Mike did come back! [hugs kisses?]He arrived and immediately said, “I’m here for two months. I want to be with you a little longer to get to know you better, and for you to be sure that you can stand me longer than a week. Do you mind if I suggest we go somewhere, for example, to Egypt?”
“To Egypt? Of course I’d love to go! I’ve never been that far from home. Only you do realize I don’t have the kind of money to pay for such a trip.”
“Yes, I do realize this, so I’m offering you this trip as a gift. The costs are my problem. Moreover if I wanted to go to Egypt from the United States, it would cost me three times as much, because of the distances involved.”
“Oh, then of course we will go!” I gladly accepted his offer. “I’ve never flown in a plane before. Is it scary? And where are we going to stay there? Is it true that the Red Sea is so salty that it’s impossible to drown?”
Mike did not even try to answer my questions. He was just looking at me and smiling. Besides, I didn’t need any answers. I’d get a chance to find them out by myself.
We were discussing the trip and solving the details that arose with its coming closer. Then, Mike showed me his ticket and said he would have to go back January 15th. Today was November 15th. Two full months of happy life and new experiences were waiting for me. My life was turning into a fairy tale. And every fairy tale has to have a happy ending. That was my thought at that moment.
“And what is the suit for?” I laughed, when I saw his neatly packed black three-piece suit.
“You never know.” My friend blushed. “Anything can happen. For New Year’s Eve, for example.”
“Oh yes, I totally forgot.” Soon we were to celebrate the New Year, 2005. And I would not be alone to meet it. And it was marvelous that I was finally with somebody, and who knew what might happen. But I didn’t know, and the best part of that was, I had no desire to know. I stopped thinking about the future and devoted my attention entirely to preparing for a trip to a fairy tale straight out of the Arabian Nights.
Our flight was from Kiev, where we once again visited Vova and his family. My grandson had grown into a weak and willful child. He cried a lot, slept badly, and his poor parents were very tired. But that did not stop us from seeing them, and I noticed that between Mike and my son there began to be established warm relationships. This is a good sign, I thought. Despite that, I kept feeling some vague fear, like something bad was going to happen.
My Heavens! What if that old man from my distant youth was right? What if now my life will get better? What if this is the man who will love me?
I never forgot that old man from nowhere, who vanished the same way he appeared, and prophesied me a happy and rich future. In particular, I remembered him when everything was going bad. I comforted myself with the materialistic thought that there was no old man, that I had imagined the whole thing. And even if he had been real, there was no way to know what was waiting for us in the future. Totally incomprehensible and illogical feeling I had, the fear that he could have been right. If our common future with Mike brings only good to everyone, I started to ask, addressing Someone strong and powerful, then let it happen. But if someone, even one person, suffers from it then stop it now. Let nothing happen and everything remains as it is.
I was willing to sacrifice my own happiness for the sake of my son’s or grandson’s happiness. Sincerely and unconditionally. Was that right? I had to ask. “You, my guardian angel, you know what to do. Guide me.”