Sleep Disorders Support Group

This one is for short stories....

James and the ring:

It is a cold fall day, the brisk sun is shining and the wind is blowing in another blustery day. No one on the beach except for one older man walking his dog. James is about 5’8”, stocky build, shaved head with a scruffy looking goatee gray in color with specs of brown. His glasses are thick and heavy as his age has not been kind to his eyes. He loves to walk along the beach with his dog, Jake.

Jake runs in and out of the surf splashing James and breathing in the cold, heavy fall air. He paints, his tongue hanging out his age showing on his as well. James got Jake when the divorce was final, 10 years ago. Jake is getting older and a steady reminder of days that James would soon rather forget. But he can’t.

That cold November day, he entered the courthouse. It was all a blur, lawyers saying this and that. He signed some papers and it was over. She was gone. That same day he drove to the Lake, near the beach where Jake lived. The older couple was moving from the beach into a Condo and Jake couldn’t go. He was just a puppy yet.

It was a quiet, cozy drive home for both. The puppy was scared and James was lonely and afraid of what to do next. He had been in his new “home” for six months already. But, how do you move on with a long marriage that suddenly ends? He had no idea. “Now what…Umm, Jake.” he said. The puppy looked up at him with sad eyes, making him at least feeling needed for the moment. He rubbed the puppies head as he drove the rest of the way home.

They sat in that gray, drab home he made for himself. An obvious bachelor pad stripped down. A television sitting on a wooden crate, a single recliner sitting in the living room. It had been so long since he even thought about buying furniture. Not since the day, she told him she was leaving. It had started a simple furniture-shopping trip at Art Van.

They were looking for a couch; you know that perfect piece to finish off the family room. A floral pattern, with big cushions and not very man-friendly. He loved it. Because she loved it, he had to. And then, on the way home she just blurted it out, like the day she told him she was pregnant long ago. Long before the tears, the pain, the lonely nights home alone.

He sat watching the game in his living room, Jake in his lap. Every time, the Lions scored he jumped and the poor dog cringed. It was a learning curve all around for the two of them. He never held his son after he was born; he had no idea of how to hold something so gentle, soft and small.

This made a tear run down his cheek thinking of the day the Soldier came to the door. The letter he handed James, the day his memory of his son began to fade. There would be only an honorary funeral, John was lost in action. He woke up from his daydream as Jake whimpered for attention. “Ok Jake, ok.” he patted him on the head. “Let’s go.”

Suddenly, it was 10 years later and they are cold, on the beach again not, far from where Jake used to live. They move down the beach, Jake in and out of the water. James looks up and notices someone coming up the beach from the other direction. It was a female he thought. “Jake, come here.” he hooked the lead back onto his collar. “Good boy.”

He kept walking ahead; as she drew closer, he thought how she looked so familiar. Her hair longer, younger looking with lots of curls. “Nah.” he caught himself saying aloud. Can’t be her he thought. She kept heading right in his direction. She waved and smiled.

He almost fell to his knees, his heart was now racing. It was her. The woman, who stole his heart, broke it and left him for dead in the lawyer’s office. “James, I thought that was you. You look great.” she said. He just stood there looking at her, how she could just walk up to him like this. He put his left hand in his pocket. “How have you been, James?” she asked. He said nothing.

“And who is this?” she inquired as she pet the over-friendly dog. He took a deep breath. “Jake, his name is Jake.” replying coldly. The anger was eating at him. How dare she ruin this memory for him? The beach was his domain, the one place she was not a memory. “Hi Jake. Oh, James he’s beautiful.” she said petting Jake the way he loved.

“Come on Jake, we need to go.” he pulled on Jake’s leash leading him away from her.

He walked away in a huff, leaving her standing there. Just as she had left him that day. Stunned, obviously heart-broken and in dismay. “Now we’re even.” he said under his breath. “Damn.”

He turned back around walking to where she was still standing stunned at his reaction to her. “I’m sorry, James.” she began to tear up. “I guess I forgot how much it hurt you.”

He gave her a big hug, “its ok.” He stood there for what seemed hours holding onto what once was his. “I understand, now. Or at least I think I do.” he said softly trying hard not to kiss her. He felt her lips press against his neck.

