A few weeks ago
While combing through
Old black and white photos
Stored in a tattered shoebox
That once housed new boots
I came across this sweet little card
Three inches squared with
Pink butterflies and roses on the front.
I opened it
Saw your handwriting
And smiled.
I thought of you and the day
You sent Carlie to my house
To present it to me along
With the Peanuts garbage can
That has been in every bedroom
And every house in every city
Throughout all the moves
For over half a century.
Seeing your note from
All those years ago
Took me back
To those dreamy teenage girls
Hamm Highschool friends forever
Band nerds –
You played the timpani
And I played second clarinet.
We were editors of the yearbook
The only one in the annals
Of our school’s yearbook history
That missed the publishing deadline
An inglorious distinction
But that was us.
You wrote the caption to my photo
It said I had a laugh that
Did solo performances everywhere.
I still do.
In the card you apologized
For it being a day late
And delivered by your sister
And not in person
You said that you were beat
Suffering from double pneumonia
Or just a bad head cold
We lived for melodrama back then.
You signed the card
Love Pat, the Chink
A nod to your Asian heritage
You told me about your new name,
Bulldozer and how neat you thought it was
We all had nicknames back in the day
That would be frowned upon now
But they were us and that’s all we knew
You wished me a Happy Birthday
And addressed me by a nickname
I have long forgotten, Breed.
Seeing this little memento from
Another era, another century, a lifetime ago
Sparked memories of you and our friendship
And all the other girls in our group.
One of the last times I saw you was at Ma’s funeral
I was so surprised and moved by your presence
Along with all the other girls from high school who
I hadn’t seen since I got the hell out of Dodge
I know Ma was smiling upon us that day
Just like she did when we gathered around
Her kitchen table for tea and cookies after school.
We got together one more time after that
I returned to bury The Old Man’s ashes
In the Miettinen grave with my beloved Ma.
My young daughter and I spent
An evening at your house
Drinking tea and eating snacks
It was beyond glorious
Like no time had passed at all
We travelled to a time and place
Where the laughter never stopped.
Finding that little card
After all these years sparked
My desire to see you again
I didn’t want that memory
Of us to be the last one
I couldn’t get you off my mind.
I kept the card on my desk
It’s something I can’t explain
Like something other worldly
Mystical and mysterious was taking place.
Every day I reached for the card
And read it and re-read it
Like it had some secret message for me
I had to see you.
I am going home for a visit in May
I vowed I would see you then
I would find your number and give you a call
I looked forward to laughing our faces off
I also had to find out how I got the nickname Breed.
But life is a bitch sometimes
Paradoxical and bewildering.
Not long after I discovered the card
I got a text message from my niece back home
It was a short note to say she saw that you had passed away.
Passed away.
On the bottom of the Peanuts garbage can
You had written with black marker pen
In your whimsical quirky handwriting
Don’t forget the old school days.
I haven’t, my friend.
