Dr Aimee And The Hike

Saturday morning came, and I decided to head to the mountains for a nice long hike. As good as hikes were for my physical health, they were even better for my mental health. Being out in nature, generally alone with my thoughts, gave me plenty of time to reflect and hopefully understand what had been happening with my life. Plus there was the added bonus of being able to meditate during my rest stops.

I had chosen a 15 mile loop that I had done before. It wasn't quite raining, but just a slow soothing drizzle. I pulled out my rain jacket and sat off on the path. It was truly a breathtaking site to see the clouds down in the valley. I had stopped at an overlook for one of my rest stops and had sat my pack down next to a big rock. I climbed up on the rock and got comfortable and started my meditation. No worries, no concerns, just replaying last week's events in my head.

As I was prone to do, I was speaking to myself in a quiet voice. Mostly just positive affirmations. I had learned this during my therapy sessions and it was one of the things that stuck with me. Being grateful for what I have in life. As I began to recount the events between Becki and myself and my interactions with James and Becki, and then with Kathy. I had no idea how much of what I had been thinking, I may have said aloud. It was almost trance-like.

I snapped out of it when I heard a rustling at the base of the rock and as I looked over, I noticed a lady in her raincoat looking away from me. I said, "One second and I'll be down. This is one of the best views on this trail, especially when the weather is like this, it is so tranquil."

She smiled and said, "This is my favorite stopping point, and I always try to climb up there and meditate. I'm sorry if I interrupted you."

I smiled and said, "I'm happy you did, I may have lost track of how long I'd been up there. No need for me hogging it all to myself." As we chatted, we talked about the mental health benefits of being on these trails and having the chance to meditate at places like this.

All of a sudden it hit me, "I'm sorry for not introducing myself, I'm Jamison" and extended my hand.

She blushed and said, "Oh my, I was too caught up in our conversation as well, I'm Aimee, with two E's."

Aimee said she wanted to meditate a little and would catch up with me on the trail in a bit. As she put her pack down, she asked. "Do you speak when you meditate?"

I'm pretty sure I blushed, "I do, I try to give myself positive affirmations, state what I'm grateful for and sort of give myself positive self talk. I apologize if you overheard anything I was saying, I try to use a quiet, personal tone."

She blushed and said, "I did hear some and you have lots to be grateful for" and with a smile she turned to climb up the rock. I wished her a peaceful time and said I'd see her later on the trail and set off. The clouds were beginning to lift and sunlight was beginning to filter into the valley. The rays of light piercing the clouds to the valley floor looked otherworldly. I would stop occasionally and drink some water and just absorb my surroundings. I was sitting in a small clearing with the light coming in, when Aimee walked up.

"Room for another?"

I laughed and patted a rock next to me. "Always room for a fellow hiker."

This interaction wasn't as odd as our first had been and as she pulled off her pack, and hat, it became obvious that Aimee was at least as old as I was. She had short gray hair, and a very thin, almost frail appearing body. We made small talk about lots of things. One being mental health.

Aimee had said that she was 71 and was a widow and that while her husband Don had passed, he wasn't missed. She hinted that the marriage may have had an abusive lean to it. I offered my condolences and winked at her and said, "and peace... now." She laughed out loud and asked about me. I said, "Well, my name is Jamison, I'm 56 and I like to go for long walks in the mountains..." I couldn't keep a straight face and said, "Sorry, couldn't help myself." She was laughing and I continued, "I'm a widower, my wife passed away a little over five years ago. I have one daughter that lives in Chicago with her husband. This mountain, this trail in particular is my safe place, my happy place. It's where I come when I need time to think, without the other distractions of life."

Aimee reached over and touched my arm and expressed her condolences for my wife, and blushed. It seems that your life has changed in the last couple of weeks. I turned bright red.

"I'm not certain what I was saying back at the rock, I was in my own world. Almost two years before my wife passed, she was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's. It was rough, because one day I'd be Jamison and the next I'd be a stranger. Needless to say, we stopped being husband and wife. I was more of her live in care-taker. We lived in the same house in separate rooms and while there'd be moments where she'd come over and give me a long hug, there'd be times that during the hug she'd push me away, and become quite angry. It was soul crushing. Something as simple as a hug, that small piece of a physical connection was all that I had from her and that was getting taken away too. I know it wasn't her wish to push me away, but just part of her disease."

