Friday, June 23, 2017

How I Met My College Sweetheart Husband by Belle Calhoune


Let’s go all the way back to the late nineteen-eighties.  Neon was popular along with spandex shorts, big hair and black rubber bracelets.  I was a college co-ed at Syracuse University, a very large college in upstate New York.  I was an English major with a minor in French. 

The first time I laid eyes on my husband was when I saw him on a local television commercial featuring Syracuse cheerleaders.  A cheerleader you may ask?  Yes, indeed.  My husband was a tall and athletic guy.  And an avid sports watcher.  His goal was to attend all the basketball and football games for free.  If he had to throw a few girls in the air and catch them to do it, it was fine.  He was in!

As I watched the commercial I turned to my friend, Alice, and we both agreed that he was very handsome.  But in a college as huge as Syracuse, what were the chances of my meeting him?  




The next time I saw my husband was during a night out with my friends at a college bar called Bugsy’s.  My friends and I used to love to dance to the latest hits and socialize.  At the end of the night I saw him—my crush from the commercial.  Cue the romantic music.   It suddenly came to a screeching halt.  Sadly, he wasn’t alone.  He was walking with a co-ed who my friend Jay informed me was my crush’s girlfriend.  She was even wearing his Syracuse letter jacket.  At this point I realized he was taken.  But that night I did find out his name was Randy.  He even had a great name.  As I watched him walk off into the evening with his girlfriend, I remember feeling a tad deflated.  Clearly, it wasn't meant to be.

Weeks passed by and I happened to see Randy again on the college bus that I took every day to bring me back to my campus housing.  By this time I knew he no longer had a girlfriend.  He was sitting with a group of guy friends and seemed totally engrossed in a sports conversation.  Nope, he didn’t even look away from his conversation with his guy friends.  Foiled again!

I attended a dance weeks later where at the end of the evening I sat down on a bench to put my boots on.  Did I mention that Syracuse is one of the snowiest places in the United States?  A few moments later a guy sat down next to me and began complaining about the loud music.  He was also putting on his brown Timberland boots.  One glance over and guess who it was? Randy.  We had a brief conversation which ended abruptly as the organizers began flashing the lights on and off indicting that the dance was over.  Was it my imagination or was I inching closer to officially meeting him?

This is probably sounding rather sad.  But I promise you, it wasn’t.  The truth is, I was living a good life.  But for some reason, every time I saw Randy I felt something spark inside of me.  It was almost as if a part of me knew that he was going to be someone very important to me. 

My life went on—I dated, had fun with my friends, attended concerts, went to church, spent time with my family.  Life was glorious.  I was happy.  My best friend Lisa and I had gone to high school together and then attended Syracuse together.  We were roommates and joined at the hip.  It was Lisa’s birthday and we went out to Bugsy’s with a group of friends to celebrate.  It was a fun evening with music, friends and joyful celebration.  Things came to a crescendo when I saw Randy walking in my direction.  I think I might have heard harps playing. 






We locked eyes (seriously!) and I said hello and kept walking.  A few beats later I felt a gentle tapping on my shoulder.  It was Randy!  He was asking me my name and then leading me to the dance floor where we danced to Prince.  We talked up a storm that night and he wrote my phone number down in his notebook.  I thought it was pretty funny that he had his backpack with him, but as a serious Engineering student he spent a lot of time in the library.  From that night on, we were a couple.  We would talk for hours on the phone, meet for lunch, go dancing and we even signed up for a history class together.







Five years later, we walked down the aisle.  Lisa was a bridesmaid.  We’ve been together for almost thirty years, married for twenty-four.  Randy went on to become an engineer for the FAA, then a patent attorney after three years in law school.  I was a Federal Investigator for thirteen years and I was the breadwinner during Randy’s law school years.  Things haven’t always been easy.  The law school years were tough as I was working full time and Randy was doing the law school thing.  We had our first child during that time.  Ultimately, we moved as a family to Connecticut when my youngest daughter was two days old.  It was finally time to reach out for my dream of becoming a published author.




