THE TREE THAT BINDS

Max was just about to reach his 10-mile milestone for the day. He glanced at his black fit-bit watch. 130 bpm Not bad. The cool breeze of the early morning streamed through Max's body with a smear of sweat covering his skin. His running shoes offering some buoyance, making him bounce on the pavement sidewalk. His jogging resembled the rising sun's ceremonial welcoming, which radiated across the Eastern horizon over the skyscrapers.

Max made a left turn and entered the park, a cheat, rather than going all the way round to access his apartment located meters away from the recreational ground. Max passing through the park spared his lactate-filled musculature another one mile. On this particular day, he felt it was justifiable.

The park was calm, light up by the solar-powered street lights recently installed. Max saw this as a remarkable place: a sanctuary, a piece of nature preserved at the heart of this concrete jungle that is the city. A place for both human-to-human interaction as well as human-nature interaction.

Max subconscious took note of a particular blossom tree at the corner of his right eye: a Kwanzan cherry tree that stood somewhat distant from other trees on the landscape. Its outstretched branches bearing an overabundance of deep pink flowers signalling late spring. The tree swayed by the morning breeze did not relinquish its pride: the colourful flowers. Holding dear to them like a mother would towards their child. Max did not appreciate its beauty. It instead remained a sore remainder of his complicated past and how early his childhood changed. He stopped, and for a moment, was struck with memories of his past while growing up.

Max Pennington was the firstborn in his family of four children. He lived with his entire family in a suburban home not too far away from the east coast shores of Florida. His parents, Julia and Damon Pennington were not perfect parents, but they were good ones. However, Max never shared the same thoughts when it came to his siblings. He saw them as raging, whining monsters who had one purpose: to rob him of his peace and joy in his life.

It was only made worse by the weight put on him to act as a role model for his three younger siblings. Max was not the perfect son, neither was he a notorious belligerent teen. But that is not to say he never was called to the principal's office several times. However, he managed to complete his high school education without facing suspension, unlike most of his classmates.

He despised the responsibility placed on him despite his young age. He wondered how him, being young and naïve, could mould the character of his curious-minded, hyperactive, archaic siblings. They seemed never to understand boundaries or the need for personal space. But Max stepped up and tried his best to be the exemplary son. And to his credit, his parents were not blind to his efforts and were proud.

Responsibility is something that many try to avoid in life, despite being the most virtuous of virtue in Max's eyes. He never understood why people failed to take responsibility for their actions, for their words. You would think that responsibility is something that people willfully take up as a knight would take to arms his armour ready for battle. But many shy away, afraid of the consequences. They hide in some figurative bubble, acting detached from the consequences of their actions. But daily tormented by thoughts and dreams of their actions.

Maybe that is what happened with mum.

He shook his head violently as if to shake off piles of dust on his head.

No. she didn't care. All she cared was about her career.

Max never truly understood why his mum left all of a sudden; when things were working out for them. His dad received a promotion as head manager of an Automobile manufacturing industry. Things were good with the children. Her mother had just recently been honoured for her exemplary work with Merkel's Community Centre. Before her intervention, the place was a dump, cornered off and unused, except for the times people would break in to seek shelter for a week or two.

The place was deplorable. But Julia managed to raise it from the grounds up, making a name for herself in the community. The mayor opted to plant a Kwanzan cherry tree in the city park—a testimony of her outstanding contribution to the community.

What about us, mum? If you showed much care for us, maybe you wouldn't leave us.

In all honesty, Julia was a caring person to those around her. Her selfless nature reaffirmed her passion for her profession as a nurse. She cared for her patients and never abandoned them when they needed her. She received appraisals from most if not all, who worked or interacted with her—a guardian angel in navy blue scrubs with a stethoscope hanging on her neck.

But then the bombshell came that almost crippled Max's family.

"Am sorry to say, but scans show you have a tumour in the left ovary. Further test showed its spread to the lymphatic vessels."

The family was devastated. Julia tried to be strong for herself, forgetting her family. But she did not do her family any justice. Julia isolated herself from them. She tried to live life as before: ignoring the elephant in the room. Even when Julia started her chemo sessions, she held up her act. She became distant towards everyone without any bias. For Max's dad, Damon, it was hard for him. He was a realist. Thus every night, arguments would break out, mostly confined to the parents' master bedroom. But as time progressed, things spilt over to the dining table, sitting room or even outside.

One time, when Max came back late past his curfew, he tip-topped his way into the front lawn hoping everyone was asleep. Suddenly, his father walked out of the house, forcefully closing the door shut. Max thought that was done for. Luckily for him, his dad walked past him, mumbling stuff to himself -entered his car and drove off. Inside, his mother was not willing to say a thing.

