Are Leanne and Larry in love?
Their initials are inscribed on a lock.
That lock is shut tightly and permanently at eye level around a chain-link fence lining the pedestrian bridge leading from the west end of Riverside Park up to Overlanders Bridge.
Leanne and Larry’s lock is the neatest and tidiest and was carefully planned, considering it is professionally engraved.
Perhaps it was the first.
Perhaps it is the most forever.
Surely, it is the most thought out of all the surrounding locks.
Are Brian and Alyssa in love?
Their names are scratched into another lock.
It is messier than Leanne and Larry’s, but one can appreciate how the names have been carved so deeply into the lock’s golden face — by hand.
Perhaps it shows an eager desire to express their love.
Perhaps it is the most passionate.
Surely it has earned its place on the fence next to Leanne and Larry’s lock, if only for its effort.
Do F.O. and H.T. — or is it H.I.? — share a different kind of love?
Their lock shines similarly to Brian and Alyssa’s in the sun, but with black initials penned in permanent marker.
A simple message is also spelled out on the lock in three letters — “BFF.”
A fruit label is stuck to this lock, covering H.’s second initial, making it indecipherable with the placement of a grocery code for a “Black Plum.”
Did someone purposefully deface this lock while walking along the bridge?
Perhaps it was intentional. Perhaps it was an inside joke between F. and H., something most BFF’s tend to share.
Four other love locks are clasped to this area of the fence, easy to miss along the path that overlooks the intersection of the North and South Thompson rivers.
The simple safety devices are symbols of love that can be found all over the world and have somehow made their way to Kamloops.
Lovers inscribe their names or initials on a lock, fasten it to a bridge, fence or other structure and toss away the key to symbolize everlasting love.
The mystery and romance of it all is beautiful.
The way they accumulate, however, has, at times, led to love unrequited.
In Paris, a blogger started an online petition to “please unlock your love” and save Paris’s “frail, old bridges,” not to mention the waterways below with all of the sunken, thrown-away keys left to rust in them.
An article in the summer by the Associated Press reported that the thousands of locks that cling to the Pond des Arts in the world’s most romantic city have led to a chunk of fencing collapsing under their weight.
In New York City, the famed Brooklyn Bridge hasn’t felt the love lately.
Once known for its love locks, the bridge is now littered with everything — bras, condoms, tampons, twist ties, ear buds and any trash you can affix to the structure.
The world-famous crossing has become more of a gar-bridge, really.
Closer to home, love locks were removed from the Burrard Bridge in Vancouver just last year.
Like the caved-in Parisian fence, these cases give me a heavy heart because love locks aren’t vandalism — they are art from the heart.
Think of Leanne and Larry’s time and thoughtfulness.
Consider the work that went into Brian and Alyssa’s lock.
They are so much more than a lock on a fence. They are a collection of little mysterious love stories in Kamloops.
I’m hoping the next time I walk the bridge, they will still be there, with even more added.
Perhaps the City of Kamloops can even get ahead of it all by reinforcing the fence or beefing up the pedestrian bridge below.
Why not put up a plaque, explain the tradition and encourage it all — make it a special and romantic place to visit near the park?
It could be a little place to wander and wonder about Leanne and Larry and love.
Jessica Wallace is a reporter for KTW. Email her here. Follow her on Twitter here.
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