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Chapter 2 Night Flight
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Del felt shy with new girls. Since an acne eruption in his 7th and 8th grade years, he had been painfully bashful. Adding to this mountain, Del and his parents lived five miles from town. Gas seemed in short supply so the boy never became part of the in-group. He found himself largely isolated. His religion kinked the wire even more. He belonged to a conservative group who practiced self-denial . . . no dancing, no drinking, no mixed bathing, not even musical instruments in church. This set him off from most of his peers, and made it difficult to have a serious friendship with any of the girls in high school. Del really hadn *t dated much before he went to college. He'd wanted to, but the obstacles made it difficult .When Del decided to go to Clintville Christian College—an institution operated by his church's denomination—his day dawned. He would learn more about his church while he got a college degree. But just as important, he would have hundreds of Christian girls from which to choose his dates. Del found a two-room cottage half a block from campus in an isolated alley. He parked the brand new Chevrolet Caprice, which his father had given him, nearby. He soon became involved in the Maitta—a social club—with whom he practiced karate three to four times a week.
Classes and studies took a lot of time for a young man who had never given them much thought before. It was all so new, Del didn *t know how to adapt. He nearly failed at the end of the first semester. This has to change he thought. I must learn how to study. Del began to lean on his room mate, Joe Straus, who had been valedictorian in high school. Joe taught him how to study, and how to glean information from books without reading them all the way through. Del's grades began to rise.By the time Del reached his senior year, he began to wonder about marriage. How could he find a wife? If I don't find a wife at college, he thought, when and where will I? Looking for help, he visited Dr. March, one of the college *s advisor/instructors."I feel I should be looking for a wife," he told the man. "I'm not interested in any of the girls back home. Surely God has someone here for me to marry." "He might have at that," mused the gentleman. "I'm sure you've been praying about it. God is evidently laying the burden on your heart.""Yes, I've prayed about it," Del agreed. "It's very important to me to find the girl God wants me to have." "Good." The man swiveled his chair and stared out the window. "Perhaps the best way to start is to date many girls . . . establish a frame of reference. Why not date a different girl each night several times a week. When you find one that strikes you as a possibility, pray about that one." "Sounds good to me." Del was scared. "Good luck," said Dr. March as Del left the room. Del found many girls willing to date him. He was soon dating three times a week . . . with a different girl each time. After a few weeks, Del noticed that one of the girls responded well to him. She was attractive, both physically and in personality. She seemed like a good Christian. Perhaps this was the girl God intended for him. "Dear God," he prayed after they had dated several times. "Susan seems right for me, but I can*t decide such an important thing. Love is blind, You know. Will You show me something negative about her on our next date. And show her something negative about me. Don't let us go on if this is not Your will." On the next date, Del saw it. "Why did you come to Clintville?" he asked. "My parents made me come," she confessed. "I wanted to go to the state university. But they insisted I should go to a Christian school." She almost snarled the word "Christian." "Don't you like it here?" Del felt like he was walking on a narrow ledge on the 21st floor. "Not really," she said. "I mean it*s not all bad. But I think they're too restrictive here." "But aren't you a member of the church?" Del couldn't believe his ears. "Yes," she screwed up her nose. "But only because my father is a minister." Del's joy flew out the window. He couldn't wait to get home, and away from this awful girl. Susan had seemed so right until now. But suddenly she seemed all wrong. God really works fast, he thought. Del had a similar experience soon afterward, and began to wonder if he would ever find a wife. "Dear God," he prayed. "I don*t know what You have in mind, but if You'll be patient with me, I*m willing to follow." It had only been a couple of days after his second disappointment when, coming into breakfast after jogging, Del had spied a tall, athletic, blue-eyed girl behind the serving counter. He knew she had been there since school started, but he'd never noticed her before. Two or three meetings in chow line convinced him that she was worthy of at least one date. So he asked her. Abi lived in the home of one of the school's Bible teachers, Bob Stevens, and Del had no trouble finding her home. She had also dated a lot but hadn*t found anyone who was special. After they had dated, Del became interested in Abi as a possible choice for a wife. Again he prayed that God would show him something negative about her if she were not the right one. On their next date, Del trembled. He feared that sometime during the evening his bubble would pop, and he*d be looking for another girl. As the evening wore on, he watched more carefully than ever. He asked pointed questions, searching for something that would turn thumbs down on this girl. But he found nothing. In fact, the more they were