In the Kitchen in the Dark

It was very late at night, and the two of them were standing motionless in the kitchen. She stood in front of the stove, with her back to it. George was a few steps back, facing his wife Gwendolyn, and the stove behind her. It had long been their favourite place in the house, with so many good times there, and so many memories. They had once talked about having sex in the kitchen.  A couple they knew had told them about their experience doing that on one occasion. But they had just laughed it off as a joke. It was not something they could be serious about. But they could make funny remarks about it when they were in the kitchen, making lewd references to a variety of vegetables and fruits.

George had made his way into the kitchen on this night, like every other night for the last few weeks, not having any specific plans to actually do anything practical there. He did not intend to wash dishes that were still dirty from dinner, or look into the refrigerator to see what he should buy at the grocery store for tomorrow’s primary meal.  He could do one or both of those chores in the morning light.  He certainly did not want to cook anything at this time. He just wanted Gwendolyn’s wonderful company.  He had sorely missed it over the last two months, since what he called ‘the disaster day,’ that had changed so much in his life.

George soon spoke up to the woman he could see directly in front of him, like he did every night at this time. “Well, I am certainly not going to cook anything. That should be obvious. I did learn a lot from you about cooking, but I am still not nearly as good at it as you were.  And I never will be.  That’s for sure, my dear. That’s for sure.”

There was a big smile on her face in reaction to what he had just said, but no words came from her mouth. She nodded her head in complete agreement, with her trademark rapid up and down movement.

“I am so glad that we can do this now. It was such a surprise when you just appeared when and where I least expected you. I hope that we can continue with this. It is the best part of  my day, by far. It lifts my spirits more than anything else that I could imagine.”

“I think that I will make myself a coffee and eat a few store-bought muffins, which are nothing like what you used to cook for me. In that way it will be like a short visit to our glorious past, and I can stay awake at least a little big longer to spend more time with you on the night.”

He was rewarded with another bright smile, which he quickly returned.

The Next Morning

           The next morning George was up early. It was still dark, except for the one light in the kitchen that lit up the part of the kitchen not far from the stove. He had turned it on immediately after he entered the room, as he always did. Gwendolyn then emerged in the usual place, smiling once more. He wanted to know how she had managed to do all this, but didn’t want to ask her. He was just happy with the result. They stared at each other once more, and he spoke of how wonderful this experience was for him every morning of the week, giving each day an inspiring start that could not be overcome.

           When the sun’s light began to shine through the curtainless window, he stopped his staring and talking, and got himself some cereal, and poured himself some orange juice. Soon afterwards he would go to work. He would wave to her when he left the kitchen, even though he knew that he would not be able see her at that time.

Night Time Arrives Once More

           It was late at night once more, and George had just turned on the light over the stove. Then their son Sam walked into the kitchen, surprised by what he saw his father doing. He had an exam the next day and had been studying until quite late in his room, and planned to make himself some strong coffee so that he could study some more. When he entered the kitchen, he saw his father standing still, facing the stove. He wondered what he was doing, and why he was doing it. He certainly did not look like he was going to begin cooking, something his father had never been very good at, no matter how often he tried it. Sam had even begun doing the cooking himself for the two of them sometimes, and was beginning to think that he might want to be a cook when he grew up. He could enroll in the cooking program at the local community college once he graduated from high school. He would then truly be his mother’s son.

His father looked at Sam, and said, “I know that you are wondering what I am doing here in the kitchen, staring at the the stove like this. It is where I can see your mother standing there in my imagination as clearly as if she were physically there, like she often was when she was still alive, preparing one of her fantastic meals. She only appears to me like this in the dark, late at night and very early in the morning. She disappears from my desperate mind with the coming of the light. It is spooky when that happens. And I can only see her like this in the kitchen, nowhere else.”  Sam was silent, but was open to the idea that what his father said might be truth. He had been raised on the creatively strange stories that his father told him, just after the boy had gone to   bed. His father may have imagination enough to actually see the image of his wife, when she was not physically there..

A Trip to the Cemetery

On the following Sunday, George and Sam went to the cemetery in which Gwendolyn had been buried two months ago. They stood close to her grave stone, staring at it for a few minutes before either of them said anything. George then commented, “Her dead body might be buried here, but her spirit is certainly elsewhere.” Then the two of them looked intently at each other, when George said to his son. “She is in the kitchen, in the dark, in early morning and late at night. She’s in the kitchen.” Sam was hoping that the imagination that he had been raised on  would enable him to see her image like his father did. It turned out that night, that he had a flash vision of his mother’s face, soon to disappear. That was the way that his father first saw her spirit in the kitchen in the dark.