By Joe Garrison, March 31, 2011 — Debra was my favorite girl, and she reasoned, cared, and thought like a wife. Four years ago I had a heart attack and Debra was the one who told my sister and was by my side the whole time during my recovery. I met her at work 20 years ago. We were first office mates and we became friends, and one thing led to another. It wasn’t until ’06, when we found out that we had been in love with each other all these years. Through the years we kept growing our friendship. I couldn’t start my work day without saying good morning to her.
This relationship was based on true friendship. We became a sounding board for each other’s problems, or struggles. I can write a whole book about Debra. Because of who she was, her sweetness radiated through the whole agency where we worked. Everyone liked her, and the few people who didn’t—I felt that they were just jealous of her.
This girl was the love of my life and she passed away 2 years ago. She found out she had cancer in ’08. Even though she is not here, I still feel as though she is here with me. Believe it or not, sometimes when the wind is right, I still smell the fragrance of her hair. That’s how much I loved her. When I found out that she had passed away, I literally lost it. It took me 6, 7 months to accept the fact that she has passed. That’s how much I loved her.
Debra was the sweetest girl I ever knew. If a person can find someone like that once in their life, there’re fortunate, they have something good. True romantic love is the perfume of life.
P.S. We had a special way of expressing our love to each other. We’d say Debra-Forevera, and that means she is mine forever.