His siblings, who overhead them, spilt every detail:  

"Mum can't stop treatment; why is she been so selfish. We need her. I need her. Dad needs her. We all need her. "

Julia had made up her mind. She was stopping her treatment. Persuasions from oncologists and other health experts did not budge her. She did not want chemo anymore.

"I just can't do this anymore. I know what all this leads to; I have seen it for myself. Patient after patient………I know I have been acting delusional for a while. I just don't wanna die alone. I wanna spend every minute with you guys. Not in some hospital room."

  For a brief moment, tensions reduced. The words hit them to the core, revealing the true intentions of Julia, who now had his husband almost in tears:

"I know it's hard, honey. But it's the only way we can get to have you for longer. To enjoy and spend more time with…."

"No! I will not have my children remember me as a skeleton with hair falling off my head. I just won't have it!"

There was no reasoning with her. Her family just had to accept it. But deep down, Max was not pleased. Later on, he would battle with this: what if he spoke out in the past? Could he have made any difference if he had said something?

Weeks led to months, and the family enjoyed the time they had with Julia. Unfortunately, they were only allowed two months. After which, Julia passed away. Her absence haunted their home. Of all the family members, Max was not fairing well with the aftermath. Guilt overwhelmed him. If only he had said something, maybe, somehow, she would have changed her mind, and she would be alive.

"I blame you, mum. You knew how bad it was, but you only thought about yourself. You never thought about any of us."

Max whimpered as he smashed his fists on the tree. Shaking it slightly but not enough to shed a flower from it. He was alone in the park. Nobody witnessed his outrage. He composed himself and walked away from the tree. 

Damn!

Max gazed upon his clenched right hand. He had developed swelling on the knuckles and noted a few tiny wood splinters. Max thought this was the world retaliating for his outburst earlier. He went to his bathroom and took out a pair of tweezers.

He sat down and picked and probed to ensure he got every one of them. He then applied an antiseptic over the wound and dressed it. Max smirked at how well his dressing looked.

I bet mum would be impressed.

But he experienced wincing pain, which hindered mobility. He needed something to soothe the pain. But he also wished that somehow the pain that the guilt had caused in him could wash away. He felt it lodged at his chest: like an invisible force that sat on his chest-becoming heavier with every minute, making him suffocate.

Finally, he managed to get to the pharmacy. If the pharmacist could have paid close attention, he would have noted Max was in excruciating pain. Max gobbled down two pills down with his saliva. He felt every one go through his food pipe. Minutes later, the pain slowly wore off.

As he headed back to his apartment, he felt a moment of bliss for some unknown reason. He noted the park that was now brimming with activity: Cyclists riding through the tarmacked roads; couples busking in the sun. Children playing around with their parents nearby, observing them. He felt peaceful. It was an attraction that was drawing him in.

He made a glance at the blossom tree he punched earlier. A lady stood beside it, bearing a solemn and respectful attitude towards it.

She doesn't seem to be any family I've encountered. Who is she?

Max's mind went on with questions. Eventually, the nagging questions got the best of him.

It's not as if it's the most beautiful tree in the park.

"Hello"

A middle-aged woman with braided hair wearing gym attire looked in the direction of Max with a slight grin on her face.

"Sorry to bother you. I just wanted to know why you love this tree. As in there are more beautiful trees than this one in the park."

Just then, a man who seemed to be in his late thirties with an incredible physique jogged past us:

"Hello Claire"

The mystery man who now was heading towards both of them disrupted Max's attention.

"Hey, Tom. See you keeping up with the exercise routines as usual."

"Yea. The first week was terrible. Muscle aches everywhere. Now I feel energetic a little younger."

Tom realized Max standing beside Claire.

"Oh, sorry, didn't see you there. Claire, whose your colleague?"

"I was just about to ask him the same thing."

They both looked at Max in silence, waiting for a response. The whole situation was awkward, and Max was becoming anxious.

"Oooh, sorry. I just saw her mesmerized by the tree wanted to know why."

"What's it to you." Tom shot back in a condescending tone.

"Aah well. This is the tree that the mayor planted in honour of my mother."

 "Wait, are you Max, Julia's son?" Claire asked.

"I thought you seemed familiar. Wait, you don't recognize me. I am Claire Johnson. I worked under your mum as a junior nurse."

Suddenly thoughts of past times in his visits to his mum's workplace came. Before Julia could clear with the hand over of patients and changing, it would take her 30 minutes to an hour. Max remembered a young nurse who always kept him company. They became close. And his mother was championing for both of them to go out on a date. Some days after her shift, she would always insist Max pick her up and ensure she would take her time to leave us both to spend time together.