"After she passed, my daughter had recommended some therapy and while I was pretty reluctant at first, I ended up going to several sessions. It was helpful and more importantly, nudged me in a positive direction, mentally." I noticed that Aimee was transfixed on me. I said, "Please forgive me for oversharing and more importantly, if I say too much and I'm pretty sure I may have already, just let me know. I've got thick skin."

Aimee snapped out of it and laughed. "You'll think I'm crazy, but your voice is so peaceful and soothing. I promise, I was listening to every word, but had zoned out. I am sorry to hear about your wife. My husband was an ass, but between you and me, I completely understand the physical touch just being a comfort anchor. It's a small gesture that can put us at ease. That may be the only thing I miss about him."

"Aimee, if I may be so bold, it seems like things weren't great between you and Don..."

Aimee put her fingers up to her mouth and said, "You're good, I don't want to talk about him because that gives him a space in my head rent free, and he's not worth it, but to your question, yes, things weren't great. He was an abusive asshole. He only hit me once, and that landed him in jail. But it didn't stop the verbal abuse, the gas-lighting, the mistreatment... He was a blue collar guy and hated the fact that I had a doctorate and would always try and use that against me. Enough of that, you know about Don, so we're done with him, okay?"

I smiled and nodded, "No more questions about what's his name."

Aimee laughed and placed her hand on my arm, "You're a quick study Jamison, very quick."

I said, "I try to pay attention, no promises, but I try."

She laughed again and removed her hand. "Please continue your story, I am in no hurry and the day is almost perfect."

"I know first aid, so if I bore you to the point you pass out and hit your head on a rock, I can render first aid until help arrives."

She slapped my arm and started to laugh, "That's the funniest thing I've heard in years, and I've got a few more than you, so that's saying something. You've made my day Jamison! Please finish your story."

As I got Aimee caught up to the point that Kathy had come over. I'd intentionally left out any graphic details. Aimee looked at me with wide eyes. "You worked at Hinton Mills, didn't you?!"

I returned her gaze and said, "yes, how did you know..."

She smiled. "I am an I/O Psychologist and was called in to help find a solution after a certain manager had been found out to be having sex with employees in his office... We had suggested semi opaque glass walls. Then we were consulted again a couple of years later due to the grievances about lack of privacy. The easiest, budget friendly option was the blinds. It's a really small damn world, right!"

I laughed, "way too small. I worked out of the office in question and for the record, I loved the modern look of the glass walls."

She leaned over and placed her hand on my arm. "Me too and not just because I suggested them, but also because I got to play designer and that opaque pattern was one that I had created."

She said, "You sound like you're happy, but between us friends, you seem a bit conflicted."

I smiled, "You are quite astute Dr, Aimee. I am. My prayers had been answered for intimacy and within a short period of time. However, both are married women..."

Aimee said, "Everyone is adults and from what you've shared, both women made those decisions on their own and it seems that at least with Becki, her husband is more than okay with things. Plus it also seems that you've helped him and Becki with their intimacy, so you should be proud of that. As for the other lady, your wife's best friend, you gave her what she needed and wanted, you had fun as well. So no harm to anyone, and Jamison, you sound like a sweet guy and while I don't think either lady would ever take advantage of you, be careful. I can tell you have feelings for Becki."

I said, "You're spot on. I do have feelings for her, but I respect what they offered and the boundaries they've set. I think I'll be okay."

She reached out and rubbed my arm, "You're a good guy, let's get going."

We stood up, gathered our things, made sure we'd picked up after ourselves and I'd helped her with her pack. Aimee caught me off guard, "I could have gotten that, but thank you." I apologized and she said, "You're fine" and winked at me.

I laughed and said, "You're quite fine as well Doctor Aimee."

She blushed and said, "Oh no, you're not going to use that wit and charm to bed me mister, plus, I'm old enough to be your mother!"

I laughed, "technically I suppose you are, but you would have needed to get an early start."

She laughed and said "come on, we'll need to pick up the pace to make it back down before it gets dark."

