by Carol Stevens
This isn′t a story about two star-crossed lovers, but a story of fate and the power of the heavens. Some might even use the word destiny to describe the events.
They first met in1986. She was an owner/operator of an auto repair shop, and he was working for an auto parts chain. They were both married to different people at the time, but a strong friendship bloomed anyway.
Due to an injury in 1996, she closed her auto repair shop and went to work managing repair shops. Later, she became a technical editor. He was moved around to different parts stores. They remained in contact.
In 2000, she was divorced from her first husband and began dating. The two lost contact with each other for almost a year. February 2001 brought bad news. She was diagnosed with the highest level of melanoma (skin cancer). Even though the prognosis looked hopeful, there were a lot of doctors, oncologists, surgeons and pathologists to see. She lost a good portion of her right calf, which put her in a wheelchair for quite a while. She "graduated" to crutches when a friend of hers needed help with car repair. As she "hobbled" into the parts store, there he stood. The first thing he asked was, "Did you break your leg skiing?" He was always a smart aleck, but his demeanor turned sullen when he learned of her cancer. Again, they lost contact with each other.
Friends from her street rod car club called to say how much they missed her at car shows. She had "graduated" to a cane, so she decided to go. It had been quite a while since she had been to one. Although she enjoyed getting out and seeing everyone, she tired very easily. On her way to the parking lot, she was on her cell phone with a co-worker. The conversation took so long that she reached her vehicle. She finished the conversation, set the phone down, looked up, and there he was! He was with a co-worker who was urging him to attend the car show. As they approached her truck, his co-worker received a call from his girlfriend. That stopped them both in front of her truck. The timing dumbfounded the two of them. Ironically, the girlfriend′s name is Angel.
He mentioned that he had been separated from his wife for some time. From that day on, they started dating. He admitted when he saw her on crutches, he knew he was in love with her. They both realized that over the years, this had been destined to be more than a friendship. The heavens above kept putting them together for a reason. The night of the car show proved that theory. The timing was too perfect.
On Jan. 3, 2004, Boe and Carol Stevens were married, and are still best friends. Oh, the song played at their wedding reception? "Heaven Sent Me You" by John Michael Montgomery.
