Patricia Johns

A few years ago, I was writing a cowboy romance, and I came across these plastic cows in our local Peavy Hardware. It’s basically a farm supply store. You can get everything: groundhog traps, saddle blankets, bird feed, yarn, boots, hats, tools… They also have these high quality plastic animals.

Anyway, I saw this cow, and said to my husband, “I want that cow for my desk. You know–inspiration.” And Mr. Johns got this thoughtful look on his face and said, “Yes. I will buy you a cow,” all meaningfully.

I didn’t really get it, but when we left the store, he took a picture of the plastic cow, sent it to his family saying he’d bought it as a gift for me, and he immediately got replies saying how deeply romantic he was. I still didn’t get it! I was like, “Wow. They are super supportive, I guess.”

Anyway, it took a few days, but the meaning of the cow finally dawned on me, and it IS super romantic! You see, my husband comes from an African country where people will give cows (literal livestock) as gifts to people they deeply care for. For example, when a woman marries, she’s often given a cow. I was given a cow when I married him! (It’s in Africa, doing well on my father-in-law’s farm. But that’s a whole story for another day.) So for a husband to give his wife a cow is deeply meaningful. And since we are apartment dwellers and there will be no actual livestock, Mr. Johns got me a cow that works for us.

So last year, I bought Mr. Johns a cow, too. And then our son said, “What am I, chopped liver?” So I got him one, as well. And now we have a small herd of plastic cows on my desk which is a testament to our family’s love for each other. I’m kind of tempted to buy a calf, just because it would be cute to grow my herd, but I’m afraid that people would read into it! LOL!

So there you have it–the love language in our romance. Cattle! Every romance has its own little secret code. If you have a fun love language with your special someone, I’d love to hear about it!

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As always, happy reading!

❤