I said, "I was never a Boy Scout and may have gotten removed from Cub Scouts, but I do have a working flashlight if we need it"

She laughed out loud, "So now the truth comes out... for what it's worth, I hated the Girl Scouts, and I also have a flashlight, so we're set. " We continued the loop and hadn't realized how much it had rained on the last leg of the trail.

It was very slippery and during one narrow portion, Aimee had almost fallen when she slipped. I reached out and caught her before she fell. She said, "Thank you for that, I don't need to fall up here. My kids would kill me if anything happened, especially after they told me that I was too old to be hiking on this trail alone."

Jokingly, I said, "I'd never kill you, plus you're not alone" and gave her an exaggerated wink.

"Jamison, you are incorrigible. Apparently I have to watch what I say around you as you seem to pay attention pretty well, and also not funny Son! Just remember, I did overhear you on the rock..."

I'm glad it was getting dark, because I was bright red. I said, "Dr. Aimee, I have been trying to recall what I might have said to myself on the rock and in all honesty, when I heard you, it startled me and my mind went blank. I have some ideas, but literally no idea what I could have said. So, I'll assume the worst and apologize if I had said anything too graphic, or anything else that you might have felt was inappropriate. I am truly sorry."

Aimee was laughing, "Well it was somewhat graphic, but nothing that I felt was inappropriate. After all, that was your private moment I interrupted, eventually. Jamison, I was at the base of that rock for about five minutes before I threw my pack down to interrupt you. I had thought about leaving, but like I had mentioned, your voice was so soothing and well, what you were saying caught my attention. I had started to feel guilty for eavesdropping. I'm sorry, hopefully you don't think I was being creepy."

I laughed, "I'd never think of you being creepy. In fact, I like to think of you as my new friend if that's okay with you... or more as a mother figure."

I took several steps away from her and she started to laugh even harder. "Oh you..., I swear, if you were my son, I'd take a switch and light you up!"

I laughed, "That's why I moved away when I said that!"

We continued to have fun during the last bit of the walk to the parking lot. Aimee was a great sport and seemed to really enjoy our conversations. It had gotten a bit chilly since it had gotten dark, and when we were near the parking lot, Aimee stopped, took off her pack and removed her keys and pointed them in the direction of the parking lot. I heard a familiar chirp and then an engine started.

I laughed, "you're quite fancy ma'am, remote start... oh my!"

She laughed, "heated seats too!"

As we got to the opening, I saw two Toyota Tacoma's next to each other, same color Lunar Rock, one was a year newer. Mine was the older one.

We stopped and looked at each other, I said, "Great minds!"

Aimee laughed, "I had parked next to your truck because I thought it'd be nice to see two almost identical ones parked next to each other. Pretty cool that it was your truck."

As we got to our trucks and had put our backpacks away, I walked over to Aimee and said, "Thank you for being a great hiking partner! Even if you did tease me a bit by not telling me what you overheard, and again, I am so sorry if I had said anything inappropriate. Also, if you ever want to have a hiking buddy, let me know. I promise to give you plenty of space when you want it. Of course I promise to annoy you and joke with you as well."

I extended my hand and Aimee looked at my hand, then up at me and gave me a big hug and stepped back.

"Jamison, friends don't shake hands, they hug. I'd love to go hiking again with you, but I may ask that you start ahead of me so that I can eavesdrop again" and began to laugh.

I laughed, "All you have to do is ask, I'll share whatever you want to know about, but please, don't startle me again!"

She leaned in and gave me another quick hug, "That was for saving my butt back there on the trail!"

I smiled and said, "The pleasure was all mine" and made an exaggerated wink which made her laugh. "Jamison, you are a goofball, but a good one, so I guess I'll go hiking again with you."

I said, "if you want, I can give you my number and when you're up for a duo-hike to let me know."

She reached into her rain jacket and pulled out her phone. I saw her enter a new contact called Jamison, I said, "when you're ready..." She said, "ready" and I gave her my number.

She said, "Got it! I'll send you a text when I get home." She thanked me again and it almost seemed like she was going to give me another hug, but awkwardly turned around and said, "See you later!"

I waved and walked around to my truck and took off my rain jacket and tossed it in the back and headed home.

