Helen O’Connor

Samoa ah Samoa. Facilitated Reiki retreat. With ten women. Ten days only. They go home. Time to relax. Three days alone. Do some sightseeing. Taxi out front. There he is. John Lennon glasses. Long black hair.  Tinge of grey. Cut off jeans. His traditional tattoo. Drive and talk. Instant connection here. He is married. Not for me. Don’t go there. Thoughts can’t stop. So so sexy.

Three years later. Back there again. His marriage over. Both are ready. He says yes. Howls at moon. Touches my hand. Our clunky kiss. Howls some more. Our full moon. So much laughter. Two weeks together. He lives there. I live here.

Phone calls often. Bring him here. Just for holiday. Meet my friends. Meet my mother. She loves him. He serenades her. Entertains her facility. Bright eyed tears. Through her dementia.

Buy him computer. Teach him Skype. Push that button. Almost every night. Talk, talk, talk. Share, laugh, share. My insecurities rise. Am I fat? His past emerges. All that guilt. He opens slowly. Scared and scarred. I open up. Like never before. Both two marriages. Our children grown. Laugh and cry. He drinks beer. Sucks on cigarettes. I listen carefully. Drinking my tea. And loving unconditionally. Opening some more. Playing his ukulele. Singing me songs. Frangipani behind ear. Love catches us. True tender love.

Not always easy. Too many demands. Lots of alcohol. Third world country. Always my money. He has none. Spoilt demanding child. Not his mother. One month apart.  Create some space. Time to think. Enough is enough.

Oh so hard. Need one another. Back together again. Love is enough.

Five weeks before. I’m there again. His chest wheezes. His cough thickens. We sing again. Create a song. Two old farts. Acting like teenagers. Waking up laughing. Wide smiles everywhere. Love and laughter. Hearts fully open. Our love complete. Unconditional and true. Soul mates forever.

Then he dies.

Copyright Helen O’Connor, September 2024. All rights reserved; this intellectual property belongs solely to Helen O’Connor.

The X – Ray

Lucca Northern Tuscany – 3 Word Sentence