T^his tale begins with Once upon a time for all intensive purposes. But this is no fairytale. This is a true story, a love story. There is madness and mayhem and magical moments. Once, it happened. And it is still happening this very day.

Once upon a time, a young man fell from a shitty bathroom stall, a fated shooting star. His hair was disheveled, he reeked of beer and metal. A beautiful, broken girl, sitting alone on a broken bar stool, spied this dusty star. She, not easily moved, was jolted by a silent lightning strike. This man-mess looked, to her, like her new best dress. So, she decided to try him on.

For a time, their romance looked just like him that first day—wild and empty. So, with a heavy heart, she left the man. After a brief break, he decided to dry out. And slowly, surely, he began to shine like a patent leather shoe fresh off the soap box. Alas, upon his return, they moved to a roomy house on a tree-lined street.

Soon, a baby girl came. And just in the nick of time, a ring. Three became four. Her son had the father she desperately wished for. They journeyed to another house. A magical, green place beside a majestic lake. Two more perfect babies joined them. Four became six. A fruitful love, filled with tender moments and violent clashes.

They built a family.
They built a dream.
The bricks were heavy, but the mortar was strong.
They vowed to work together, no matter how long.

Their home now grows raspberries, flowers and trees.
And when there’s broken glass, they sweep up the disease.

Time is a friend.
Time is also a foe.
But a fated shooting star,
Never loses its glow.