No matter what challenges have been thrown our way, we’ve stayed together.  Still in love.  Still dedicated to one another.  We still understand that sacrifice is a part of marriage.  I like to think Randy and I were meant to be.  After all, I write romance novels for a living.

62 comments:

  1. I love your love story. Your happiness is evident to all. Blessings. :)

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    1. Thank you, Lisa. It's been a lovely life with him. I'm happy God blessed us by allowing us to make a life together.

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    1. Thank you, Linda. I was a big fan of romance novels then and I wanted romance in my life as well but I was on the picky side lol. I was holding out for a hero. Blessings.

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  3. Oh wow, what a good romance novel ��. I love how you meet your husband and I think it's meant to be. 30 yrs later and still in love. I know many people wished they can hav that kind of connection with someone.

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    1. Hi, Colleen. Thank for stopping by. You're right! It is a good romance novel. Happy ending guaranteed! And you're right. I really do think it was meant to be. I wish I'd known that from the beginning lol

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  4. What a great story! I'm very happy life finally allowed you to become a published author. I am a recipient of your talent and have enjoyed it greatly!

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    1. Hi Collen. Thank you for your sweet words. I wanted to be a published author for such a long time. Probably ever since I was a kid. I grew up across the street from a public library so it was a huge influence on me. I'm so happy you've been enjoying my books. Blessings to you!

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  5. Love this. As a commercial artist I can't help but think of the power of product placement. Keep putting the item in their environment and when it comes time to buy they will think...hey I know this one. It's one I can trust. Lol. You are perfect for each there. Live the pictures. Thank you for sharing your story.

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    1. Hey, Jolene. HA HA. You made me laugh. I guess I"m the product lol. Maybe that's what I was doing. Placing myself in his orbit until he noticed me. I went to a really large school with a big campus, so I suppose I was really fortunate to be in his orbit at all. He was in engineering and I was an English major, so our classes were not even in the same universe. God definitely had a role in this love story.

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  6. Such a sweet love story!! No wonder you write romance!! After all, you live it. Patience and hard work pay off! Im sure he is as proud of you as you obviously am of him. You are showing this younger generation that true love exists, marriage isnt always easy, but dedication and perseverance is the key.

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    1. Thanks so much for coming by Debra and commenting. Your comments are so sweet. I hope the younger generation see that you really can build a wonderful life together with hard work and patience. And LOVE!!! Blessings.

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  7. Very romantical! I heard the harps playing too! Do you tease him over being the first one to know he was 'the one?'

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    1. Hi, Kav. Oh those harps. My husband is sweet but he's very cut and dried. He does romantic things but he doesn't talk about them. Ha ha. It's the engineer and the lawyer in him, I suppose. He would probably just say "we met at college." LOL

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  8. I loved seeing your photos and hearing about all those near-misses in the beginning. You two were meant to be!

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    1. Hi Karen. Thanks so much. There were a lot of near misses lol although that's from my perspective. I do think we were meant to be. I wish I'd known from the very beginning what the future held. But I guess there wouldn't have been any suspense in the narrative lol

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  9. Thank you for sharing an enduring love success story in this day of love 'em and leave 'em relationships. Here's to 30 more years of bliss.

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    1. Thanks for stopping by, mamacita. Awww. Thanks for your kind words. I'm hoping for 30 more years with my honey.

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  10. Belle, I love this romantic tale of how you met your husband. So swoon worthy.

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    1. Thanks, Terri. In writing this post it allowed me to go back in time and relive those moments. Best gift ever!

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  11. Oh what a love story! I can see it playing out in mind like a Hallmark movie. All the best to you both!

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    1. Thanks so much, Christina. It was nice to transport myself back in time to my college-age self. I was a huge lover of romance novels, so I was hoping to star in my own. Blessings!

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  12. That was a great story, Belle! So glad I remembered to come here and read it! I"m glad I got to meet you in person so I can make your story a little more personal! Thanks for sharing!

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    1. Thanks for stopping by, Valri. Meeting you last year was one of the highlights of my year. Blessings to you.

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  13. What a wonderful story. A dose of posivity and inspiration for the day. Thank you.

