A Tale of Love Lost and Found

Assignment America: High School Sweethearts Start a Life Together, 50 Years after a Lie Split Them Up

(CBS)  It's been 50 years since Rodney Day gave his class ring to Dianne Harris, reports CBS News correspondent Steve Hartman.

"We probably would have gotten married and we would have stayed together," Dianne said.

They attended Napa High School in northern California. Rodney was three years older and after graduating he joined the Navy. Dianne used to wait for his letters and couldn't wait for him to get home on his first leave.

"He was home only one day and we went out and he fell asleep at the wheel and we crashed into a cement abutment," she said.

Rodney didn't die - although, as far as Dianne was concerned, he might as well have -- the rotten bum. Shortly after the accident, Dianne says her mother came into her hospital room and said Rodney wanted to break-up.

"He just left me" without telling her to her face, Dianne said. "I never saw him again, ever."

End of story - or at least it was.

Dianne says she fond out the truth 50 years later.

Rodney was searching the Internet a few months ago -- looking for old high school friends -- when he came across Dianne's contact information. So he reached out to her. And as they talked - they realized - what really happened all those years ago.

Rodney says he never broke up with Diane.

"And I said, that's funny, because she told me you wanted to break up with me," Dianne recalled. Rodney apparently was told that Dianne didn't want to see him.

Apparently, Dianne's mother didn't want her daughter waiting around on some Navy guy.

Rodney and Dianne both married other people. Rodney's wife just died a few years ago and Dianne is divorced. They both had children and grandchildren so, of course, neither would change the past. But neither wants to live in it either.

"It was like a spark was there," Dianne said, "Like no time had passed."

After about a month getting reacquainted, Rodney gave Dianne his high school ring for the second time.

And just a few weeks later, gave her a brand new one to go with it.

They are now Mr. and Mrs. Rodney Day. Like any newlyweds, they still have to meld her stuff with his.

But assuming their marriage can survive the cupboards, they should enjoy many years of wedded bliss.

Nice to see, huh? That young love doesn't have to get old.

[Nunnally_Kallen05081987]

wow..i love their story...

A great love story. Serving in the armed forces did have it's drawbacks,
and this wasn't all that unusual, except for the eventual outcome.
Best Wishes for your new life together. Turn down the lights and slow
dance to "Deep Purple Dream", or a few other oldies, and put two straws
into a cherry coke float. Lot's of Luck you youngsters..

[darrow1975]

My fiance and I have a very similar story ourselves. Although fortunately for us, we only had to wait 19 years to find each other and get back together and not 50. We are 33 and 34 years old, and we met each other through my then best friend and his older brother when we were 14 and 15 years old. A different and separate lie told to us both separately by his brother led to a 19 year break up. By an off chance and more so by fate, this year, we ended up going to our local county fair like we always do every year. This year was different because neither one of us were married or dating anyone at the time. He saw me and came up to me and spoke and we hugged. We sat together to watch the Demolition Derby. We started talking after that, and 8 days later we moved into together. Within the same week, we were already talking about marriage. Now, we share a house together but are looking for a larger house because I have 3 girls ages 13, 10, and almost 7 (December birthday) and he has an 8 year old son from our previous marriages. Yes, you could say we are a modern day brady bunch, and we will be trying next year to add one more child to the "bunch". Next year, we will also be getting married on Sept. 5th on the day that our new beginning started this year on. Every day, I am thankful that we are back together. Everyday, I thank God that I got a second chance at my first true love. My fiance and I watched this story the other night when it came on, and we looked at each other and smiled and knew just how those two people feel. It is a lot of lost time that doesn't get made up, but there is still alot of present and future time to look forward to. Before this year, I was in a bad marriage for 10 and 1/2 years and in an abusive relationship for 5 and 1/2 years; so after 16 years of wondering if happiness really did exist and if I would ever really know how it feels to experience it; I do get to experience it everyday for the rest of my life, and my girls benefit too because they finally get to see what a good and kind and loving father and supportive father really looks like and acts like. Hopefully with them still being young, they will look at him as their role model for what they want in their lives when they get older and one day want to marry rather than what they have had to endure as well as myself over the last several years. Good luck to all in finding your true love whether it is your first, middle, or last.

Finally Loved,
Amy

[aChangeOfIdeas]

Sweet. I wish them the best!

[teachermrb]

What a great story. Where do they live now? The footage reminds me of the Laughlin, NV/Bullhead City, AZ area.