Anita, a Very Special Lady

A Very Special Lady

I had no relatives or friends in California. Still, I was convinced to go there. I always thought about the young man in Boot Camp. This young man was different, even though he was later discharged from the Marines because of his behavior, I could understand how he felt, but I was much to indoctrinated to the mores of West Virginia life as a black person to even dream of doing things that he done with no reservations.

I landed in El Toro California, after leaving Viet-Nam, and later migrated to Los Angeles. This was the best thing that could have happened to me, because this is where I met her, Nita. Although I never lived in Compton, nonetheless, after obtaining a consulting contract with Los Angeles County later in my life, I was blessed to set up a consulting firm in the Interns and Residents building in Martin Luther King Medical Center in the city of Compton. Isn’t God Good?

I had worked at Western Union for a few years prior, and I had met many women, and had made friends with many of them. They were great teachers. The ratio of women to men were ten to one with women being dominant. There were many for the pickings, but after experiencing my first marriage, the most remote thing upon my mind was developing a relationship with one woman.  I had listened to their horror stories told to me about their relationships in marriage by many of them. Hearing these things somewhat scared me away from a genuine relationship. I was a country boy from West Virginia, and LA was a much different place.

I was an Eligibility Worker, and she was a clerk, but she always appeared to be above the crowd. I mustered the nerves to ask her name, and she politely said “Nita”.  The name Nita resonated with me as I had heard that name before, even though it was spelled differently it still carried the same flavor. I could remember my father saying the name many times with love and affection, although it was spelled differently, N-e-d-i-a, it still felt the same to my spirit.

Nita always smiled, and it lit my day. After telling me her story, I was amazed! It made me love her so much. I could not live one day without talking to her. Seeing her was so joyful up until this day.  We have weathered many storms together, and many people could not believe how we continued loving one another through all the malarky. We always stayed together through thick and thin. Hard times only brought us closer, enabling us to dismiss challenging times from our spirits.

She always shines through all the darkness. I had been praying for someone just like her. I was blessed. She smiled while others frowned.  She made me happy when I did not know her name. We have created two young men that have always made us proud. This is only icing on the cake. We have always had happiness, trust, love and honesty in our family. We have never argued, broke up, or disrespected one another. She is the love of my life, Anita. Without her I am nothing.  I love her so much!