I witnessed a most amazing occurrence today.

I was at the VA hospital in Richmond, VA. As some of you know, a couple of times a month I drive disabled vets from here in Charlottesville to the Richmond hospital for their treatments or appointments. While I wait for them to finish, I set my laptop up in the cafeteria and read blogs, write blogs, check email, etc. In fact, I was catching up on your blogs when it happened.

As I was sitting there today I noticed a very gracious looking older couple across from me. I was guessing they were in their mid to late 80’s. The man was in a motorized wheelchair and had an oxygen breathing tube and tank. The woman, a girl-next-door type, was holding his hand and it was obvious they were an “item”.

Suddenly, out of the blue, they embraced and kissed. I don’t mean a simple peck. I don’t mean one of those “I love you” reminder kisses. I mean a good old-fashioned, down home, lunch-crowd-be-damned, all-American lip lock!  They held the embrace and kiss for well over a minute.

I thought to myself, when is the last time any of us held an affectionate kiss with our loved one for over a minute?  OK, I mean without any extra-curricular groping going on. Time it on your watch. It is a long time to hold such a tender kiss, especially in public. And yes, their eyes were closed the whole time.

I was so moved by this unabashed and guiltless display of affection that I got up, walked over to their table, and said: “It may be the day after Valentines Day, but that was the sweetest Valentine kiss I have ever seen.”  They both grinned sheepishly and the man leaned over and said: “I married this wonderful lady in 1947.”

I thought about asking them if I could take their picture, but then I realized that it would cheapen the splendor of the moment. Where is Hallmark when you really need them? And where is my wife?