

By the time Valentine's Day rolled around, I felt that I had finally figured it out. I wanted Judy in my arms. I wanted to kiss her beautiful lips.. and I wanted this more than anything else. So I bought a Valentine card, combed my hair, brushed my teeth, put on my favorite shirt, got on my bike, and peddled as fast as I could to Judy's house. When I got there I saw a sign in her yard: "FOR SALE." Judy had moved away.

A lot of years have gone by. The house that Judy lived in isn't there anymore, but if I find myself driving down that street, I can picture it there, with Judy out front, waving to me as I go by. I hope she's with the love of her life, and that he gets her flowers and candy this Valentine's Day.

Recently I met someone new. We have a Valentine's Day date, and I've already bought her a card. I like the way she smiles when we look into each other's eyes and I get this excited feeling in my stomach when I think of being with her, this beautiful blond haired woman...named Judy.

by Marc Nelson, Cherokee, IA

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