Ginger stood in line at the grocery store waiting for Jeremy Kendall to complete his purchase. Suddenly, Jeremy said, “Dang it. Forgot toothpaste. Be right back.” He slipped past Ginger and the other customers and ran off for a tube of toothpaste. Ginger told the cashier, “Just put all his stuff on my tab. I got it covered.” The cashier smiled and added Jeremy’s gallon of milk, box of mac and cheese, and candy bar to Ginger’s bill, plus the price of a tube of Crest. Ginger helped the cashier bag everything up and went on her way. When Jeremy returned, the cashier explained what had happened. She said, “Such a decent young lady. We should all be so kind.” Everyone in line nodded.
Jeremy thought about what had just happened as he opened his car door. Then, out of the blue, he started thinking about his friend Marcus, who had been struggling with depression due to some legal and financial problems. The last time they had spoken on the phone, Marcus sounded vaguely desperate. Jeremy pulled out his cell phone and texted, “Hey, what’s up? How has civilian life been treating you? My leave starts in a few weeks. If it’s cool with you, I’d like to come out and visit. You said I should! I’ll give you the details by next Monday, OK? Should be awesome! Stay safe, man. Look forward to hearing from you soon.”
Marcus heard his phone buzz. He read Jeremy’s message and shouted, “Nice!”
“What’s up, little brother?” his sister Nicole shouted back from the kitchen.
“You remember Jeremy Kendall?” Marcus asked.
“Yes. The Army buddy you partied with in Biloxi?” Nicole asked.
“Yep,” Marcus said. “He wants to come out and visit in a few weeks. You good with that?”
“I’m plenty good with that,” Nicole said. “Anything to get you up and out of the house. Gonna take him fishing?”
“Oh yeah,” Marcus said. “Can’t wait to get him out on the water.”
Nicole whispered “Thank goodness for that” as she opened the kitchen door and stepped onto the back porch. Mamma was sitting in her wheelchair and gazing intently at a lone seagull patrolling the beach. A broken iced tea glass sat on the ground next to the wheelchair. Nicole walked over and wiped Mamma’s chin with a soft towel. She stroked her wiry salt-and-pepper hair. Mamma looked up at Nicole and jerked back slightly. Then she pointed at her and said, “Did you know you look just like my daughter Nicole? Nicole’s my special one. Why, you two would get along just like sisters.”
“Thank you, Mamma,” Nicole said deferentially. She thought about Jeremy coming out to visit and figured he knew Marcus needed some help, some company, anything at all to make life a little more normal. She decided right then that it would be better to keep Mamma at home instead of sending her to assisted living. Both she and Marcus had been discussing this for several months, but Mamma needed them. She would stay right there. Nicole and Marcus would love her for who she was now, not just for who she used to be. Nicole would tell Marcus in a few days, but for the moment, she wanted to arrange a nice visit for Jeremy. Marcus and Jeremy deserved it.
