See You Soon, My Love.

Submitted into Contest #98 in response to: Write a story involving a character who cannot return home.... view prompt

5 comments

Adventure Coming of Age Inspirational

I have nowhere to turn to.

No one to share my thoughts with,

no one to give me hope,

no one to make me a good ol’ breakfast,

no one to caress my head, telling me I’ll be something great.

No one to share my worries with because they truly care about my future.

and no one to give me all their love, because I’m broken and shallow.

I have no real family, friends except my lovely wife. I can’t meet her and hug her so tightly that she’ll never be able to let go. I love her to the ends of the world, but I don’t know if she knows. I was poor to the extreme, so I never had money to buy her a Valentine gift or a surprise anniversary dinner. She made my heart flutter and I saw twinkles in her eyes. Whenever I’d stare into her eyes, she’d stare at me back examining every inch of my heart. When we met, she’d look away shyly, but I’d touch her cheek and look into her soul. I’d know if she‘s lying, sad, angry, depressed or even sick. I was a rags lad and she was a riches gal. She never cared about money, because if she did she would have never married me. She‘d always tell me that she married me because I was a handsome, thoughtful, warm and caring person. I’d blush so much that my cheeks looked like cherries. She’d then squeeze them and say, “Oh, honey. You’re so adorable!”. Our bond was inseparable and our hearts were one.

We were never able to have a child, and that made her so upset. Her eyes longed for a young baby to feed, to take care of, to say “mother” and mostly importantly, to teach what her mother had taught her. I would begin to cry whenever she’d cry because I hate to see her in such pain. I had no choice, but I suggested that we should adopt. She liked the idea, but I knew that she wanted one with her own blood and similar facial features like mine. She was depressed when she’d help mothers in the hospital give birth, but as a doctor she got some happiness from seeing such tiny ”people”. Before we turned 26, I went to a foreign country to join the military. I didn’t want to leave her side, but it was my dream to fight for my country. My poor spouse, she’d embrace my dreams. She’d always tell me, “You can do it, Ron! Go for it! I’m rooting for you.” I held her hands together with mine and gave her a kiss on the cheek as my goodbye. She‘d wave at the airpot each time, with no hesitation and unhappiness as she saw me grow far away from her for years. She’d pull my ear when I get down from the flight and whisper, “You’ve been good, have you?”. I’d laugh my lungs out and give her a long hug. Her eyes made me feel no emptiness and I always felt full even if I had not eaten for days.

She‘d send me letters each day and I would be excited to read each and every one of them. I’d send her postcards from where I was stationed in for that period. Even though we grew apart through distance, we never grew apart from each other’s hearts. They always and will always be one.

Then came the pandemic, and I was never able to see her up till now. We still send each other letters and communicate from far away foreign lands, but my heart desperately aches for her. I miss her cooking and our joyful dancing. The late night movies and popcorn. The strolling in the park and running after each other on the beach. I miss it all. She was the only person I trusted with all my heart, and she was my only true companion. She brought back the ”life” to me again. I will never be myself again until I hug her. To feel her warmth, and to gape at the twinkling stars in her eyes.

Who knew that such a disease would effect the world so deeply? Who knew that millions of people would suffer from such a thing? Will our freedom ever return to us? Will we be the planet we once were? Or will the virus wipe each and every one of us, until no one is standing? Should we keep on being the same ignorant, stupid and selfish people we were or should we follow the protocols in place and put an end to this pandemic? Why are we all acting so selfishly and failing to follow these simple rules? Is washing our hands that hard? Is carrying a sanitiser in your pocket killing you? IS SOCIAL DISTANCING BREAKING YOUR HEART because you want to hug your besties? NO! Would you like to end up in a hospital for the rest of your life and die slowly? You won’t ever be able to meet your family again, and at you funeral, no one is going to be there. NO ONE. Covid19 is not a joke, it is a deadly virus that exists! Stop ignoring what healthcare workers encourage you to do. Stop ignoring what your parents advice you to do. Stop playing at school and do your work with all your might! We must all study hard and make sure to fight for our nation and protect it at all costs! Think of all the future generations, your great-great grand kids that would suffer from this. Think about all the people who are sacrificing their lives to save, educate and make sure that you live for long! Appreciate this people and make sure to do the same! If we had no doctors, nurses, governments and ministries what shall we do? They are working hard to come up with solutions to minimise the risk of infection. They advise you to do all of thee things, not because they want to make money for themselves, but maybe it is because they have a sense of care for the citizens of their country! If not, why do they even work with such careers? We should as humans be united, stay strong and help each other to overcome such difficulties! We should put aside our egos and fight together as one. If we fight with each other now, what shall become of us in the future? We have to stay strong.

I DARE YOU TO CHANT “UNITY“.

June 13, 2021 11:37

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5 comments

Mohamed Sarfan
19:35 Jun 16, 2021

Dear Writer, The present inflicts wounds on the life of every human being just as tears come when the reality of time stands on thorns. When the children who went to school came home, I was devastated to think of the memories of the time when my mother, who had been picked up in the morning, was found dead, and her loved ones were being held in solitary confinement far and wide. As my soul is tightly packed into a glass bottle and thrown into the deep sea, my ordinary coughs go in search of the Bodhi tree shade like a forbidden drug. Our e...

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Pahani Wijeratne
06:09 Jun 17, 2021

First of all, wow. Thank you so much for writing such a meaningful, and thoughtful comment. Yes, indeed, my heart still aches when I think of how our lives have changed so quickly. Covid-19 has become our new normal. We cannot any longer reunite with our dear ones, and enjoy the lifestyle we once lived. My heartfelt apologies for your mother. I truly feel your pain. Everything is different now; nothing is the same anymore. I hope that this pandemic ends soon. Thank you once again 🙏. God bless! Regards, Pahani.

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Pahani Wijeratne
05:55 Jun 15, 2021

Greetings, everyone! This short story turned out more to be an aware story of the pandemic... but I think that it fits the prompt pretty well. What do you guys think? Hope you are all doing well ;). Anyways, catch you guys later! Au revoir! Bonne journée!

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Kathleen `Woods
16:46 Jun 15, 2021

yeah, it fits alright. thanks for writing!

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Pahani Wijeratne
17:30 Jun 15, 2021

Hi! Thank you so much for commenting :D. I’m glad that you think it fits the prompt. I hope you have an amazing day, and God bless! ✨

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