Things of the Past

Things of the Past

           Dried apricots were her favorite, but ever since the surgery- she could not eat them. This made Clarissa sad. She was jealous of her friends who could eat everything they wanted. Clarissa was not that lucky. Clarissa had five teeth pulled, and her partial dentures barely helped her eat the foods she loved. For Clarissa, dried apricots became a thing of the past, and she soon forgot about them.

           Chicken was actually easy to eat. Sometimes Clarissa would get so anxious that she would gum the chicken without putting her dentures in. Today, she swallowed the chicken and choked.

           “A glass of water?” asked her husband, Mark.

           “Yes. Yes please.” Clarissa carefully responded with tears in her eyes while a large bite of chicken stayed lodged in her throat. “Hurry!” was her last word to Mark. It was her last word to anyone. As the chicken stayed lodged in her throat- it was soon met with bile. Clarissa’s airways were blocked, and she struggled to breathe. She threw up a little bit, but most of the vomit stayed in her throat.

           Mark set the glass of water on Clarissa’s desk that stood next to her favorite chair. It had a lamp that was once appraised for $1,200 on Antique’s Roadshow. Clarissa accidentally reached for the lamp. It fell to the ground and shattered. She quickly reached for her glass of water. She barely tapped it, and it fell to the floor, and was all smashed up to pieces.

           Clarissa died with a shocked look on her face. She did not see death coming for her in the manner that it arrived. From Heaven, Clarissa wondered why God had let her die the way she did. She always wanted to be buried in the family plot, but she knew even before she passed that her will would be destroyed by her, “loved ones.” She was cremated, and Mark disposed of her ashes in the Tuesday morning trash. She was gone, and Mark could not stop smiling. He was free. Free from the complaints. Free from the demands. Free from his life doomed to be spent by Clarissa’s side.

           Clarissa loved orchids. The last one she had bought was four and a half feet tall. It was pink and white, and her neighbors, Tom, and Pete, found it to be astonishing.

           Today, Tom and Pete used their key to go inside Clarissa’s apartment. They stole the orchid that had outlived her. They used a black Sharpie to scribble Clarissa’s name on the bottom of the ceramic vase as a reminder that the orchid was hers. Now, every time they see it, they are flooded with bitter-sweet memories of Clarissa, and the good old days. She would have wanted them to take care of it. Without her, their lives would soon become dull and boring.

           They say that Mama Cass died from choking, but Clarissa was not famous. Cass had a large funeral. Clarissa did not. Mark was early. He fell asleep on the pew. Toni was right on time, and she dressed properly in black. Tom and Pete walked in late holding hands and crying hard. Clarissa was gone, and they did not want to accept that. No one else attended the funeral.

           The funeral was dark and troubling. No one went up to the podium to speak. They all stayed in their seats, and they all scowled at Mark- who slept through the whole ordeal. The preacher spoke, but he was tuned out by those in attendance.

           One nice thing did occur during the service. Tom placed a pink orchid flower next to Clarissa’s urn, and he whispered to her, “I miss you so much. Thank you for always being there for me.” Mark recognized the flower.

           Once Tom and Pete left the service- the others followed. Toni, who had not cried in a year, shed one tear, and that was all.

           Toni was a caregiver, but not for Clarissa. She worked in hospice, and had seen dozens of deaths, but the death of Clarissa affected her deeply. Toni and Clarissa had made out on occasion, and Mark had never caught on. Toni’s kisses were always so enthusiastic. Clarissa needed these kisses because they happened whenever Clarissa was in a dark place. She would be deep in pain and sadness, but Toni would come to her rescue. Clarissa was not a lesbian or a bisexual, but she needed the affection that Toni shared with her. No, they were not in love because Mark was the true owner of Clarissa’s heart, but, of course, Mark was in love with someone else.

           Mark married Clarissa in the summer of ’83. In ’93, Clarissa had shown signs of MS. She was diagnosed the following year by her doctor who was slowly dying of AIDS. During this year, Mark fell for a waitress. Her name was Amber, and she had large breasts. Clarissa did not. Mark was a breast man. He had been all along. He even liked those that sagged- the ones that bore most men his age. He could not help himself. He had to pursue Amber, but when she denied him, he grew bitter towards Clarissa.

           Clarissa loved Mark, but once his behavior changed, she sensed something was wrong. She was a quiet person. Timid and shy. She figured if Mark was cheating, then she would just let it happen. She loved him that much. She just wanted him to be happy. MS is progressive, and brutal at times. She knew that she did not have much time left here on earth. So, she decided not to say a word to Mark about it, but Mark was not having an affair. Once Amber turned him down, he accepted that he would have to stay with Clarissa until her MS ended her life. To his surprise, she died sooner than what was expected.

           Now that Clarissa was in Heaven, Mark got the crazy idea to ask Amber out again. Amber worked at a local café. When he walked into the place, Amber was not happy to see him, but she agreed to serve him anyway because she needed the money badly. Mark left big tips, and he enjoyed the environment of the café.

           Clarissa’s MS made it hard for Mark to leave the house since she did not have a caregiver. They could not afford one. Now Mark could do whatever he wanted, so he ordered the piccata chicken. It was his favorite dish that the café offered.

           When Mark’s meal was ready, Amber served him with a forced smile. She had even unbuttoned the top two buttons of her blouse to reveal more cleavage. She really did need the money.

           It was a quarter ‘till noon, and Mark’s meal was ready. As Amber served him, Tom and Pete entered the café. To Mark’s surprise, they approached him.

           “Did you steal my wife’s orchid?” Mark asked with his mouth full.

           Without saying anything, Pete handed back the key to Mark’s apartment. Then Tom and Pete sat in a dark corner in the café.

           Mark took another bite, and he got up from the table, and walked quickly over to Tom and Pete.

           “You did! You stole my wife’s…” Mark stopped, and his eyes enlarged.

           It was the chicken. It was stuck in his throat. Amber rushed to his side and hit him three times on the back. She did not know what else to do. Sweat was pouring down Mark’s face as he reached for his throat.

           “Hurry. Help me!” Were his last words to Amber. They were his last words to anyone.