There is plenty of love in Port Richmond this Valentine’s Day.
The Port Richmond Neighborhood Association recently held its Love Story Contest, where neighbors submitted their personal love stories. One lucky winner was chosen and will receive a free dinner at LaRoma Philly on Valentine’s Day, as well as a gift card courtesy of the Port Richmond Neighborhood Association.
Erin & Taylor
Our story began in the halls of Baldi Middle School, where two 11-year-olds, awkward and unsure, shared a first kiss that neither of us fully understood at the time. It was brief, clumsy even, but something about it stuck with both of us.
But middle school didn’t last forever. We drifted apart, as people often do, and the years blurred. High school, college, life—so many milestones passed without us even knowing where the other was. I’d think about him sometimes, a fleeting memory of that kiss, of the shy friendship we shared. But as the years went on, I pushed it to the back of my mind. Life was moving forward, and I was caught up in it, as he was in his.
Seventeen years later, I wasn’t expecting anything, let alone him. It was a random Facebook message, a “Hey, remember me?” that sent my heart into a nervous flutter. I hadn’t heard his name in ages, and here it was, like it had never left. We picked up our conversation like no time had passed at all, laughing over how strange it was that we had both thought about that first kiss—how it had lingered in both of our memories, even after all these years.
We started talking more regularly, reminiscing about the old days and catching up on everything that had happened since. What began as a few messages turned into long conversations, and before I knew it, we were meeting up for coffee, then dinner, then weekend getaways. Something about being together felt so natural, so right. It was like we’d been woven together by fate, our paths reconnecting when the time was finally right.
Exactly one year after reconnecting, we were walking down the aisle, our hearts full of a love that had grown slowly, over time and distance, until it could no longer be ignored. Our first kiss, innocent and nervous, had somehow led us here—two souls who had always been meant for each other, just waiting for the right moment.
