Trudeau overlooking North Phoenix and Glendale in 2005.

New Years’ Day has never been a holiday of particular significance to me. Some years I spend it with friends while others I spend it alone. This year, wanting to spend some quality time in reflection and facilitate a day of 2nd semester prep at school, I decided to drive up to the cabin (at Waitts Lake) on New Years Eve, and spend the holiday alone, in quiet reflection.

Over the past few days I’ve been spending as much time as possible with the family, particularly after breaking the news of the upcoming deployment to the parents...

They took the news better than I had anticipated, but I’m still not positive about their acceptance of my obligation and opportunity to serve. Even so, I decided to make the trip to the lake, decompress, unpack, and prepare for the upcoming semester at school. After a couple of glasses of Scotch, I was getting into the plot of the ‘Lord of the Rings’ when I heard a ‘KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK!’ at the door.

“Just a minute!” I shouted. I was in a t-shirt and boxers and starting to feel the scotch when I realized that someone was at the door. I quickly pulled on a pair of jeans and answered the door to find my neighbor from across the way (I can’t remember his name at this moment). He invited me to come on over to his cabin and play cards with his family. I quickly agreed, despite my engrossment in the movie, and put some shoes on.

When I made it up the path to his house and in door, I found that a couple of his family friends were there, along with his two college-aged daughters, whom I never knew existed before, even though I had met the man several times.

‘Wow!’ I thought to myself. I was almost embarrassed at my appearance, being very Stevens County-like, not having showered or shaved since yesterday, and sporting a short beard and old college t-shirt. I was introduced to everyone, but unfortunately I can’t remember all their names. I do remember the daughters’ names: Katie and Kelly.

As I spent the entire evening with this family playing cards and talking, I enjoyed myself and was very grateful to God for the opportunity to meet my neighbors, and celebrate a holiday with them. I also learned that Katie was married to an infantryman in the 82nd Airborne who’s in Iraq right now. I shared some of my military experiences with the family, including my upcoming deployment to Iraq with the 1-161 INF. Despite my best efforts, though, I was fixated upon Kelly the entire evening.

Both of the girls, who are twins, were pretty shy toward me, but Kelly was fun to get to know. I found out that they both are Cougars, graduating in May from WSU. It’s amazing how fast the mind works: I was sitting there, talking to the others while playing cards and also imagining how it could be possible for some kind of future to work out with this young woman. Practicality would tell me to slow down and take a step back, even enjoy the moment; and yet, there I was, trying to imagine if a future was possible with this woman. I don’t know if I’m starting to get stir-crazy, a sense of age, or even just impatient, but I have to admit that my status as a single man has been of my mind lately. My best friend is about to marry the girl that was the longest and most promising girlfriend I ever had, and I’m not upset or depressed. I am, I think, aware. Given the lack of opportunity to meet people of my age, I haven’t exactly had a chance to date as of late, or even make new friends in my new town. And yet, I have been exposed to this beautiful and enchanting woman, Kelly, as if fate or God intended.

I try to appreciate things in my life, such as being an American, having a solid family support system, and even financial stability. That being said, I always long for companionship, constantly fighting the feeling of despair at being 24 years old, working in my chosen field, but alas, single. The upcoming deployment has given me a greater sense of mortality. ‘What if,’ I ask, ‘I don’t come home?’ I have prayed in the past to not meet my future wife before deploying, mainly to save the pain of my death from a young widow. So then, I wonder, will this prayer be answered, or will I need to appreciate God’s perfect and all-knowing plan for me and my future wife.

I am enchanted with Kelly, but is it infatuation? Is it fate playing out, or God’s will? What if it’s nothing at all? I guess all I can say is that I had a wonderful evening, and that it wasn’t planned by myself, and that if I’m blessed, I will see this Kelly again.

Editor's Note:  Joe Trudeau is a music teacher in Chewelah, Wash.  He is also a member of the United States Army, and long-time best friend of Tony Ganzer.  Fate and reasoning are two topics which will frequent the "Ethereal" sections of this site.