All the luscious language
ISSUE NO. 36 // ALL THE LUSCIOUS LANGUAGE
Today’s guest, Karen Candida-Lombardo, and I met during a virtual networking coffee hour. She answered my call for collaborators last year. (Yay!) When I encountered Harry S Truman’s pathetic marriage proposal in Matthew Algeo’s When Harry Met Pablo, I just knew Karen could have saved Truman nearly a decade of waiting.
She’s more than a century too late for Truman, but she is available to anyone (future president or not) with clumsy marriage proposals.
Presidential Doodler
Doodle inspired by When Harry Met Pablo: Truman, Picasso, and the Cold War Politics of Modern Art by Matthew Algeo
Truman's proposal: before and after
It's no wonder his proposal didn't sweep her off her feet. With a bit more finesse, I bet he could have had her saying "yes" much sooner.
What do you think?
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ORIGINAL PROPOSAL
Dear Bessie:
From all appearances I am not such a very pious person, am I? The elements evidently mistook one of my wishes for dry instead of wet I guess we'll all have to go to drinking whiskey if it doesn't rain very soon. Water and potatoes will soon be as much of a luxury as pineapples and diamonds.
Speaking of diamonds, would you wear a solitaire on your left hand should I get it? Now that is a rather personal or pointed question provided you take it for all it means. You know, were I an Italian or a poet I would commence and use all the luscious language of two continents. I am not either but only a kind of good-for-nothing American farmer. I've always had a sneaking notion that some day maybe I'd amount to something. I doubt it now though like everything. It is a family failing of ours to be poor financiers. I am blest that way. Still that doesn't keep me from having always thought that you were all that a girl could be possibly and impossibly. You may not have guessed it but I've been crazy about you ever since we went to Sunday school together. But I never had the nerve to think you'd even look at me. I don't think so now but I can't keep from telling you what I think of you.
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REVISED PROPOSAL
My Dearest Bessie,
The weather has indeed not cooperated with my wishes for warm afternoons and cool nights. I love the seasons as they change, especially when I can spend them with you. My love for you grows with time, and as such, I have a request.
I am an American farmer, born from honest and deep roots, and in turn, my words reflect the depth of my feelings for you. I’d always hoped to build a strong and successful life, but my ancestry tells another tale. I know I can be successful with a girl like you by my side, a heart and soul connected to turn the impossible into possibility.
My heart has not recovered since I first met you in Sunday school, never possessing the courage or the confidence to approach you. Why would a soul as beautiful as yours consider this poor farmer?
My family roots are simple, and I know not of love and romantic words as an Italian or a poet would, but of this, I ask: would you wear a diamond solitaire on that very special finger? The finger that links to your heart.
I stand before you today with my heart in my hands, hoping you will say yes to this proposal and join me on this journey better known as life.
Endlessly yours,
Harry
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Karen Candida-Lombardo is founder and owner of The Virtual Copywriter. Writing is something she always loved, with or without that cup of coffee. Meeting and engaging with people personally and professionally make it seem like fun, not work. Her expertise lies in helping start-ups and small businesses with content creation, websites, blogging, and email communications. She also takes pride in being there for those special moments—whether it’s guiding a couple in crafting their wedding vows, assisting a graduate with their resume for a dream job, or sensitively writing an obituary for a loved one. Her unique and authentic content strives to capture each client’s genuine voice. She recently launched Chip and Tillie Books in loving memory of her late husband. Fifty percent of the proceeds will be dedicated to a memorial fund supporting charities that are dear to their hearts. Her first children’s book is coming out later this fall. You can find Karen on her personal website, Instagram, or LinkedIn and Miss Tillie (her English bulldog) on Instagram.
Follow along on Instagram for more doodles and presidential trivia.
