Unanticipated

David C. Russell

Kasey’s life had variety at any perceived angle. Professionally, an insurance adjuster.

Private life: In her early forties, she was divorced, no children, owned her home in Okemose, a neighboring town to East Lansing, Michigan. She volunteered her time at the care facility where her aging parents resided, and at the public library where and when needed.

Kasey liked to attend some classical performances or scheduled author lectures at Michigan State University. The campus surroundings enlivened her memories of college when a student at Illinois State in Normal.

 She moved to Michigan with her then husband a couple years after college graduation. He was a college professor in horticulture, and was fired after two women complained he tried to indulge them in a sexual liaison. The two women in question had liaised with him on a book he was writing about current trends in caring for house plants. His wife wanted no part in this man’s life when she discovered, via his confession, his extramarital escapades.

Kasey had worked her way up the ladder in the automotive insurance industry. She started as an office clerk, scheduling appointments and earning under six dollars an hour. Integrity and excellent customer service reports contributed to her ascent over the past eight years.

It was early October 2024 when a piece of mail took her by surprise. The surprise, an invitation. She noted return address was correct on the envelope; named recipient was correct in the salutation and up-to-date. The sender was associated with a campus group with which she was involved; The time was the early-to-mid-1990s. She was an undergrad Education Major at ISU in Normal, Illinois.

Extracurricular college activities included  the InterVarsity chapter fellowship. This was a faith-based organization of students. They held twice-monthly student gatherings.

In addition, the students hosted a book table in a public place on campus. Books displayed were sold at a discount and were Christian  titles in orientation. 

Since graduation, life circumstances had cooled her spiritual fervor: an unsuccessful marriage, career change, survival strategies on going it alone, aging parents, were by and large the contributors to her rise in disinterest toward faith matters.

Kasey sat at her kitchen table and decided to read the surprise email. The letterhead contained the InterVarsity logo.

Dear Kasey Armstrong,

We hope this notice finds you well despite the challenges we each may face on our life journey. You are invited to attend an alumni reunion being held on Saturday, May 3rd, 2025.

Time: one p.m.

Location: Student Union Building, room no. 202,

  Illinois State University campus

Sponsor: InterVarsity Fellowship

The notice contained details whom to notify if attending or unable to attend this function.

Kasey thought, ‘Darn. How did they find me? I don’t even attend church accept on Christmas Eve and Resurrection Sunday (formerly Easter Sunday) with my parents.’

For the past three years, Kasey’s parents resided at a local care facility in East Lansing. Her father had early-stage dementia, and her mother liked being pampered and looked after. However, she enjoyed reasonable health for being age seventy-eight.

Kasey thought about some of her past acquaintances who were also involved with this campus organization. Her friend Kristen had changed majors, became a professional translator, and held a position at the U.N. Kristen had sent a newsletter shortly after having had the opportunity to translate a speech delivered by the leader of Hungary. 

Elisha had interest in theater, and was in a few plays during time at ISU, which coincided with Kasey’s college years. However, his major was Criminal Justice. She had heard, in passing, Elisha’s life had gone on the skids in adulthood.

Post graduation, contact with friends and acquaintances had waxed and waned for Kasey.

As Elisha heated a can of soup for his dinner, his remark, often said in gest, came to mind. ‘Keep your nose free of congestion and you won’t have a damn thing to worry you.’

He pondered how much of life asked him to accept the things he couldn’t change. Parents divorcing before he turned ten, knee injury sustained during high school football, attending ISU, working in law enforcement until the set-up, now living a quiet, self-protected existence in the quiesence of Rockford. Those who could change what they couldn’t accept were, to him, elsewhere, across a large divide, barely reachable.

His thoughts turned to close friends from when active in early life. One such friend, Kasey, attractive but not a ‘knock-out’, befriended him based on shared interests. He reasoned, or briefly hoped, Kasey might be one of those barely reachables. However, he admired her persona, and imagined how that served her in adulthood.

