Sue had tried to prepare herself for the trip to California as best as possible, especially emotionally. She had packed the night before, and now she waited expectantly for the taxi to arrive as the early morning sun started to rise.
This was her first trip on her own in over a year. She had an 8am flight from Syracuse to Chicago, with a brief lay over there, and then straight on to LA. Soon, she would be in Malibu and at Tom's new beach house later that afternoon. She would be with John's best friends, Mike, Tom, Rick, Jim and Fred, and she would participate for the first time in their corporation's business matters. She suddenly felt alive and somewhat confident, for the first time in over a year.
Her parents had taken her two girls last evening and they were looking forward to spending several days with them. Her two girls had grown quite a bit in the past year. She knew that if John were now alive, he would be very proud of them.
She was going to be on her own in a new, far away place for the first time since John's passing a little over a year ago. She was very nervous, but excited at the same time. The butterflies in her belly, fluttered.
Last week she had closed up the camp for the season. The summer had gone so fast on Long Lake, and it was hard for her to believe that her girls were already back in school. The girls had enjoyed themselves so much there that summer, and so had she. The time they had spent there had been so peaceful, so relaxing and so emotionally therapeutic. She had always dreamed of spending an entire summer at a camp on a lake in the Adirondacks. John and her had always rented a camp for a week or two there most summers, but always, at the end of their short vacation, they had to come back to return to work. They could not afford to stay there any longer. They had both always dreamed of owning their own camp and being able to stay there the entire summer.
She thought, "The dream had come true for me, but not for John."
After John's death, the corporation he had started with his five best friends grew rapidly. The insurance money came in and now she lived the dream they had once wished for. Sue felt sad that John couldn't be here to share this time with her.
She had sold the house in town. It had too many memories, which hindered her from carrying on with her life. After John had passed, she sank into a deep depression that lasted several months. One night while sleeping, she had a dream about John. In the dream, John told her it was time to carry on with her life and that it was okay to always love him, but it was alright to enjoy life and their children.
She had neglected herself and the girls during those first selfish months of grief. In her dream he told her to sell the house and start a new life. He told her that the house and its memories were dragging her down, keeping her depressed.
She bought some land, not far from town and had a new house built there. After she moved into the new house, she immediately felt better for it. She slowly started to entertain a little, and do more with her girls.
Although she had not seen anyone special or dated, since John's passing, she now knew that if someone special did come along, it would be all right to date.
It had taken her a long time to feel this way again. Even though John would always have a big place in her heart, she decided that she would live her life, and would gladly take whatever came her way. Be it good, or be it bad. That was life, and the sooner she believed that, only then could she truly live.
She had read in a book somewhere, that the time that each one is given is truly special. To be savored like a fine vintage wine, and not squandered with prolonged grief, remorse, envy, jealousy, or hate. She decided to live her life like the words she had read in the book.
She knew that John would always be with her, looking after her, guiding her, and approving. She also knew that her spirit had matured a lot in the past year, but mostly in the past few months.
********************
At the airline check-in desk was a young handsome man. He asked to see her ticket and he gave her a boarding pass.
"Have a good flight, Miss Korbe."
She snapped back at him, "That's, Mrs. Korbe!"
She paused, thought for a second and smiled, and then she turned back to the man and said, "I'm sorry ...thank you very much."
As she walked down the gangway towards the plane, the handsome man continued to look at her. His eyes were glued to her butt. Sue suddenly felt his eyes on her and she knew that he was staring at her. She felt a twinge of embarrassment, yet at the same time she felt suddenly sexy and alive, for the first time in a very long while.
She almost enjoyed the feeling of knowing that a handsome man was still interested in her, and found her attractive. She also knew that if John were here he would say, "Suzzie, he's looking at your cute little ass."
John had not been a jealous man. In fact, he had been quite proud of her beautiful figure. When other men used to look at her, it gave him pleasure, but she had never given him any reason to be jealous. She had always been a devoted wife to him. John had been her high school sweetheart, and the man of her dreams.
Sue was five feet ten inches tall, and had long slender legs. In the flattering low cut blue dshort dress she wore, she was shown in all of her splendid beauty. She was the same weight as she was in high school. One hundred and twenty pounds. Her breasts were not overly large, but they weren't small either, but still very firm. Her figure was statuesque. Her golden blonde hair radiated. She was indeed a handsome woman of thirty-two and still in her prime. She was wealthy, beautiful, healthy in body and mind, and she was single.
