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blogging, coffee drinking, Denny's, faith, hope, hubby-love, life, love, romance, Valentines Day
In the city long ago, I used to works nights and follow each shift up with a visit to Denny’s for their country egg scramble and bottomless cup of coffee. In the early morning hours the place would be filled with a smattering of homeless guys, a few addicts, and girls who worked in the clubs in the red light district.
One such club had a neon sign that read, “we rent angels by the hour.” I say this with some amusement, because that is also the slogan of the healthcare agency I now work for some 25 years later.
In Denny’s long ago a love story unfolded before my eyes, but not quite the type of love story people like to hear. There were a couple of Christian men, Dennis and Mark, who would come into Denny’s to try and evangelize to the homeless guys and sometimes to the ladies, too. One day Dennis met Rachel and became enchanted with her. She really was beautiful with turquoise eyes and a sweetness about her that just couldn’t be disguised, even with all the costuming and make up. She was very seductive however, and all over Dennis as much as possible in a restaurant.
I was much more cynical and jaded in my younger days, if fact, the Denny’s dishwasher and I had a running bet going over how long it was going to take these two to have sex. It wasn’t a question of if, it was a question of when. We would roll our eyes and snicker, “why don’t they just get a room and be done with it.”
Over the days to come Dennis and Rachel were inseparable. Dennis would ask her questions about her job, her life, how she came to work in the clubs. He was always talking to her about her worth and her value and how loved she was. Rachel began to change, she just started carrying herself different and you could sense the transformation.
Eventually Rachel fell in love. But not with Dennis. She had met this fairly well off guy and she was quitting her job and planning an elaborate wedding. Dennis was stoic, but we could all feel his sadness. To add insult to injury, Rachel asked Dennis to be an usher at her wedding. He had to pay the rental for his own suit, too.
Dennis didn’t get the girl. He never even got to sleep with her. The dishwasher and I both lost our bet. All that love and compassion Dennis invested in Rachel and somebody else reaped the rewards.
But it was still a beautiful love story because Dennis had no idea how many eyes were on him in that Denny’s long ago. Rachel found herself simply because Dennis took the time to teach her that she had worth and value beyond her sexuality. I watched Dennis night after night and I slowly began to lose my own cynicism. The dishwasher started to believe in love again. One of the 2 AM coffee drinkers reconciled with his wife. Dennis touched a lot of lives in that Denny’s simply by being himself and showing people he cared.
Rachel got married and had two children. Dennis got a really good job offer and that was the last I ever saw of him. Wherever he is, I hope he knows there was great victory in his lost-love story. He didn’t get the girl, but he made so many of us believe in love again, the kind that asks for nothing in return but leaves behind something beautiful, even in its failure.
******Repost
See, there's this thing called biology... 
Sweet story, IB.
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You are an astute observer IB. Since I was a young adolesent in the dating game, it has been obvious(and curious) to me that women seem to be more interested in me when I already have a girlfriend. At first I attributed this to my own perception – I would notice more openness when i wasn’t looking for it. But it became apparent that this was not the case, as i found that if i fooled myslef into believing that I had a girlfriend (I have an active imagination) the same effect occurred, even without an actual girlfriend. I filed this info away for years, not quite sure how it actually helped anything. Then i read your recent post on how men actually have an intrinsic power that women crave and will seek out. I thought about this and realized that you were right. I tried believing it and seemed to get a lot of female attention. So, it was the aura of “value” in a relationship – the fact that women seek out men who believe they have value to the opposite sex (doing this soley from a heterosexual perspective – I could include homosexuals and i know it will bring out your readers in droves – Ha!). So, it was the self-value that was important, whether it was a result of having a relationship, pretending to have a relationship or unilaterally seeing the internal value. It also explains how assholes get a lot of women, because they think they are so attractive to women. Problem is, of course, that their sense of value comes from the adoration of others and not from within.
That being said, your story today is a perfect example. Dennis loved Rachel – giving her a feeling of value. That value was sensed by other males and her love life opened up. Then she got to choose one man from numerous who showed interest. That option to choose allowed her to pick the boyfriend who most interested her – not the only one who showed an interest.
Cool post IB, and very consistent.
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Yes, I think you’ve managed to observe a few things yourself there 😉
Women really do seek out worth and value in men, you see this all the time. Sometimes women will read the signals wrong and go for complete jerks, simply because those guys have learned how to exploit biology and create attraction.
We want to see more nice guys embrace their value and learn how to create attraction so all the yahoos get left behind.
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IB:
“Women really do seek out worth and value in men, you see this all the time.”
Actually I don’t. The ones who seek out worth and value in men seem to be uncommonly rare.
“We want to see more nice guys embrace their value and learn how to create attraction so all the yahoos get left behind.”
Would that this would happen, but it’s typically the nice guys who get left behind.
“All that love and compassion Dennis invested in Rachael and someone else reaped the rewards.”
That’s usually how it works.
“It made many of us believe in love again.”
This kind of story is so familiar; I can’t help but wonder what became of Dennis. Having been in his shoes before, I can guess that he doesn’t have the same faith in love that he once had anymore.
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Not long ago, older men used to teach younger men about the world, about attraction, about women. There was a lot of wisdom passed down. I actually learned a few things about myself from some of those guys. Believe it or not, women don’t always understand the nature of our own selves, either. Much of that tradition has been lost. Combine that with a world working very hard to redefine gender roles, to deny biology, to separate men and women from each other, and it’s gotten challenging.
Women really are drawn towards value, worth, leadership, men who think highly of themselves, not arrogantly, but simply confidently. The nice guys I know struggle because they expect women to “seek out their worth.” Most women aren’t likely to go seeking anything. Attraction is more like a quick and unspoken recognition of somebody’s value because that is how they present themselves, that is the message they send out. Attraction is immediate, building loyalty takes years.
Dennis had incredible worth and value, but he really cast himself in the role of kind, brotherly love with Rachel and that’s exactly how she came to perceive him. Brotherly love is awesome, it literally changes lives, but it’s unlikely to create romantic attraction. Some people call it the friend zone.
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Enjoyed this story! Very well written and authentic.
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What a beautiful story!
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Nice. And well written, too, which is a bonus.
You should have a go at that Nomowrimo thing … or whatever it’s called.
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Beautiful.
Best,
— x
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This is an incredibly beautiful story of how God can work things for our good even though we don’t know what He’s doing or how’s He’s going to do it.
We humans see one thing and think what we believe should happen, but God sees something completely different and has a plan that is so beautiful that we are left speechless when He accomplishes it for His glory and our good.
Two passages came to mind as I read your post:
Isaiah 55:8-9 – “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” declares the Lord. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts.
Ecclesiastes 11:5 – “Just as your do not know the path of the wind and how bones are formed in the womb of the pregnant woman, so you do not know the activity of God who makes all things.”
Keep sharing, IB! It’s stories like this that continue to encourage and uplift. 🙂
~ God Bless!
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have you ever read Francine Rivers Redeeming Love—this tale reminds me a good bit about that book—a great yet heart pulling read….
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Best book ever! You would love it IB.
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It really is!
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What a nice story IB. Sometimes we think we have lost something, but what we have done is bigger than us I suppose. I bet Dennis eventually found somebody who would return his heart to him.
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Lovely story. It has the makings of a best seller. You have some of the best stories/experiences.
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Great story
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