The Space in Between

Chapter 22

The sun is up. The wind is light and a little chilly. The smell of fresh air filling my lungs. It's been a week since I had that wonderful time with Dre.

Today's a good day to go outside for most people, and I'm not always part of that, but here I am on a bench by the stream.

A lady, probably in her 50s and 60s, was approaching the bench where I was sitting. She's holding a bouquet and she's all made up - dress, hair, and all.

Being my usual self, I didn't notice someone coming. The old lady spoke, "Is it okay to sit next to you?"

It startled me and that's the only time I realized I wasn't alone. I replied, "sure."

The old lady put her bouquet in between us. Without looking at me, she asked, "What's eating you?"

I was surprised with her question and didn't know how to answer. The old lady just smiled.

Knowing that I was consumed by my thoughts, she asked again, "What do you prefer, life or death?"

I gave her a puzzled look then the old lady started sharing her story.

She said, "This bench right here, this is where my husband and I met. This is where he first asked me out, where he courted me, where I gave him my YES, and where I told him he'll be a daddy." She smiled.

She sighed deeply then said, "this is also where he took his last breath while we were sitting next to each other."

She continued, "Every week, I sit here. I'd bring flowers for him. I'd talk to him here as if we're still sitting next to each other. This is our bench. And if you think this can help you ease what's inside you, my husband will gladly ask me to move a little bit so you can have enough space."

For some reason, she may already know what I was feeling, "going back to my question earlier, what will you choose, life or death? Most people will say, life, but in reality, they're not living the most of their life, and some of them are just afraid to die."

The old lady looked at me then back at the stream, "if only I can choose, I'd choose death so I can live with my husband again. Unfortunately, that's not what the universe wants. That's why every week, I'm in this bench where I spent most of the time with him, my life. I'm not going to let you answer my question, because even if you choose death, even if you find ways to die, if it's not your time you don't have a choice but to live."

I didn't realize that my tears were starting to build up in the side of my eyes. For the first time, I smiled at her. She smiled back and told me to keep the flowers. She stood up and gave me a nod. Before she left, she said, "you don't need to have a significant life, just live and cherish every moment of it." Then she started to walk away.