a gold star and a best friend

I've always told people my Mom and Dad's love story was chick-flick worthy. They met through a common friend at the airport in connecticut, and on the same day took a motorcycle tour through 3 states, just the two of them. For a long time after that, they would talk on the phone and send letters back and forth, non-stop, since my Mom had to return to Manila and my dad was studying in Connecticut at the time. Finally, as my dad was dropping off my mom from one of their dates, he got down on one knee and asked her to marry him. They had two sons, and the youngest, a daughter (THAT'S ME!). I know they loved each other very much, and until now, my mom loves my dad more than anything in the world.

7 years after my dad died in a car accident, my mom and I sit in the TV room, looking through old boxes of my dad's old cameras (did I mention that my dad was a very skilled photographer, as well as the former owner of a Jazz radio station?) and mixtapes. We find this rusty old silver box sitting with the camera bags, and it was locked. We spent a while looking nearby for a key, but finally gave up and had our housekeeper hammer it open for us.

Inside, there were hundreds of letters, all from my mom to my dad. I started sobbing instantly because, seriously?! All the letters she sent him, from the first letter when she got home to Manila, to the letter she wrote him on the morning of their wedding day, were sitting there in yellowing envelopes and decades-old stamps. My mom and I sat on the floor sobbing for hours, going through each letter and taking down all the sweet things they would say to each other.

One thing that hit me hard like a brick wall was the fact that they would send each other gold foil stars with every letter. Even after they had me, I always noticed their strange obsession with stars; there would always be some kind of star artwork in the house, and how during christmas, our garden was always illuminated by star lanterns hanging from the Frangipani trees. I didn't realize that it had been their thing from the start.

Another one of the most beautiful parts of this little box of letters is that my mom would always refer to him as her best friend. I always believed that relationships should always be friendship over romance, and now I know where I got that idea. This little note especially made my heart melt:

"To the only guy i'll ever love with all my heart and mind and body until all the hair on your head turns gray and your teeth fall out! Happy Birthday to my best friend."

My mother always told me never to date until I find a guy who treats me just the way my dad treated her. Even if it takes forever, dad, i'm gonna find someone who was as loving, caring, and kind as you. Don't worry about me, nobody unworthy will even be able to think about mistreating your little girl. I miss you, I love you, I'll see you in Heaven.