"Oooh yea, Claire. How can I forget? I almost couldn't recognize you in that gym outfit. I'm used to seeing you in scrubs."

Claire blushed, looking away for just a brief moment wearing a slight grin. Tom looked at the two noting the obvious and rolled his eyes.

"So what happened to your hand Max", Tom interjected pointing to his bandaged left hand. 

Claire looked on with concern holding up his bandaged, wrapped hand. Her touch had a spark to it, causing a shock of electricity to flow up his arm straight to his heart resulting in a faster heartbeat. The neurons in the brain triggered, resulting in an overflow of euphoria within him. Max contained himself and just smirked.

"Aah, it was a minor accident this morning, nothing to worry bout. Was actually from the doctor. He dressed me up and gave me some meds." He said while lifting the medium-sized khaki envelope containing medication.

"So, you came to pay tribute to your mum? "Tom asked

Max was not that ecstatic to answer the question. The rage he felt for his mother was still burning in him. But he decided to keep it bottled up and cheekily gave an irrelevant response.

"Well, not necessarily. I tend to believe that mum still lives in my heart for all eternity."

"Well. I truly miss Julia. I will forever be grateful for how caring she was to me. Had it not been for her, I would have probably died like a dog."

"You never did tell me how you met up with her?" Claire said.

"It's something that I am necessarily not proud of. I was an opioid addict."

Both Max and Claire looked at him with genuine concern and sympathy.

"I had everything right with my life. A great job. A great family. But I lost it all due to my addiction. I sought out heroin to help me cope with the stress, but I eventually went down a darker path. I started abusing other drugs since heroin wasn't packing a punch. I went on to Oxycodone and found myself using fentanyl."

"My life became a wreck. I lost my family and job. And I wouldn't have been alive if it hadn't been for Julia's community clinic. I was on the brink of death. But she pulled me out of it."

Tom's eyes began to tear,  "Hadn't it been for her support, I wouldn't be where I am."

"Wow, that is some hard stuff, Tom. I didn't know."  Claire responded.

Max was shocked by the story. He thought that her mother was selfish, but Tom's story began to crack the façade villainous image of her mum that he held dear.

"Sometimes, I think that she went so that I would live. Some messed up cosmic plan, that is. Equating the life of a former drug addict with that of a devoted nurse, a caring mother."

Claire was almost in tears:

"You know Tom. You've reminded me of something that happened in the past."

Both Tom and Max looked at Claire as she told her story.

"There is this incident that happened to me during my first night shift. The patrol of guards that you see at the hospital was just a recent implementation. Before that, the hospital administration had cut back on security patrols; this especially greatly affected the night shift."

"It was my first night, and I was already nervous. The fact that I would sit out alone gave me chills. But Julia decided to stay with me the entire shift even though she was part of the day shift staff. By some intuition, she knew my fears and anxiety. And if that's the case, then she came at the right time. On that same night, a mass shooter escaping the cops had managed to creep into the hospital. He attacked me and wanted to………..wanted to..."

"It okay, Claire, you don't have to share the ordeal if you don't want to,"

Tom said.

She continued while wiping off tears:

 "Anyways…….Julia came in just before he could pull down my scrubs. She managed to fight him off me and render him unconscious. She was there for me when I needed her. And where was I? Enjoying myself with my family in some fancy ski resort."

She broke down in tears. The tears flowed down like a waterfall, and she could not bear the sadness. She almost collapsed to the ground. Max stepped in time to hold her.

She hugged Max and drenched his t-shirt with her tears with the muffled sounds of her sobbing echoing around them.

"It's okay, Julia. It's not your fault or Tom's. You should consider it a blessing that she impacted your lives in such a profound way." Max could not believe the words coming out of his mouth.

But I hate her.

No, he could not hold on to this anger any longer. The stories he heard melted the distorted image of his mother, along with the rage. Its as if his shoulders became freed from something weighing him down. Max felt love and appreciation. His mind played memorable moments he shared with her.

He eventually gave in. He hugged Claire tightly as tears began to flow from his eyes too.

Yeah, she was an incredible nurse and mother.

"Oooh... Ain't the two of you cute. Young love. You two remind me of myself when I was young. Anyways I gotta go. Been nice finally meeting you, Max. See you later, Claire."

Tom was off again, leaving Max and Claire within each other's grasp standing in front of the blossom tree. A warm soothing breeze blew against the two. They felt love from their surroundings. Could it be Julia reaching out from the cosmos?