The Family Reunion

Jane was an only child, raised by her mother. Her father left the two shortly before the family reunion of 1990, and was never heard from again, that is until 15 years later.

Jane’s mother, Donna, and father, Joseph, had been high school sweethearts. Soon after graduation the two married and settled down in their home town of Bisbee, AZ. Throughout Jane’s life, Donna would often reminisce of how they fell in love, the dreams of a future together and the wishes they shared for a little baby girl just like Jane. Her mother would often recite the only poem he penned for her, but Jane would wipe it from her memories.

“Fuck him…fuckin bastard! Why did you leave? I hate him!” Jane would think silently as she listened to her mother’s stories, sometimes she would blurt it out loud before storming into her room, door slamming, with tears tugging at her fragile eyes. Jane felt sorry for her mother, and herself.

After Joe left, Donna held on to the man she knew, not the father Jane would grow to hate. She seemed at peace with his disappearance, yes she was lonely, with tear filled nights as she talked to herself, but she was not angry.

In response to Jane’s hatred for what her father did, she would simply remark, “you will understand when the time is right.”

This would only fuel Jane’s desire to forget him completely, holding on to a forget and never forgive attitude towards her father.

Jane grew up in a loving atmosphere with relatives from both sides of the family. Often times feeling she was the luckiest person alive…but always aware of the emptiness that befriended her from before her memories began one family reunion.

Outgoing and talented, Jane had always been popular in school. Playing the clarinet, cheerleading, and performing in the choir, Jane was always able to still maintain her straight A status in academics. Her relatives attributed this to her father’s genes, which always upset Jane.

“He has no right to take credit for my accomplishments.”

Shortly after moving into their new home, Joe had been an Army Ranger and soon deployed to Panama during Operation Just Cause. He returned with a purple heart and a Distinguished Service Cross, received from saving three soldiers lives in his platoon during a fire fight.

The medals, and a couple old photographs were the only possessions Jane had of her father, and she hated them…and loved them at the same time.

The Family Reunion

It was the day before Memorial Day, and Joe had left to get food, briquettes, drinks, and a card for the family reunion the next day. That was the last time anyone saw him again, and Jane was only 2 years old.

“Tell us about grandpa again…please,” Jane’s little boys (twins), now age 4, would plead almost every night before bed time.

“Well, alright…but first brush your teeth and say your prayers.”

“OK momma!”

After the two boys settled down under their covers, Jane entered with a smile on her face.

“Are you ready to hear the story of your grandpa?”

“Yea, yea, I love grandpa!”

“Me toooooo.”

Bending down between her little boys, a glimpse of her father brushed their faces as each wore the excitement and innocence of love towards someone they would never meet.

Jane demanded in a voice that sang love, “OK, but momma gets a kiss from her little men first, right?”

“Mommy used to be real sad and angry because she didn’t get to grow up with grandpa. Grandma was really sad too, but she never remarried, or ever said anything bad about grandpa.”

“How come?”

“Because, grandma loved grandpa…and she knew in her heart grandpa would never just leave us.”

“Noooo momma, how come you were angry?”

“Mommy was angry because she didn’t know, your momma thought grandpa didn’t want to be with us anymore.”

“Ohhhhh.”

“Anyways, grandpa was gone for a long time. Mommy was getting ready to graduate from high school, it was May, 2005.”

“That’s so looong time ago, your real old, huh momma?”

“Yes, it was a long time ago,” a smile crossed her lips.

“All the relatives gathered like they always did on Memorial Day.”

“Just like us tomorrow, huh?”

“Just like us tomorrow, that’s right, you are just too smart, my beautiful, little men!” Jane replied with a tender smile as her fingers found their way to the boys tickle bones.

After the laughter and squirming subsided, Jane continued.

“Grandpa’s family was barbecuing hotdogs and hamburgers and laughing and telling old stories.”

“Then…you know what happened next?”

“Yea, but tell us, tell us again, pleeaassse?”

“OK, I’ll tell you the rest tomorrow night, OK…it’s getting late, and we have to get up early tomorrow.”

“Pleeaase,” the brothers pleaded.

“Nope, plus…you get to hear the story from grandma tomorrow.”

“Awright…”

Exchanging hugs and kisses, Jane settled in her favorite oversized chair holding a chocolate martini in one hand, and an old email in the other. Eyes closed, a smile broke across her lips, Jane began to fall back to the family reunion in 2005.