Meantime, Kasey sorted through some clothes and mused over Elisha as charming, charismatic, casual dresser. He was what others consider “down to earth.” He would lead the group in singing contemporary choruses during InterVarsity meetings.

He recalled further, that they had shared interests in ice-skating, tennis, and photography. They would get together frequently to share tennis or ice skating respective of time of year.

On a cloudy day, early October, Elisha returned from his temp job to find a notice in his designated mail slot at the rooming house. He still held Judeo-Christian values, and attended a weekly service at the local rescue mission. He felt the down and out deserve to be with others who too are down and out.

He read the invite announcing the planned InterVarsity chapter reunion, May 3, 2025, a Saturday.

Elisha reasoned, he had enough time, six months plus, to save up and get some decent apparel to wear at the InterVarsity reunion. His clothing came from nearby thrift stores, but they sold the best of used pants, shirts, socks, etc., that could probably tell stories if able to do so.

He liked the InterVarsity fellowship group back in the mid ‘90s. People were thoughtful, intellectual, interested in life and the world. He might get glances, but supposed those to contain elements of empathy and understanding. He mused, ‘Doesn’t shit happen to the devout and the insincere, careless, impulsive people?’ Sure, he would attend, there was no reason not to do so as far as he was concerned. As a treat, he would take the train roundtrip and feel luxurious for a change. Thus, there was time to save up for this venture.

Saturday May 3, 2025

As the train entered the community of Normal, to Elisha Normal looked different, but yet the same. The traffic was much as he recalled from two decades previous. He boarded a bus that traveled familiar streets to the stop near the ISU campus.

Furthermore, Kasey had rented a car to make the trip from East Lansing to Normal, Illinois. She stayed overnight at a motel half the distance between the two communities. Throughout the drive, Kasey sang along with songs played on an acoustic CD of music she had burned; she assumed the attitude of being on an adventure. This was her road trip to meet with the past.

Driving, she noticed the tree-lined streets and well-kept homes. Most appeared somewhat aged, somewhat stately.

To her, Normal, Illinois, assumed a normalcy about it that would live on indefinitely. She saw students casually dressed, some carried handbags, some walked alone, some held hands with expressions that conveyed all is right with me and the world.

She parked in the campus parking structure, and walked about one-half mile to the student center and found the spacious room where the InterVarsity event was being held.

She recognized a handful of familiar faces, but these were outnumbered by unknown adults varying in age, in life station, in shape and size.

Her past friend, Kristen, the international translator, approached having noticed Kasey.

‘Goodness, it’s so good to see you again. How do you stay so young?’ Kristen asked, smile wide.

‘I think your eyes deceive you, but thanks for the appreciated remark,’ Kasey stated with a chuckle. The two chatted a bit about where they were and what they were doing at present.

Elisha entered the room and was greeted warmly by his past friend, Rowan.

‘Row, how the hell have you been?’ Elisha asked.

‘Better, but am at peace with myself, now.’

‘What do you mean by that?’ Rowan took Elisha’s hand in his and in a low tone stated, ‘I have pancreatic cancer. Homecoming is just around the corner, bro.’

‘Hey man, I am so sorry. I thought…’

‘I think we’re all in for some surprises about each other,’ Rowan said.

A dinner bell sat atop the head table, large in size, and soon resounded that called the attention of the assembled.

‘Take your places at the tables, lunch will be served buffet style after we give thanks for our gathering. I am Ross, your Servant of Ceremonies (SC) for this event.’ He was also the current chapter President.

The table seating was arranged by decade of attending ISU and the InterVarsity chapter. These ranged from the 1970s through the 2010s. Anyone older than age fifty-five occupied the table-space labeled the wisdom group.

Nearly two-thirds of those who attended stated they were younger than the Wisdom Group. They occupied seats at their designated decade table. Attendance was said to be seventy-three persons altogether.