She took him by the hand and led him to the parking lot. They sat and played with Jake, talking for hours and hours. They walked down the street to the coffee shop and chatted for hours over coffee. About what they had been doing, rather him listening to the life she had been having without him. He sat there listening to her talk, to her live, her breathe. Amazed at how she hadn’t changed at least in his eyes.

Over the next months, they chatted over the phone, online and with every word James was falling back into love. He could hardly wait for his morning walk with Jake, she was usually there too. Like his morning cup of coffee, she made him feel warm and safe, again. His life was finally coming together and she was back in it.

His apartment had become full of pictures on the walls. Jake, her and even James were all there. His life had come full circle in his mind, how it could ever get better he thought. Until the next time she phoned him and his life began to shine. Then one day she stopped phoning, she wasn’t on the beach and he was unable to reach her. The phone number was gone, unavailable with no forwarding number. He had no idea why she was gone. A tear falls down his cheek as he rubbed his left hand.

Then there was a knock on the door and Jake got up and ran to the door barking. “Jake, quiet.” he said. He opened the door rubbing the sleep out of his eyes there stood a Policeman. “Can I help you Officer?” he asked. “Dad, where have you been? I have been calling you for hours.” “I’m sorry do I know you?” James inquires; he has no idea who this is.

“Dad, you’re not supposed to turn off your ringer. Ever since Mom died you scare me.” John said gruffly. “I’m sorry; I just spoke to her last month. What are you talking about?”

John took James by the arm, led him to the couch. “Sit. I realize that your not all here lately but, Mom died years ago Dad.” James rubs his left hand. “It’s gone Dad. You sold your ring last year. Why do you keep rubbing your hand?”

With a tear running down his cheek, James pets Jake and looks at John. “Because you never lose the love as if that ring is still there.”

Mike was sitting at the kitchen table waiting for Katie to come home from work he had been waiting for three days now. He called off work for two days, he phoned the local hospital and asked if she was there the only response he got was, “Mike she has been at work for three days I’m sorry I don’t know what to tell you.”

The front door never opened he just sat there staring at the pictures on the fridge waiting for her to walk through the door. Each picture telling a story in his mind of how they met, the life they have led, and the memories they have made together.

The picture of the day they met at the fair her sitting on his lap in the photo booth her lips pressed into his cheek, each wisp of her hair flowing in the summer breeze that blew through the booth. Her cologne filling his nose as he took in each breath with every thought on how much he really liked her He could still see the look in her eyes as she kissed him goodnight at her car, got in and drove away with a glowing smile on her face.

The picture of the day he met her parents for the first time, his sweaty palms when he first shook hands with her really large father of 6’8” frame with hands big enough to crush him with one punch he kept thinking as he look up to look him in the eyes.

He struggled to hide how much he wanted to touch her out of respect of this southern classic farm family. How each minute seemed like a test of whether he would be a good addition to the family not just for their only daughter? His first time milking one of the families’ dairy cows, It kicked him so hard he fell and screamed a foul word afraid he was about to be disowned by her father, “Yeah you gotta watch out for Millie she’s a kicker.” was all he said as he giggled and helped him up. They all had a great laugh at dinner over that one.

The picture of the day they got engaged how she looked so happy and glowing as he put the ring on her finger just moments after asking her father for permission. He was so nervous he dropped the ring twice trying to get it on her finger, “Sorry.” He sat smiling thinking of how happy she looked that day when they were finally making the big step together.

That led to the picture of their first small house they purchased down the road from her family with the classic dowry her family gave him as a wedding gift. She looked so happy the day he carried her in just days before their wedding together.

The wedding day picture of just her looking angelic at the camera her hair up just so, a wisp of hair hanging down each side of her face, she looked so heavenly to him that day. The way he had to keep pushing it out of her face as they said their vows to one another, she gushed at how she loved him and wanted to be together forever. He stumbled through his poorly written love scratchings that made him sound like a fourteen year old boy with a crush for the first time.

The picture of the day they took over the family farm after her dad had a stroke and was unable to work the farm anymore. How terrified he was after being a part time participant to becoming the main bread winner for the entire family. Only weeks later to help her bury her father and mother within another two months suddenly they were without her family and slowly she seemed to be moving away from him.