I was happy that I'd made a new friend and more than that, I felt invigorated from the hike and also my meditation. It was refreshing to be out in nature to have some time to think. Meeting Aimee was a pleasant surprise. The drive had been pretty uneventful until I got about a mile from my house. It was a typical fall storm and it was raining hard. I was happy I'd decided to take the truck, I'm pretty sure the car would have had some issues with water covering the road in a few areas.

I got home, and it was raining like crazy at my house. I opened the garage door and ran inside with all of my gear and as soon as my hiking boot hit the garage floor it slipped and sent me sliding into my work bench. I didn't feel hurt, just embarrassed and jumped up. The first thing I noticed was my ankle was a bit tender, I thought I'd probably twisted it when I fell. I was also blinking with my left eye, I thought I probably got some dust or dirt in it when I fell.

I went over and sat down at the small bench near the kitchen door to take off my boots and when I leaned over, I saw blood drops starting to hit my boot. Instinctively I reached up to my eye and felt that I now had a part clean through my left eye brow. I walked over to my tool box and got several pieces of paper towel and put them on my eyebrow and applied pressure. I kicked off my hiking boots and went into the house.

Butch was looking at me like I was crazy, so I asked if he wanted to go out, he ran to the back door and as soon as I opened the door, he ran out on the patio and then just stopped. He looked at the stairs to the backyard and then back at me. It was almost as if he was saying "I'm not going out there in the rain, what now?" I said, do your business on the patio. He went over to the post to the stairs and lifted a leg and looked back at me. I said, "Go ahead, this time!" He complained as he normally did and did his business. After he came back in, I got him a snack and went to the bathroom to look in the mirror.

I pulled the paper towels away and said, "Well hell, this fucking sucks..." My left eyebrow was split down to the bone from side to side. More than my first aid kit could handle, so I decided to head to urgent care. I just remembered that I'd not used my medical insurance since I'd changed jobs, so I called the number on the back of my insurance card and the nurse told me that I should call an ambulance. I said I was fine and that the bleeding had stopped, but I would need stitches and asked for the nearest open urgent care.

She said, there was one open, but it was about an hour away, but the hospital's ER had the same copay, and it was closer. I thanked the nurse and slipped on some running shoes and walked back out to my truck. I got in and realized I'd forgotten my phone, I went back in and got it and was headed back to my truck when I got a text. It was from Aimee. I quickly added her as a contact and I got in the truck and connected my phone.

I wasn't happy about having to drive all the way across town, especially in this rain, just to get stitches. Frankly, it made me feel like an idiot. I got over my self pity and asked my phone to read Aimee's text. It sounded funny in the voice that Google used to read it to me, but she said, "Thanks for a great day. It was awesome meeting you and getting to spend the day hiking with you. In all honesty, I wasn't sure what to think when I overheard you and for some reason stayed. Here's my admission, I told myself that I should leave you alone, but, and here's the creepy part, I enjoyed hearing what you were saying. As I said earlier, I love how your voice is so calming and that was part of it, but what you were saying grabbed my attention. You were expressing genuine gratitude for the last week and what it had brought. You didn't provide anything too graphic, but you did give some details and that's what made me stay. I know that sounds wrong, but I felt I should be honest with you."

I asked Google to reply to her text, "You weren't creepy at all and I don't hold it against you for listening. I may have as well had I been in a similar position. But, you need to promise to tell me what I said, please. I hate not knowing, it's killing me" and sent the text.

Aimee replied pretty quickly, with "Thank you for being a nice guy and not thinking I'm a creep. If you have a few minutes, can I call you?" I replied, "Yes, please." and almost immediately my phone rang.

Aimee said, "Thanks for taking my call at this hour. I just wanted to talk for a bit if that's okay."

I laughed, "No problem at all, I'm free until I get called back."

"Called back, where are you at?"

I laughed, "If you're ready to hear a funny story..."

"Go on, what happened?"

"Well, when I got home it was raining like crazy, so I grabbed my stuff and ran into the garage and as soon as I crossed the threshold, I slipped and slid into my work bench. I thought I'd just twisted my ankle, but later realized I'd split my eyebrow open so after a quick call to my insurance company, I'm headed to the ER to get some stitches."