Kasey and Elisha had seats kitty-corner to one another. Kristen and her husband had seats across from Kasey. Another couple, Jacob and Rebecca, had seats across from Elisha.

‘I wonder how many of us live in states that border or include Illinois/” Kasey asked to break the ice. Both she and Elisha raised their hands. Jacob and Rebecca ran a small coffee business in Maine; Kristen and Joe lived on the outskirts of NYC in New Jersey.

Throughout lunch and the ensuing program, Kasey and Elisha had exchanged eye contact that implored private conversation afterword.

Later that afternoon, just before gloaming, Elisha and Kasey walked over to the library, which had a running fountain near its entry. They sat beside one another on the fountain ledge.

“Doesn’t this feel like past Saturday afternoons?’ Elisha asked.

‘When we were young, foolish, had the world by a string. We were certain God would keep us insulated from crap and stuff,’ Kasey said as she held back tears.

‘I guess one could say that. You look a little hardened by twenty years,’ he said.

‘I see your apparel looks dressy enough. Sport jacket, matching pants, but why the beard? Why the tired look in your eyes?’ Kasey asked.

“You go first,’ Elisha said. He hoped Kasey might be a reachable after all this time.

‘Want the condensed version or woe is me version?’

‘Condensed, that’ll do for today.’

Kasey inhaled deeply and exhaled. She began, ‘You’re looking at a successful, professional, insurance adjuster. It took eight long years to get where she is at today. Her husband cheated on her, which meant divorce, months of mistrust, adopting survival and career first as a mantra, stopped church and all that spiritual stuff.’

“You of all people have had it rough and not by your choices,’ Elisha stated.

“You could say that. Moreover, my parents are aging, living in a care facility nearby me, and I’m their daughter who looks in on them. We do Christmas and Easter church together just because it makes them happy. Gosh, I have some anger issues don’t I?’ she admitted.

“

‘The tired eyes are from the last few years, Kasey. I went into law enforcement instead of civic theater after graduation.”

“You? A cop? What on earth convinced you to take that vocation?’ Kasey asked.

“Security, regular paycheck, easy job description: get the bad guys,’ he said with a hand wave.

‘Okay, then what?’

‘I was accused of supporting human trafficking. Legal proceedings ended inconclusive. There wasn’t ample evidence for either side, but my life was in shambles as a result,’ Elisha said, tears running down his face. Kasey took his hand in hers, and they sat in silence for a few minutes. A gentle breeze blew past them.

‘So, where are you living, staying, my friend?’ Kasey asked.

Elisha felt that since he had admitted this much, he would go further. Would Kasey either get up and walk away, be empathic, or find a common connection?

“I’m in Rockford, Illinois, boarding house, doing temp work and attend a rescue mission for church,’ he said in quick succession.

They continued to hold hands. Kasey told him her residency of East Lansing, Michigan.

‘I drove here to attend this event. It looks like our table mates have had unscathed lives,’ she said. Another moment of silence passed as a bicyclist passed in front of them.

‘I’m glad we ran into each other here. It’s funny how the time, though twenty years has seemed to become miniscule with us and this reunion,’ Elisha said.

‘Yes, on the surface, on the surface you may be right,’ Kasey said.

‘I was going to drive home this evening, but may get a room at the University Inn. Want to share accommodations?’ Kasey asked, slightly smiling.

“You up to your old tricks? I gotta admit, you’ll have to foot the bill. I had enough to look good, get here, and get back to Rockford by train,’ Elisha said.

“Let’s go check in, and we can play like we’re young, foolish, crazy, wide-eyed college students again,’ Kasey said.

“Not sure indoor ice-skating is still viable, but touring the campus grounds may be more my type of activity,’ Elisha said.

Kasey stood, clapped her hands together and beckoned, ‘You’re on; let’s go for it and make us a fond memory,”

As they walked together, one of them observed, “Isn’t this nice and a pleasure to travel the same direction with a trustable, renewed friend?’

End