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    1. Hi Vanessa. It's great to see you over here. Thanks for your sweet words. It was really nice to look back on that time in my life. An age of innocence.

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  14. Love this story, Belle! So glad you got your HEA with Randy!

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    1. Hi, Dana. Thanks. I'm really happy I did also. I think it led me to my career as a romance writer also. Sometimes you have to live it to create it.

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  15. Oh my gosh! This was so sweet. I loved reading it all. It's awesome to hear your romantic life. Thank you for sharing. ❤

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    1. Hi, Robin. Thanks for stopping by. I'm glad you enjoyed my true-to-life romantic journey. Blessings to you.

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  16. Replies
    1. Hey, Becky. It's great to see you over here. Thanks so much. I have to admit, when I thought back over these events I found myself smiling. Blessings.

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  17. Such a sweet and heartwarming story.

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    1. Thanks, Merrillee. I had fun remembering the college co-ed I used to be.

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  18. What a sweet story! You two are such a great couple. May God grant you many more blessed years together :D

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    1. Aww, thanks so much, Georgiana. We were really blessed to find each other at such a young age. Blessings to you!

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  19. What a wonderful, heartwarming story!

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  20. Hi Deb. Thanks so much. I think we both got lucky with a true love connection.

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  21. What a neat story!!! I love hearing how people got together. Thanks for sharing.

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    1. Hi Margaret. It was my pleasure to share it. It took me back in time as I remembered all the details.

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  22. Love your story, Belle. You and your hubby were meant to be together, that's for sure!

    I'd love to learn more about your time as a federal investigator! Tell us about what you did...I'm intrigued!

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  23. Hi Debby. Thanks so much. I worked for the EEEOC (Equal Opportunity Commission) in Boston. I investigated cases of workplace discrimination. Sex. Age. Race. Religion. Disability. Sexual harassment. It was a very exciting job. Some of our cases ended up being litigated. I discovered that so many people are hurting in the workforce and we were able to affect change in their lives. It was a wonderful job.

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    1. That should have read...Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. My kids get a kick out of looking at my Federal ID.

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    2. Good for you, Belle! Thanks for sharing about your own true love and your background in investigation!

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  24. What a sweet story. Life's journeys can take us on amazing adventures. Thanks for sharing.

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    1. Thanks, Angel. I"m glad my life journey has been with him at my side.

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  25. What a great story, Belle. He is handsome and I'm so happy you didn't give up on him.

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    1. Hi, Lenora. Yep. He was handsome then and handsome now. I noticed it right away when I saw him on the commercial. I'm so glad I didn't give up either and that he finally noticed me lol

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  26. I love that you kept "bumping" into him! <3

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    1. Hi Katy. It's so funny how he was pretty oblivious. But I knew a good looking guy when I saw him lol

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  27. Replies
    1. Thanks, Preslaysa. I showed this to my youngest daughter and she giggled the whole time she was reading it.

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  28. What great story only God could weave! Happiest of days ahead!

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    1. Hi, Tanya. Thanks for stopping by. And yes, God was with us, making sure we finally met. Blessings!

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  29. Oh wow! What a cute story. I love hearing how couples met. Thank you for sharing, Belle.

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    1. Hi, Christina. I love hearing how couples met also. And it was really fun for me to think back on those days. So much has changed since then, but we're still the same people in our hearts. Blessings.

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  30. What a wonderful story! I love how the timing had to be just right for things to click. Thank you for sharing, Belle!

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    1. Hi, Christine. You're so right about timing. It really was everything in our love story. Syracuse University is so big. My sister is always asking me if I know so and so who attended Syracuse at the same time as I did and I always say no lol. So I'm thankful we connected.

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  31. Love the story, but I love the photos more! I wish I were going to RWA so I could bug you to show me more.

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    1. Hi Pamela. I'm going to miss seeing you at RWA. I wish I had more photos of when we met but at that age we really weren't walking around with cameras. So much has changed since then. Now we have cameras on our phones. LOL

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  32. So sweet! I'm loving these how you met stories!

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    1. Thanks, Heather. My daughters got a kick out of reading how their parents met.

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