Leap Day

Leap Day #1: Two babies lay in the same nursery only three cribs apart. One was a boy and the other was a girl. No one could have predicted the amazing life they’d live together.

Leap Day #2: Two toddler in preschool looked at each other. Both celebrated birthdays. The boy, James, threw a cupcake at the girl.  The girl, Samantha, hit James in the head with a block in retribution. A relationship was born.

Leap Day #3: James and Samantha sat at their second-grade lunchroom table.  Both chatted with friends and completely ignored that the other one was in the room.

Leap Day #4: Hormones began to rage like the day before a hurricane.  James and Samantha sat across from each other in the gym.  Looks were exchanged and a flame was ignited.

Leap Day #5: James asked Samantha out on a first date.  Samantha’s dad met him at the front door.  James, fresh driver’s license in hand, carefully opened the car door for his beautiful date.  A first kiss was exchanged.  And a love was sealed.

Leap Day #6: A long-distance relationship frayed around the edges. Samantha had gone out of state to school. James had gotten an athletic scholarship to the big in-state school.  Temptation caused James to make bad decisions. A young boy from New York caught Samantha’s.  A painful phone call was made.  Tears flowed and a flame was temporarily snuffed.

Leap Day #7: A chance encounter on the street of their small town caused hearts to beat wild. Both were home and single.  Coffee was purchased and sparks flew.  The flame reignited on that cold, February morning.

Leap Day #8: James stood at the front of the church watching the beautiful bride walk down the aisle. Her father, the man who had once glowered at him on the front porch so many years ago, gave his daughter away.  Tears flowed down Samantha’s face. An amazing marriage began that day.

Leap Day #9: James Jr. was born on that February morning. Their first child lay in the nursery, beautiful and crying.  Samantha and James celebrated the birth of their first child.

Leap Day #10: Samantha and James celebrated the birth of their second child.  Jennifer Rae cried as her little brother looked at his new little sister.  His world was rocked.  James’ heart was now wrapped around another little girl’s finger.

Leap Day #11: Samantha and James welcomed their birthday with a disturbing call from Samantha’s doctor.  “Cancer,” was the word that would forever alter their world.  Like iron forged into steel, the battle ahead of them made them stronger than they had ever been before.

Leap Day #12: Samantha’s health had returned.  She and James loved this phase of their lives.  They celebrated together with their children the day that had meant so much to their lives.

Leap Day #13: James watched as James Jr. drove down the street in the family car.  He felt a knot in his stomach — being a parent wasn’t for the weak.

Leap Day #14: The doorbell rang and James walked to the front door. There was a young boy standing nervously on the porch. “Is Jennifer Rae ready?”  James smiled and remembered the look on his father-in-law’s face when he had rang Samantha’s door so many years ago.

Leap Day #15: Samantha and James sat in the baseball stadium and watched James Jr. swing at the fastball coming at him. A dink of the metal bat and the roar of the crowd signaled yet another home run of his amazing collegiate career.  Both parents smiled and felt the joy of life.

Leap Day #16: Jennifer Rae graduated early from college. Her work ethic was nothing short of incredible. James smiled as he looked into his daughter’s eyes. They were a younger version of her mother’s. He never had felt love like that in his life.

Leap Day #17: That love burned even hotter as he walked Jennifer Rae down the aisle.  He looked over and saw James Jr. in his tux, beaming at his little sister.

Leap Day #18: Samantha and James retired on the same day. Both planned the next phase of their lives. Travel was #1 on their to-do list and the began visiting every continent. And they covered every mile hand in hand.

Leap Day #19: Samantha and James celebrated their anniversary surrounded by all who loved them.  Jennifer Rae had twins and James Jr. had three kids of his own.  The banquet room was filled with laughter and love, the sign of a life well-lived.

Leap Day #20: Time began to take its toll on both Samantha and James.  James started losing his sight. Samantha’s memory began to slip.  But James didn’t need to see Samantha to know how beautiful she was.  And Samantha would never forget how much she loved her beloved husband.

Leap Day #21: They died the same day.  After 80 years, they had celebrated an amazing life.  Samantha died early in the morning.  Cancer had come back to claim another victim. Some say that James died of a broken heart later that afternoon.

At the funeral, Jennifer Rae and James Jr. joked that their parents were only 21-days old and acted like it. But they had lived more in 21 days than most people lived their whole lives.

All on Leap Day.