The picture of the day she received her nursing degree and started working at the local hospital as an RN. He was as proud of her as he spun his wedding ring on his finger while she walked across the stage. A slight twinge of fear in his heart as he could feel he was losing her and it was only a matter of time. He had no idea how right he truly was after all.

The picture just weeks before when she bought her first new car on her own she didn’t want him to cosign or be on it, “I want to know if something happens to you I can do this on my own.” was all she told him as she made the decision basically on her own. He felt so left out of her life already at this point but, he loved her so he smiled and just politely responded, “You’re going to be fine honey I don’t plan on going anywhere.”

And there he sits in the house they bought together after working the family farm that has now become his only source of work and income waiting for her to come home. He kept calling her cell phone it would ring a couple of times but, she never picked up. He notified the local police department and they just politely told him, “We are sorry she hasn’t been seen in town for several days.”

He got up from the table and walked into the spare bedroom where he was painting the walls a bright pink color for the daughter they were expecting together. “Where are you, Katie?” he kept saying aloud as he started back to painting the room, assembling the furniture.

He went about his business for several more weeks with no word from her and unable to locate her with any friends that he knew she spoke to. No one had apparently seen her for weeks and if they knew where she was they were not telling him. “Sorry Mike we haven’t seen or heard from her in weeks either.”

One day while he was milking the cows the backdoor opened and in walked a slim, non-pregnant Katie with a baby in her arms. She never said anything and all he could do was cry as he looked down at the beautiful baby in her arms. Her beautiful blue eyes, her thick black hair and her dark olive skin Mike now knew why she took off since both Katie and his skin is a pale white color and neither is of Greek descent.

“I’m sorry.” was all he heard her say as she looked into her eyes a snapshot of this day now implanted in his head forever like the pictures on the fridge. “I’m just glad you came home to me, baby.”

It’s early October a light drizzle, brisk winds blowing on the shoreline as Tom walks along the shore alone carrying the same tin he had the day he landed on the beach many years ago.

The tin is rusty barely opening but, he has kept it for all these years as a prized possession hardly ever actually putting it down. There is a dent in one side of the tin where the bullet stopped just short of his heart.

The day he landed on the beach is still fresh in his mind after all these years as he walks along the beach he can still smell the gun powder, hear the bullets flying by his ears as it was still going on if only in his mind.

His frail body still wants to hit the dirt as the sounds bring back the memories of the landing for him. There are still signs of the battle looking like wooden crosses sticking out of the rain soaked sand. Barbed wire entwined upon them rusty and dripping rain as it dripped the crimson rain of the landing.

Each year he has made the trip to walk the beach where the tin saved his life and so many of his brothers in arms lost their lives. Tom always felt a great regret for surviving while so many others were given their medal posthumously. The Colonel had insisted he take his Silver Star despite his pleas to ignore his heroic actions, charging two high ground firing positions at his own risk.

He didn’t exactly have a choice as behind him was water, blood and dead bodies as many of his brothers he trained with, traded fishing stories with and played poker with were lying on the sand. Many of them were not moving while others were screaming in agonizing pain from the trauma of war.

After getting his Silver Star he was given a field promotion to Staff Sergeant and reassigned to a training station in the rear area. Training the replacements who were coming in before they were sent forward to the front lines of the battle, many didn’t return while others returned to thank him for his training.

It was during this time that he met his wife of forty years, Janice who gave him four wonderful children and six grandchildren before she passed away from cancer. That’s why he was walking the beach alone this year; she had usually done it with him except for the last few years before her death. He had to make the trip alone for the last four years as she had insisted he make the journey regardless of how sick she was.

Each visit to the beach he would put a small handful of sand into the tin, each handful covered a small token or memory of that year of his life, a ring, a token from Coney Island, something of value to him.

The last few years they were small memories a quarter he found while playing with his grand kids at the local beach. This year he stuck his left hand into the cold water at the beach to get his wedding ring off before putting in the handful of sand.

His way of finally paying tribute to the life he had with Janice thanks to that little piece of tin. He put a handful of the rain soaked sand over the ring packing it down into the rusty tin slowly tipping it over to let out the excess water from the sand. He packed the tin back into his luggage before heading to the airport.

When he landed back in the United States the customs agent asked to see the tin, inquiring as to what was in the now heavy, rusty tin. Tom replied, “My life sir, my life.”