Wednesday, August 17, 2011

stories from the park

We were playing in our ‘secret garden’ after delivering some friendly packages to the post office.  The sun warmed us and painted dozen of shadows across the earth.  My little boy was on hands and knees peering into a flowerbed, hunting for rocks and sticks and other important discoveries.  Happily playing on the blanket near us, the girl is content in the fresh air. 
A man enters the park, much to our surprise, I guess we aren’t the only ones who go beyond the wrought iron gates of this magical little place.  He finds a bench and pulls out his cigarette.  Then, he starts chatting with the boy explorer as if they were old friends, “What are you finding there, buddy?”  He holds up a rock and shows it to him and then a stick and an acorn and a leaf. We chat a little bit about the fresh air and how nice this park is.  I mention how it’s perfect for me, not having to worry about the lake, marina, and parking lot that surround the other park in town.
Which led him to a tale about the time he took his four year old son to a giant sledding hill and he was so scared the whole way down.  At the bottom of the hill, he was yelling, “Jump off, jump off Danny!”  He did and was soon met by his dad to calm his nerves.  It was a few years later before they returned, and then he loved it.
“Yeah, we lost him way too early though, Danny liked to drive really fast.  It was a month before his eighteenth birthday and he liked to run from the cops. We sure do miss him.”
“I'm sorry, that’s terrible.” I said, not really knowing what to say.  “Was he your only child?”
“Oh no, I have three boys, well three boys now.” He said, “but I guess, Danny’s just getting to do all the things he loves now, and we’ll see him again someday.”
“Yes, so, really you still have four, he’s just not with you here right now.” I replied, not really sure if I thought that one through, but it felt okay to say.
“Yeah, you’re right, he’s with us in spirit, and one day, we’ll be together.  Can you imagine it, a place with no pain or suffering? It must be pretty amazing, huh?”  He said and then got up to head back across the street
I paused and smiled, “absolutely.”
He left after wishing us a wonderful day and I stood there, as my son said, good- bye towards him.

People everywhere are walking this earth full of stories. Stories full of happiness, courage, love, sadness, loss, and hope.  It’s beautiful.

2 comments:

  1. Wow - goosebumps. A beautiful story beautifully told. Thanks for sharing that. :)

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