This story contains nudity, sexual activities shared in a group setting, romance, Love, affection and conversations about relationships, Love, Life and even God. This is not a "Wham-Bam-Thank-you" story. It is fiction, and it is possible. Fiction means the characters in the story may not have the same names in life, may not live where they story places them, may not looks as the story says they look, and may not exist anywhere except in my head. May is a very big word.]
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"How can you decide you are in love with someone before you meet?"
"Have you ever met God, face to face, hung out together?"
"No, but that's different."
"Because you already have stuff made up about who God is, and how you can be in relationship with God. I can decide right now that when we meet Jerry's friends in Raton that I'm really going to like them. I can decide that I'm going to have them for my brother and my sister. I love them both, and I've never met them. Everyone at the party that was held at Jenny's place when you came to visit had already decided to love you and accept you into the family before your plane landed."
"They all treated me like I belonged. I really did feel welcome and not like a stranger."
"That was our intention. People who come and hang with us have one of two reactions to us. They discover they are part of our family or they get scared and run."
"How could someone run? I never felt as good around people as I felt that night."
"They could run because they realized at some level that in order to accept our love they would need to give up their cherished beliefs about who they are and what they deserve."
"Oh."
Petra looked out the window and saw nothing. She thought about this family. They passed a sign and Petra came back to present long enough to read it. Raton, 3 miles. She picked up the radio and said, "I just saw a sign for Raton, three miles."
"We saw too. Thanks." Jenny said. A couple seconds later Jerry's voice came over the radio.
"When we get off we will head west about four miles. I won't be going over forty."
They followed Jerry off I-25 and off into the land around Raton.
Family in Raton
After a few minutes' drive, they were far enough from the highway that they could neither see nor hear it. They turned onto a two-lane country road and went another few miles to a gate alongside the road. The gate was plenty wide and tall enough for the truck Jerry was driving. It looked big enough for a semi truck to pass through. The pillars at each side of the gate were made of brick. They were about four-foot square and almost fifteen feet tall. Connecting these pillars between their tops was a wrought iron structure that was an arc. In the middle of that arc were wrought iron letters forming the words "Getto Ranch."
Jerry stopped the truck in the middle of the road and got out. He walked to the gate and opened a panel in the left pillar. He did something and the tubular steel gate began to slowly open. He jogged back to the truck, climbed in and pulled thru the gate. As he did, Jenny's voice came over the radio and said, "Follow us closely. We don't know if we have to close the gate or it's automatic."
Tom stayed within about ten feet of the back of the truck. When they were well through the gate Jerry let the truck come to a stop. He got out, to go back to the gate. When he got back to the Honda the gate slowly began to close. He smiled at Tom and Petra and asked, "Are you hungry again?"
Tom smiled. Petra blushed. Jerry laughed and went back to the truck. Soon Petra heard Jenny's voice on the radio.
"I see a building up ahead near a grove of trees."
A few seconds later she spoke again, "There is a horse and rider by the building."
"Say more." Petra said, "We can't see anything."
"The rider is on a beautiful horse. Both the rider and the horse have the same color hair. And, the rider gives new meaning to the phrase "riding bareback."
"What does all that mean?" Petra asked.
"It means the rider is a naked woman." Jerry said, laughing.
Jerry stopped the truck just before getting to the rider. He had his window open and said to her, "Roseanne, you are a sight! A welcome and wonderful sight."
She smiled wide and slid off the horse.
"Get out of that truck, you handsome man. I haven't had a hug from you in months."
He got out of the truck and pulled Jenny with him as he did so. He introduced Jenny to Roseanne after they hugged. Roseanne hugged Jenny and kissed her on the cheek. Then the three walked back to the Honda.
"You might as well get out of the car." Jerry said, loudly.
"OK." Tom said.
He and Petra got out and were introduced to Roseanne. Petra had some trouble knowing where to look with this beautiful, tall, blond, nude woman standing in front of her. Roseanne pointed them towards the house and said she would be along soon but that she had one more chore to do first. She turned and her horse was right there. Petra noticed that the small blanket on the horse was the same color as the horse. With movements as graceful and smooth as a ballet dancer, she leapt up onto the horse and they took off at a trot.
Petra spoke up, "Does she always dress like that?"
"When she is out here, I think she does. Every time I've seen her in Santa Fe, she was dressed in jeans and shirt. She even wears boot to town." Jerry answered.
He looked at Petra and said, "If it bothers you, I'm sure she would put something on."
"It does bother me and I'll deal with it. Please don't say anything."
"OK."
Jerry turned towards the truck. Petra spoke again.
"Jerry, can I ride to the house in the truck?"
"Of course. I was starting to wonder if I was ever going to get to talk to you alone on this trip."
He turned to Jenny and said, "Honey, would you mind riding with Tom for a couple of miles?"
"No. In fact, I have some things I want to talk to Tom about."
They loaded up and slowly drove down the road to the house.
Inside the truck, Petra asked Jerry, "What do you think is going on between Tom and me?"
"I think you are two people testing out a new way of being in relationship. I think that you are getting used to the idea that someone can and does love you. Tom is discovering just how powerful his intention is, and it's scaring him a little."
There was a pause in the truck.
Petra spoke. "How do you know Tom is scared? He doesn't seem scared to me."
"I've known Tom for a while. He has shared with me the things that are important to him. He has shared the things that he feels have been missing from his life; the things he has held onto as dreams. When you arrived at Jenny's house, he had already decided he was going to love you. I knew that before you left Lincoln. He wants this to work. He sees the possibility here of the two of you fulfilling each other, of having the life you and he have dreamt of and having it together. And he is scared he'll mess that up."
"I can't think of how he could. Jerry, I've been wanting Tom in my life since I was born."
"Are you afraid that something you do or something you are or aren't will mess it up?"
"Yes." Her voice was quiet, and the fear very present.
"My telling you not to worry won't do much good so I'll tell you this instead: If you are both willing to change the paradigm that runs your lives to one that works for you every moment, everything will be Love and Life for the rest of your lives."
Jerry was watching the road with a big smile on his face as he spoke. After a few seconds, Petra shifted on the seat and Jerry said, "New topic."
"What?"
"When you rearrange yourself you are starting a new topic."
"I am?"
"Well, what were you going to say?"
"I was going to ask about you and Jenny."
"What did you want to find out?"
"How long has this thing between you been going on?"
"The first romantic kiss was in Lincoln. I love her unlike any other woman I have ever loved."
"What about God being Love? Doesn't that mean you love Roseanne, too?"
"It does mean that I love Roseanne. I love you. I love Tom and Alex, too. Loving each of you is an acknowledgement of seeing the divine in you, seeing you as God, as Love, and as Life."
"Then what makes Jenny different?"
"I am willing to have her as my partner in Love and Life. I am willing to share my living with her, every breath, every thought, every feeling. She is the scale that I will measure all other relationships with."
"I think I understand."
"I would be surprised if no more questions come up about it. I have been immersed in this for years and sometimes I still need to work things out. Sometimes that is done in my head but more often now it is through dialogs like this."