Halloween was never a celebrated holiday in my household. At least not in the same sense that “the world” celebrated Halloween. Growing up, my good, church-going family always told us it was evil. In school, while the other kids were giddy at the idea of dressing up as a witch with the promise of free candy, the Newsome kids secretly admired them. As we got older, my mom loosened her restrictions and we could dress up, just not as anything scary. I was Cleopatra one year, Mary, the mother of Jesus another. But soon you grow out of dressing up for Halloween and the novelty wears off.

Halloween of 2008 was no different than any other in my life. I was a reporter in Columbus on my way hopefully to bigger and better things. But it was in October of 2008 that I realized how I’d failed to cultivate a social life in the city. Whenever I move to a city, I move right into downtown. To this day, my worst nightmare is waking up in the suburbs. I like the vibrancy of the city. Because I’m a people watcher, I want the option of having an interesting and colorful landscape of characters to observe. What and who would I watch in the suburbs besides a long line of anonymous neighbors mowing their grass? But in the 2 1/2 years I’d been in Columbus, I’d not done a thing but turn down invitations.  I’m an introvert at heart. Social situations are awkward for me. When you’re on TV (in any capacity), people are usually expecting you to perform. I’d much rather spend a performance-free evening home alone. But with only 6 months left in the city I made a pact with myself to say YES to every event I was invited to until I left Columbus.  One such invitation came from a sweet guy I knew from college named Darrell Perry. It wasn’t the first time he’d requested the ‘pleasure’ of my company. 2 years earlier, we saw each other again for the first time since college at the funeral of a mutual friend. He gave me his card and suggested we get together sometime.  During the course of 2 years he’d occasionally send me an email to remind me of the original suggestion. But I did what any well-mannered lady does when she’s not interested; I acted as if getting together was a remote possibility, but then ignored all attempts at follow up. After all, he wasn’t my “type.” I’m 5’9″ barefooted and well over 6 feet in my beloved high heels. He was 5’8″ at best. He was cute as a button but didn’t have my usual attribute of an athletic build. It sounds so shallow when I think about it now, that height would be a serious criteria for even accepting an invitation to dinner. But with my internal pact in my mind I accepted his invitation to a Halloween party. I decided to go as a beauty queen simply because I had been a bridesmaid in my brother’s wedding a month earlier and had the dress and shoes at my fingertips.  I bought a crown from a prop store for a couple dollars, but still needed to make the outfit authentic. I didn’t want anybody confused about what I was. My co-worker (who was the traffic reporter) was ACTUALLY a former Ms. Franklin County. She let me borrow her winning sash (which I’m pretty sure is against some sort of official pageant rule, but it’s awesome she trusted me) and THAT made my costume complete. JR was the first person I looked for when we walked into the party. I was there with friends but I wanted him to know I came. I said I would come and I came (a first in our short history of almost get-togethers).  Turns out he’d forgotten he invited me. He was dressed as a doctor. The night turned out to be one of the most fun I had during my Columbus tenure. My husband is a great dancer and “Dr. Perry” and I danced the night away. Although I had to field tons of annoying people who thought I’d actually WON Ms. Franklin County (why would I come dressed as something I already was?!), but I guess I should be flattered at the authenticity of my costume. That was the first night I saw Darrell Perry as a possible hang buddy. Not somebody I could date, but definitely worth spending more time with.  He would later change that. Like my Halloween costume fooled everyone in the party that night, he fooled me. I thought he was in one category but he proved to be on a whole other level. Soon, he single-handedly redefined what I thought I knew about men and about me. All of a sudden short was the new tall, thick was the new ripped and cute as a button was the new fine as heck!!!

The next October, my husband lured me to a restaurant where 30 of my closest friends and family awaited while he got on bended knee and asked me to be his beauty queen. He’s still my doctor. The surgeon who reconstructed my idea of love and healed my heart. I thank God in Heaven for Halloween. I know, not exactly the holiest of holidays, but October is month I will always celebrate – the novelty will NEVER wear off.

“You know I thank God sun rises and shines on you
You know there’s nothin’, nothin’, nothin’ I would not do”

Ba, ba, ba….

Halloween, Halloween, Halloween….

Should be one of my favorite holidays of the year, but I typically brush it off.  Don’t know how or why I do, because it was this time, 4 yrs ago while at an Halloween party, in walked Tacoma Newsome…the most amazing woman I have ever laid eyes on.  I forget what I was dressed as (really, who cares!?)…but I remember her like it was yesterday.  She dressed up as a beauty pageant contestant….Ms. Franklin County if I’m not mistaken.  Light Teal blue dress, tiara…the whole nine.  So fine everyone there thought she actually won the pageant (me included), and just chose to wear it.  I remember being so intimidated by her beauty.  Her face, that smile…flawless!  She grabbed my hand, and we danced…and danced….and laughed. The song that was playing?  Before I Let Go by Maze featuring Frankie Beverly.  As we danced, I realized I was getting all hot and sweaty, not from the miniature two step we were doing, but because I was NERVOUS.  I mean, this was Columbus’ very own Tacoma Newsome, all 5’9” of her incredible beauty.  If you’ve seen how gorgeous she is reporting the news, imagine her dressed as a beauty pageant contestant, and you couldn’t blame me.  The most alarming thing was just how down to earth she was (and still is), and how she LIT UP THE ROOM.  I mean, seriously, she has a laugh that catches your attention.  This was the night I actually realized I had a crush on her (someone else had pointed out to me my reply emails to her, with a group of our mutual friends included, were full of signs of me being “smitten”, as they would say), but at this party, I realized I actually wanted nothing in life more than her.  Yeah, I said it, a CRUSH.  Like, the feeling you had in high school for the person you wanted to go to the prom with…or when you were a kid and first realized girls were pretty and not “yucky”.  It was like a scene out of a movie, when you see someone walk into a room, and time stands still.  Yup, that’s EXACTLY how I felt when she walked in.  If this were a stage play, she made an ENTRANCCE.  Man, just dancing with her made my night.  A month later, I overcame my own personal fears of rejection, “manned up”, and asked her out to dinner.  11 months after that, we were married.  Lord, thank you for giving me the courage to overcome my own fears and self-doubts to step up!

My wife said it best: “It just goes to show, just beyond our fear is a glorious destiny!”. 

She couldn’t be more right.  I look back on that Halloween weekend of 2008, and I’m reminded just how EASY it is for us to take our wives/husbands for granted.  We can get “complacent” in our affection, in our ability to realize this precious gift of LOVE God has placed in our hands, the responsibility to care for someone more than yourself.  I’m always telling my wife just how incredible and important she is to me, but I truly don’t think I appreciate and comprehend just how incredible she is.

I look back on that chilly Halloween night, in 2008 when a beauty pageant contestant walked into my life and totally blew my mind away, and I realize just how blessed I am.  My beautiful wife, and my Father who art in heaven, PLEASE forgive me for ever taking this love for granted in any aspect of my life!

And Maze feat Frankie Beverly, thank you for helping make the memory!  I hear the song playing in my head, and all I can see is the MOSTBEAUTIFULLESTTHINGINTHISWORLD, with the MOSTINCREDIBLESMILE, and the MOSTINTOXICATINGLAUGH.

Tacoma Perry, you truly do make my LIFE.