And another one gone.

You know you are getting old when almost everyone you knew while you were in high school is dead.

I dated my HS sweetheart from age 14 tilll I was almost 21. We got along real good. Her name was Frances. We talked about marriage after she got her own place, and although we didn't do that, neither one of us was terrified of the idea and if things had gone a little different who knows. Anyway after I joined the Army she got jealous of that and joined the US Air Force and became an electronics technician for the fighters and bombers. I visited her at Nellis back in 75 and we had a stupid argument over her dating someone else and sadly we broke up. We went on with our lives and in 77 her brother told me she had married the same guy. Oh well. Later on I got married to someone too.
When my future wife and I got engaged she put all my old papers from the 80s and 70s in boxes and when we moved from her house to mine she stuffed the boxes in the attic here. She died over a decade ago (blood cancer) and I didn't bother the boxes that held both her old stuff and mine. Until yesterday. I decided to take a look at them and while going through one, along with a bunch of stuff I hadn't seen in decades I found about 20 pictures of Frances and me.
I decided she might like to have some pictures of herself as a teenager and youngster so I dusted off my PC to track her down online. Should be easy I thought. I knew her birthday and even had her Social Security Number because with the photos was the paper she had written it down on in case she lost the card they gave her the day we went to the Social Security Office and they gave her her card. Well I was right. I found her.
My HS sweetheart died in the first Covid wave on April 21, 2020 in the hospital in Joliet, IL. She was one of about 30 who died there that month.She was still married to the same man. I tried reaching out to her brother or sister but I find no trace of them online after 1980. So I will mail my condolences to her husband (I found their address and phone of course) along with some photos of his wife he may wish to have. If they had children (which I couldn't really tell online) maybe they might like to see their mom when she is young.
I will always miss you Frances. I wish I had looked in the box a few years ago and had time to get the photos to you while you were still alive. I was an a** and you were the best.
Around Spring 1974 in her place


Winter 73 Getting ready to do a little painting


Home from airman Basic training at Rantoul AFB early 1975 soon to go off to Las Vegas and Nellis AFB for specialty training. I was so proud for her.


Miss you Franny. Hope there is an afterlife and we will meet again.