H2OVanoss: My One and Only

Epilogue

We are old men now.  Jonathan looks nothing like he did when I first fell in love with him.  He is hunched over and has very thin, white hair.  His body is no longer strong.  Glasses rest low on his nose.  But when he looks at me, I still see the man I have loved for nearly 70 years.  His eyes have not changed and he still has that young spirit inside of him.  He still wears his wedding ring every day.

As for me, I feel different.  I know he sees it too.  I get miserable.  I have to walk with a cane, which isn't as bad as a wheelchair, but it is not fun to not be able to walk on my own.  I look in the mirror and I don't even recognize myself. 

We live in a retirement home.  I hate it here.  The staff aren't always nice and they treat us as if we have lost our ability to make our own decisions.  People view us differently.

The majority of our families have passed away now, as well as many of our friends.  That is the worst part about it.  We are all slowly rotting in this place.  There's nothing we can do about it.  All we do is wait for the day when we don't wake up from our nap.

I know I am lucky to have Jon still with me.  Most of these old folks are not as fortunate as us.

Jonathan turns 96 next month.  He walks freely with nothing to help him but his legs.  It's astonishing.  I am younger than him, but he is in much better shape.

As I am sitting at a table with my coffee, a familiar face comes from the elevator and approaches me.

"Hey dad!" She says as she walks up to me.  She is a middle-aged woman.  Dark brown hair with grey at the roots.  She sat down on the other end of the small table.

"Candice!  How are you?"

"I'm great.  Is it any better here lately?"

I hold her hand as tight as I can with my feeble hands.  "No sweetie.  We have a few friends here, but that doesn't make it much better.  Your papa says he doesn't mind it, but I don't think he likes it here either."

"I'm sorry.  Where is he at, anyways?"

"He's in his room."

She stood up and put her hand on my back.  "I'm going to bring him out here.  I'll be right back."  She walked down the hall towards Jonathan's room.

A few minutes later, she came back out with him next to her.  He sat next to me and put his arm around my shoulders.  "Hi darling."

"Hi Jon," I replied with a smile.

Candice sat back down on the other end of the table.  "I have a plan," she said.

"And that is...?" Jonathan questioned.

"Well... I know you two don't like it here.  I was going to bring you outside for the day.  We could visit your house, dad."

The smile on my face widened.  "I'd love that."

"I have to take the little kiddies to soccer later, but we have a few hours." She said.  She was referring to our great grandkids, Miles and Derek.  They were only 5 years old.

Jon rubbed my back.  "Would that make you feel a little better?"

I laid my head against his shoulder.  "I think so.  Thank you, Candice."

"You're welcome.  Shall we get going?"

We nodded.  We were signed out of the building and began our journey to our house.  We were forced to come to the retirement home a few months ago, but I was able to keep our property for as long as I lived.

I sat in the back of Candice's car with Jonathan.  We held hands for the whole 45 minute drive.

As we pulled into the driveway, all of the memories came back to me.  I remember when I first moved in.  It was the first house I had owned.  I was so happy to finally be moved out of my parents'.  I remember when I brought Jon here for the first time.  He was so amazed by the place.  I remember all of the late nights we spent together, either talking about our dreams for the future or satisfying each other's needs.