Carpe Diem (33 page)
Jack wraps his arms around me and kisses my neck.
“See, told you.”
“I will make the sandwiches you grab the blanket and wine.”
“No need, everything is ready.”
“Did you plan this?” I question with squinty eyes.
“Just go with it.”
Jack grabs a basket from the kitchen and we begin walking down to the park. We don’t say much, just walking hand in hand with him is enough. The streets are quiet. Not another person is seen, odd but seems meant to be. I can’t remember the last time Jack and I took a picnic to the park.
Normally I would have expected to see children playing at the playground on a day like today so it is strange when, again, I do not see anyone when we arrive at the park. I brush it off and help Jack lay out the blanket.
“So what brought this on?” I ask.
“I just thought you would enjoy spending the day together.”
I feel as if he has something up his sleeve. Jack is a sweet man but romance has never been his strong suit.
“Jack, what did you do?” I joke.
“I didn’t
do
anything, why would you think that?” He laughs.
“Oh I don’t know, you tell me?”
“What, a guy can’t do something nice for his wife once in a while?”
“No, not really?” I tease.
Jack smiles because he knows I am right, but not another word is said about it. We sit down to snack on the fruit and bread he packed. We laugh and talk for what seems like hours but the sun never seems to move. Jack and I have never had a hard time when together. Some couples complain about how when you get older and have been married for twenty years that it seems you run out things to talk about. Not Jack and me. Maybe it is because we were so young when we met. We have been through everything together, and we share everything with each other.
It isn’t until I realize I haven’t seen anyone since we have been here that I feel something is not right.
“Jack?”
“Yes?”
“Do you realize that we have been here for hours and haven’t seen a soul?” I ask.
“Yes.”
“How is that possible?”
There is a long pause.
“Jack? What is going on?”
“Everything is fine, you are going to be fine.”
“Jack, please tell me what is going on.”
It is then that the past comes flooding back to me. Jack died, I am a widow…wait, the car lights are coming at me.
“Wait, you’re… am I…?”
“No, Piper, you are going to be just fine.”
“But I…”
My heart starts to race, my palms start to sweat, and my skin feels like it is crawling.
“Piper, it’s okay, calm down. You are going to be just fine.”
“But how, how are you here, how am I here, is this a dream?” I ask, panicking.
“Piper, you don’t belong here. You are going to leave here soon and be just fine.”
Wait, what, leave Jack, again? I can’t lose him again.
“No I want to stay, I want to stay with you.”
“Piper, Bryna needs you. Flynn needs you. You have to go back.”
“But I need you, Jack,” I say as the tears fall from my cheeks.
“Piper, I love you, I will always love you. But it’s almost time for you to go home.”
“I am home, I am with you.”
I suddenly feel very light, like my body could at any moment float away. Jack pulls me into his arms and holds me tight. His embrace feels so warm, I do not ever want him to let go. He looks at me one last time and brings his lips to mine. As the light takes over, I can hear Jack’s final words to me as if they are floating on the wind.
“Seize the day, Piper. Be happy. Know that I will always love you. I will be at your side giving you my blessing to be happy once again.”
I can feel the ache of my body as I start to wake. I don’t remember going to bed. The last thing I remember was the large tree branch trying to kill me. My eyelids are heavy and do not want to open. My mind is foggy. It’s hard to concentrate. My mind is drifting in and out until I hear my name.
“Piper, can you hear me?” a voice calls.
Seize the day is not just a phrase but also a way of thinking that should be embraced each and every day. It doesn’t matter if you take just an extra moment to kiss a loved one good-bye, if you take a trip to the zoo with your kids for the first time, or even if you just stop and literally smell the roses. Each day has a moment in it that should be seized and cherished, if even just for a moment. The important thing is that you stopped and lived in that moment.
I want to say thank you to those in my life that have helped me live in the moment. I have so many wonderful memories because of you, and since I can’t name you all I will say, you know who you are, and if you don’t, well, then you probably need to call me to make plans.
I wish I could share those memories with all the readers but if I did that now, I would just be writing another book so I have selected a few and have added them as part of Piper’s story. Not all of her adventures are from my memories—some are my memories waiting to happen.
Rae Matthews is a Minneapolis, Minnesota native who moved to La Crosse, Wisconsin in 2002 for a guy, of all things. There she started off as a bartender at a neighborhood bar, eventually moving into telecommunications. Years later, she is now a wife and a ‘wicked’ stepmother. It’s a good thing she is a good cook, or they may have tossed her out on her tushy years ago.
Rae is also known for being a bit of a goofball. She loves to see people smile, and doesn’t mind if they are smiling and even laughing at her not with her. Her motto is, “Life is too short to not laugh as much as you can.” Rae regaled her friends with her stories for years, and she loves to tell them, even if her friends didn’t want to hear them. But now Rae is finally ready to share her stories with others.
As time goes by, Rae hopes to find more time to travel and take on new challenges while continuing her joy of telling stories, crafting, cooking, and generally just having fun.
Other books by Rae Matthews: