It was 3 days after my 19th birthday. My sister and I were headed to Belize to spend the summer helping out at a Christian youth camp. We flew in late in the afternoon, and one of the guys on the team picked us up at the airstrip and brought us back to the mission compound. After eating dinner with our missionary friends that evening, he settled us into our little house, introduced us to our housemates (2 caged boa constrictors) and said goodnight.
And that was the start to our friendship. We made many memories that summer, including learning how to catch rats and feed them to the snakes, catch iguanas, scorpions, and a plethora of other creatures, and attending a real Mexican circus in which they advertise beforehand for anyone wanting to sell their dogs to feed to their lions...and they were serious! I taught Derek how to swim, he taught us how to play guitar (well, we tried). In our camp drama skits, he played Adam, I played Eve...
And before we knew it the summer was over and it was time for us to leave. On our last day he pulled me aside and asked if he could write me when we went home. Thinking nothing of the gesture, I of course agreed. It was not until my sister later asked him why she did not get such an invitation that we both realized his intention was something for a little bit more than friendship...
And so it started...from the seed of friendship, watered steadily over time, romance budded. And that is Chapter 221 of Our Story. Stay tuned for Chapter 222!
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