According to the Huffington Post , the Boston Marathon runner who has been searching for the stranger she kissed on a dare got some news. But she didn’t hear from the mystery man. Instead, she heard from his wife .
Barbara Tatge says her daughter had dared her to kiss a random, good-looking man as she ran through the town of Wellesley, where the women of Wellesley College traditionally offer kisses to runners.
This was Barbara’s first marathon on April 20. She was excited, so she took the dare. When she went back home to Tennessee, she couldn’t stop thinking about the man who had given her permission to take the photo.
The man left such an impression on Barbara that her daughter tried to locate him for her mother’s upcoming birthday. Paige posted a request for help on social media. She also sent letters to newspapers in the Boston area.
After the search generated nationwide attention, Barbara received a personal letter from the Wellesley Townsman , a Boston-area news outlet. The letter was from the man’s wife.
SB Nation posted the wife’s entire letter . The wife stated she and her husband wanted to remain anonymous.
“For me, I’m not mad. Believe me, our friends have gotten a lot of mileage out of this story, and I have thoroughly enjoyed watching them give my husband grief!”
The wife continued to be nice in the letter while explaining her position as a devoted wife.
“While this may not be the ending that you had hoped for, that spontaneous, silly moment in Wellesley captured the fun, energy and spirit of the Boston Marathon. I greatly admire your spunk and courage and wish you many happy races in the future. Congratulations on your Boston finish!”
Tatge says she wrote back to the wife. In her letter, she thanked the for her graciousness and good humor. She also apologized for any embarrassment the search may have caused.
“I just wanted her to know that the media firestorm stemmed from my loving daughter’s good-hearted dare. I didn’t want to cause any discomfort to him or his family.”
Barbara said she’s been touched by the support she’s received but is happy to move on. She hopes to run the Boston Marathon again, but she said she will kiss only single men. The only thing about this is that she won’t know if a random man she kisses is single or married.
[Photo Courtesy of Paige Tatge]