together, the better she looked to him, and the more she responded to his personality. Del didn*t know what to do. Have I misread the signals? Dear God, do You really want me to marry this lovely girl? Or am I blinding myself to the evidence because I like her so much? He decided to put it to the test. He had to see how she would react to irritating circumstances. The next day, Del called Abi. on the phone, asking her to come to his apartment to pick up a book. Abi just bubbled, "Sure, Del. I'd love to." Del saw her coming up the walk about ten minutes later. As she stepped onto the porch, he slipped out the back door and went around the side of the cottage. Many trees stood in the yard, so he could walk to the front gate without Abi seeing him. What will she do when I don't answer the door? Del stood at the front gate watching as Abi knocked a second time. She knew he was there. Why didn*t he open the door? He expected her to get angry, to perhaps shout at him through the door. But she didn't. She appeared puzzled, then hurt. She knocked again, waited a moment, then turned and descended the steps, her head drooping. She seemed so disappointed. Del's conscience stabbed him for putting her through all this. But now he had no doubt that she was the right one for him. "Abi," he called as he came up the sidewalk. "What?" Abi looked at him and then back at the door. "Why didn't you answer the door, when I knocked?" Her voice betrayed disappointment and hurt, but no anger. "I*m sorry, Abi," he apologized. "You are beautiful, Abi. I love you." Abi smiled. "I*m glad you do, because I love you too." Del and Abi saw a lot of each other during the following weeks. On a college campus, seeing each other many times during the day, under varied settings, young people learn more about each other in a few weeks than it would take years to learn dating in their home town. Del and Abi both liked what they saw. They wanted to be together . . . forever. Two months after their first meeting, Del surprised Abi with an engagement ring. "I want you to be my wife, Abi," he said. "Oh, yes, Del," she could hardly speak. "I want you more than anything in the world." Del kissed her tenderly. "You know, Abi. I've prayed often that God would lead me to the right person. I asked him to reveal something negative about you so I*d know that you weren't the right one." Del licked his lips and kissed her again. "But every time I prayed," he continued, "I learned such lovely things about you. I know that the girl of my dreams is God's choice for me too." "Why Del!" Abi seemed surprised. "Don*t you think I've been praying like that too?" She smiled, her eyes sparkling in the soft light. "I*m just as sure as you are that this is what God wants for us." Abi's parents weren't so sure. "You're only 19." her mother roared. "You can*t." "God has shown me that Del is the right man," Abi cried. "I*m old enough to read the signs." "There are lots of men here in New York. Why do you have to pick one from Texas?" Abi's mother was visibly upset. "And why can*t you wait until you finish college? If you get married now, you'll never finish. You've got two-and-a-half years to go, and he's a senior. He'll take you off somewhere, and there goes your education." "But Mom," objected Abi. "What can be more important than finding a Christian husband?" Her mother used a different argument. "It's too far for us to go. We can only afford one ticket. If you want to get married, then don't expect more than one of us to come." With that warning, she left the room.
Del's parents, rejoiced. Their bashful son had finally found his belle. They loved Abi from the first time they saw her. They'd support him all the way on this one. So despite the disapproval from the bride's parents, Del and Abi set the wedding date to coincide with semester break—Friday night, January 24, 1969. Del asked Tom Jones, his black-belted friend from the Maitta karate club, to act as best man. He knew that Tom could handle any pranksters who tried to ruin the wedding . Abi's parents changed their tune. Both decided to come to the wedding, thanks to a gift ticket from Abi's brother Donny. Abi's sister Mary was matron of honor, and Mary's seven-year-old son came along as ring bearer. Bob Stevens performed the ceremony, and his four-year-old daughter Lynn was flower girl. It was a tender wedding. Abi was so nervous that her lips quivered when she smiled. In the middle of the ceremony Del looked at her and whispered, "I love you." She nearly melted. Several of the men in Del's club had threatened to pursue them after the wedding. So Del had arranged to use a teacher's car for the getaway. The car was parked behind the church, and when the couple left by a rear exit waving as they went, the Maitta men charged after them. But Tom barred the door with his body, and no one could pass the black-belt karate master. They soon gave up and ran around the front of the church. Too late . . . the love birds had flown. Del and Abi drove quickly to the teacher's house, changed to their Caprice, and sped for Fort Worth 175 miles away. They were unmolested until they stopped at a gas station in Fort Worth. Several of their friends jumped out of the pursuing car and wrote "Just Married" with toothpaste on the trunk of the car. They departed as quickly as they had come. But the toothpaste remained―it marred the finish of the car, and they could never erase the words. The Bert*s honeymoon at Green Oakes (in Fort Worth) was short. The newlyweds had to be back at Clintville to begin classes on Monday morning.
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