ORIGINAL: Scott_USN
Oh well just remember when the day is over those who stay are worth keeping

Thanks Scott. That reminds me of a fascinating story that seems strangely apropos for this thread. Twenty five years ago, after a single tour in the military I was finishing up college and working at a defense company as an intern. If I'd learned anything in the military, it was to keep my mouth shut until I'd learned the lay of the land, and in this place the way to do that was by having lunch with all the executive secretaries. They knew everything about the real flow of power in the company, who was who, and how things really got done. Plus they were a fun bunch, clever and sharp witted, although all were married and quite a bit older than me. The president's secretary was one of the quietest, an older gal named Nina who used a cane and had a sweet disposition. Although she abstained from most of the verbal sparring, you could see how the others deferred to her - and it wasn't anything political - she was genuinely respected. When Nina did speak, it was like Merrill Lynch - everybody listened.
One particular day the subject was their men, and as you can probably imagine, most of the commentary was acerbic. These women knew men, and they weren't very impressed. After one of the ladies had given us chapter and verse on the exceptional uselessness of her husband, Nina just shook her head and said, "That's so sad. I'm very lucky. My Jimmy is a saint." To my surprise, every woman at the table just nodded their heads in agreement. And before the moment could pass, one of them reached across and patted Nina on the hand, "Tell our young man here about your Jimmy, it's such a wonderful story!" And so she did.
Nina and Jimmy grew up together in a small town in Massachusetts. They had been in love as far back as she could remember. There had never been anybody else, for either of them. And then in late 1941, with both on the cusp of 20 and already planning a life together, the war came, and by mid-1942 Jimmy had joined the Marines and - soon thereafter - was off to the Pacific. Nina wanted to get married before he left, but Jimmy refused. "He couldn't stand the thought of me as a widow", and promised to marry her as soon as the war was over. Nina didn't elaborate on what Jimmy did while overseas, but she knew it was a combat unit and he "saw some horrible things". Little of that came back in his letters, but it was enough to keep her worried. Especially since the news from the Pacific seemed especially gruesome and dangerous. So although she was worried and had trouble sleeping, she resolved that every letter from her would be a morale booster. She would talk only of things that would cheer him up - funny anecdotes involving mutual friends and the daily stuff of normal life in a small town.
What she didn't tell him was that six months after he left, she was diagnosed with polio. Polio. It's almost like talking about the Black Death, it seems so utterly divorced from the world we live in today. But in the 1940s, polio was a scourge and it attacked the young and it killed or paralyzed them and it devastated families in the process. Nina was severely afflicted, sick and feverish and bedridden, but she insisted that the near daily letters to Jimmy would not be interrupted, and they would remain lighthearted and fluffy - and she would write them in her own hand because he would know the difference otherwise and Jimmy must NOT be worried about home when he had so much to face wherever he was. I can't even imagine the depth of love and power of will that would cause someone afflicted with such a terrible disease to STILL put every ounce of her effort into easing the mind of the man she loved, because she knew it was the only thing she could do to help ensure his safe return.
Even after the worst of the crisis had passed, one of Nina's legs was paralyzed and she was unable to walk. But that was not acceptable to her. Jimmy deserved a partner in life, someone to share the load, not a burden that he would have to carry, especially after he returned home from the hell of the Pacific. So long before all the specialized rehabilitation facilities and trainers that are de rigeur today, Nina worked and worked and worked. She never gave up, and slowly, as one year passed into the next, the tiny infinitesimal improvements slowly added up, until by 1945, even though her left leg was in a brace, she was out of the wheelchair and standing, even if it was with crutches. And all the while, the letters flowed, and not one carried a hint of what she herself was enduring.
And then one day, the miracle came. Jimmy was coming home. And now Nina had to face the biggest challenge of all. In spite of all her efforts, she would never be same energetic girl that Jimmy left behind. She was crippled and there were a thousand little things that would forever be impossible. They would never dance effortlessly across the floor, as they had the night before he left. And when Jimmy alighted from that homecoming train, she would not be able to run into his arms. So Nina resolved that the first thing she would do, at the first moment of their meeting, would be to release him from his promise. That vow was made to a different girl, and she would not hold him to it.
Nina doesn't remember much about the early part of that day when the train finally arrived. It was an emotional whirl, equal parts joy and fear. But what she'll never forget is this. She was standing in a crowd, surrounded by other joyous families, because Jimmy wasn't the only boy coming home that day. And the crutches were good for at least one thing because she could push up on them, and it gave just enough of a view that she could see Jimmy coming through the crowd, searching for her. She called his name and their eyes locked and her voice froze and he came to her. And at last he stood there. And he didn't look at the crutches or the brace. Because he didn't care. Jimmy swept her up in his arms and they have been together, inseparable, from that day to this.
I'll never forget the impact of hearing that story, told to me by Nina in her quiet voice, in a hushed room full of women, all quietly nodding and smiling. If ever there was a love story in this world, that is it. That's the girl Jimmy truly deserves.