She had received a new cell phone and computer as a graduation present earlier that month, so most of her free time had been playing with her new found ways of communicating with friends and family. She had other cell phones and computers, but never with TEXT MESSAGING or EMAIL. It was so new and wonderful to her.

Jane sat on a wooden bench, the smell of hamburgers and charcoal wafting nearby while texting friends how bored she was hearing stories from her mother. As everyone patiently waited for Donna to finish reminiscing, Jane was suddenly startled.

Jane shrieked and ran towards her mother; the cell phone lay in the grass where she dropped it.

“He’s…! The bastards alive!”

Donna embracing her daughter asked, “Who’s alive dear?”

“Dad, he sent me a…”

Joe’s mother grasping the phone in her right hand now gasped in amazement, trying to hide the expression on her face with her left.

“There’s a…a picture of the three of you…from…15 years ago, I think. And a message, a message that says he loves the both of you, that he wants to explain to Jane.”

“Wooa…almost got to wear chocolate martini tonight,” Jane thought as she rose, simultaneously drinking the last in her glass.

“Time for another.”

After finishing her third chocolate martini, Jane plunked back into the soft confines of her favorite chair. Reading the email now, Jane’s thoughts slipped back to the reunion.

She could feel the shock as it traveled her veins that day until numbing her head. How confusion seemed to be a glass of anger, resentment, excitement of the unknown and a splash of tequila. An addictive combination she was unable to shake.

“Who the hell does he think he is? He can’t just forget about me for 15 years, then one day decide he wants to come back into my life. What the fuck!”

The thoughts from that day now bring a soothing smile and a tear of love to her face. The email was from her father, she received it later after returning from the reunion. In it, it said that he wanted to explain everything, but in order to do so, she had to meet him. Directions were given, but oddly no phone number.

It would take her a month to decide whether or not to pursue this. On more than one occasion she tried to reply to the email and text message, but never received a reply. It would be the prodding of her mother, Donna, which would finally win out. Jane was now determined to face the man, her father, this stranger, at least once to tell him she would never forgive him for abandoning them.

The drive would take 12 hours, as the directions led to Midland, TX.

“What in the world is he doing in Texas? We don’t know anyone outside of Arizona.”

As Jane approached the address in the email, 600 W. Nobles St., Midland, TX 79701, her blood began to boil.

“This ain’t no house, WTF? Fairview Cemetery? I drove this far, for this, this must be a joke.”

“Maybe he works here,” Jane thought as she got out of her car.

Approaching a short, but stocky man, apparently in his 60′s, Jane began to feel ill.

“Hi, my name is Jane.”

“I’m Donald, you can call me Don. How may I help you?”

“I’m from out of town, trying to locate an address, but I see there are no houses around here.”

“What’s the address, young lady?”

Jane handed Don the email sent by her father. The two leaned over, analyzing the address.

“Well, looks to me you found what your looking for.”

“That’s impossible, I’m trying to locate my father, Joseph Goodman. Maybe he works here?”

“No…no Joseph Goodman ever worked here before. Ummm.”

The old man squinting, raised his black horn-rimmed glasses closer to his sunken eyes.

“Funny, this email came from here…but the name is a plot designation.”

“What does that mean? Plot designation?”

“Well, it looks to me that this here email address is designating one of our plots. Very strange…let me look it up…see what we get.”

“OK, this is getting a little creepy…what am I doing?” Jane’s mind was racing, beginning to question the intelligence of driving out here to begin with.

“Alrighty, here we are…but it’s registered to a John Doe…and…from 92..June, 92. There’s a note here, says he didn’t have ID or any other means of identification. The only thing he had was a card…what he wrote was used for his marker. Apparently, some of the locals sprung for the plot and marker.”

At this point Jane’s stomach began to rebel, trying to force its way out of her mouth. An overwhelming feeling of standing in the shower as concrete rained over took hold, she was unable to speak or move.

“What?” Jane feebly asked.

“Follow me, we’ll go take a gander at what we found.”

The two made their way along the manicured paths, Jane struggling to keep her balance, her wits.

When they arrived at the plot, Jane’s heart stopped…she knew instantly it was her father.

Arms and legs intertwined
Our thoughts become one
Long passionate kisses
Our hearts beat as one
Dreams and desires shared
Our souls soar as one
Staring at the moonlight together
I know you are the one

This is the very poem her mother would recite to her as a child. It continued on.

Donna, never let our angel forget me. I love you Janie.

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