(Photo prompt © Roger Bultot)
She was never going to be ready. There was never going to be the ‘right time.’ He tried. He really tried. But he couldn’t stand it anymore.
When she left to visit her mother, he took it downstairs. The recycling truck should pass before her return, and by then it will be done. It was for the best. She’ll come to understand.
The key in the door in the morning. “I took an earlier flight. And, can you believe it? Someone tossed a highchair just like Tommy’s! I know it is a sign from him to hold on to ours!”
For Rochelle’s Friday Fictioneers
Na'ama Yehuda 
Busted! Great suspense N, I wasn’t sure where the story was headed.
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Yeah … totally busted … 😉
And the moral of the story is … communication is better than stealth … 😉
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We see the signs we want to see
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Very much so! And yet … who knows, perhaps they are EXACTLY as we need to see them … 😉
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Ooops!!!! Nice.
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🙂
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Great pain sometimes breeds great delusions. Those two really need to talk to each other.
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Totally! Spot on! Yep, they do!
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The more I thought about this story, the more sympathy I felt for Tommy’s mother. If her husband had focussed less on the chair, and more on loving his wife and seeking her healing he wouldn’t have made such a cruel mistake.
You’ve crafted that story absolutely beautifully, Na’ama!
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Indeed. Indeed. Indeed … and, the two of them are grieving but perhaps not in the same way … and maybe are not communicating as well as the otherwise would have …
Thank you for the comment and I’m so glad you felt it resonated!
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I hope one of them decides to communicate before it’s too late here! Good take.
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Yes, I agree! 🙂 Thank you!
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Na’ama Y’karah,
We did go similar directions, didn’t we? He’s going to have some ‘splaining to do. Well done. (Like that should surprise me?)
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Thank you! 🙂 Yep, some explaining will be a good thing to do … and some repair … and some apology and … yeah.
xoxo
Na’ama
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Communication is so hard when both are grieving in their own way. And there is no right way, is there? This one is a toughie.
Well written, my friend.
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Yes. It is. And how can it not be? I hope he’ll confess, and apologize, and get the chair back in and promise to talk about what and if and how and where … and I hope they’ll manage to hold on to each other, rather than to the anger AT each other over this. Broken hearts make for difficult conversations and realities. I know you know it all too well. … I send love .. xoxo
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Yes, I hope he does, too. And that they can start healing and working together. It is extremely hard to talk about these things and I admit I was the instigator 🙂
xoxo
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xoxo I can totally see you being that … AND, yes, it is extremely hard, especially given what you had mentioned earlier about how different people grieve differently … some need to talk a lot, some find talking a lot opens the scab … some need to pare down things, others need more time to get rid of them … and and and … xoxo
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Haha! Yes, that is me. I made the moves to do what had to be done from his birth to his death to after. I felt Mick needed me to. And I’m just a bossy broad, so yanno?
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If the bossy don’t clash with the bossed, it is exactly as it’s meant to be! 🙂
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Hahaha! Oh, there was a bit of clashing but that was settled rather quickly 😉
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‘course it settled … ‘cuz you were de boss … 😉
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Hahaha! 😉
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🙂
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As long as she doesn’t go looking for Tommy’s chair in their place it should be fine. If she does, he can’t put the conversation off any longer. Tough place to be for both of them. Tommy’s absence is acutely felt here 😦
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Yeah. I think he best ‘fess up AND agree with her about the sign AND apologize AND …. perhaps she can see his grief in hers, somehow, and they can hold on to each other instead of anger AT each other. But it is tough.
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A tragic tale told with subtlety and skill.
Excellent.
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Thank you ceayr! I’m gratified – thank you for such generous comment! 🙂
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Quite interesting and intriguing.
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Thank you, Jude!
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My pleasure 🌼
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🙂
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Now this is what you call a difficult moment.
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Gulp. Yep. 😉
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Of dear, someone is in trouble! I think he was trying to do the right thing. Well written 😊
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Thank you, Sue! Yep, I believe someone’s in trouble … hopefully she’ll know his heart was in the right place (enough) to forgive him …
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he did it what he thought would be best. hopefully, she’d understand when she found out.
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I hope so, too … Misunderstandings and broken heart can complicate things, but … love can help.
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If she hadn’t caught him, the damage could have been irreparable. Sadly, parents who grieve often pull apart. Nicely written, Na’ama.
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Grief in of itself can push people away from each other, as well as the fact that people grieve very differently, and sometimes need clash. I agree that it could have been irreparable, especially to trust. But … I hope it’ll bring up a conversation instead, and perhaps a shared understanding … (I’m an eternal optimist and I’ve seen it happen, too … ) Thanks for the comment!!!
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There is always hope that the clash will cause conversation then understanding! Love your thought-provoking pieces. Take care, Na’ama! =)
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Thank you, Brenda! 🙂
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Well done!
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Thank you, Dee!
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Oh my – caught “red-handed,” as the saying goes. Good story, Na’ama.
Cheers,
Ronda
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Thank you Ronda … yes … pretty much that … He’s got some repair to do …
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What was he thinking, Na’ama? No, she never would have understood or forgiven. It was a sign from Tommy, just not the one she thinks.
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Yeah … oy, yes, I think there’s gonna be some serious repair there. Hopefully there will be repair …
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Ah, caught out. Sparks will fly when she realises what he has done. Maybe the emotional charge will set things right over their loss.
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Yeah, I suspect so, too … but hopefully they’ll be able to use this as a way to move ahead, rather than move apart. …
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Love the ending.
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Glad you did! They have some communicating to do … 😉
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There’s none so deaf as don’t want to hear. Good piece.
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Thank you … sometime indeed actions may lead to different kinds of listening …
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