The Other Side of the Pillow

We were sitting across from each other at the dining room table in my five-bedroom home. I didn’t need all of that space, but it made sense for me to purchase real estate. I owned three other homes in the area, but loved living near the park. During the summer months, I loved riding my bike through the trails, hiking, and playing basketball at pickup games.

I thought back to Jemistry

bringing all of that gear hiking on the Appalachian Trail in Virginia. It was often hard for her to simply go with the flow. Everything tended to be a production; she was always concerned about having everything she needed to do something.

I sat there chuckling and thinking about it.

“What’s so funny?” She glanced down at my plate, which was still half full. “I hope you’re not laughing at my cooking.”

“No, it’s good. Not as good as what I can throw together, but good.” I grinned as she drank a sip of wine with much attitude. “I’m only playing with you, baby. I don’t have much of an appetite.”

“I understand, and I’m sorry for talking so much.”

“You’ve barely said two words to me since you got here.”

“That’s because I said that I wouldn’t. I just want to be here for you . . . when you need me.”

I got up from the table, walked over to her, then took both of her hands and stood her up. “And I appreciate that.”

I started to lead her into the living room. “Wait! I need to clear the table and do the dishes.”

“All of that can wait,” I said. “Let’s go pick a movie to watch.”

“I’ve got that covered. I brought a Blu-ray with me.”

“Oh yeah, which one?”

“It’s called Dysfunctional Friends. It’s about a group of friends that are forced to stay together in the same house after a mutual friend’s death. They all agree because his lawyer won’t read his will until they do it.”

“Aw, so greed makes them deal with one another?”

“Exactamundo! They had all drifted apart because of drama, or just being busy in life after college.”

“Sounds like my friends.”

“Mine, too. I’ve been thinking about hosting monthly networking events to try to bring my crew back together. Remember how we used to make fun of our parents for being busy with life? Now we’re all stressed out over work, some are popping out babies, and scrapbooking or taking yoga classes.”

I sat down on the sofa while Jemistry put the movie into my Blu-ray player and grabbed the appropriate remote.

She was about to turn it on when I stopped her. “If it’s okay with you, I would like to talk about what happened to me at work today.”

“Of course, baby.”

We held hands.

“I’ve lost a lot of patients over the years, but something really struck me today about Mrs. Turner’s death. Even though I’m well aware of my mortality, I realize that I’m still relatively young. There are things that I still want to do before I leave this earth.”

“I feel the same way. Life is a one-shot deal. What you make of it, or don’t make of it, ultimately becomes your legacy. That’s why I’m so determined to make a difference with the kids at Medgar Evers. A lot of them don’t have anyone else who believes in them.”

“I love the fact that you’re so passionate about what you do. There are many people who don’t have that kind of excitement about their jobs.”

“Hell, Tevin, most people are only going through the motions to get a paycheck. I see it in the teachers at my school, especially some of the younger ones. They’re underpaid, underappreciated, and thought that they would change the world when they started. Then they got a reality check.”

“Well, the same goes for a lot of doctors, keeping it real.”

“Don’t get me wrong. There are a lot of great teachers, and the rest generally have the potential to achieve greatness. But when you have a few students trying to ruin it for everyone else, it can be a challenge. I try to weed out most of that kind, but a lot of times even the teachers are afraid to tell me what’s happening in their classrooms.”

“A lot of people live in fear these days. The world has become a crazy place. It’s not unusual for us to have gunshot victims under the age of fifteen, or kids coding after using intense drugs.”