I've been writing for sometime now. Once in a while, I'll start with a story that 'develops a life of its own'. This is one of those stories. It began life as a small multipart story and now it's growing in a number of directions that I never expected! I took some time and got organized with plot branching, story, character arcs, etc. Hopefully, god willing and the river don't rise, I'll be back on my chapter schedule this month!
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I actually turned in a little early on Monday night. Tuesday was going to be a big day! Elaine and I did our usual 'thing' for breakfast. I was eating granola made up of nuts, grains, twigs, and gravel that I get at the Whole Foods store. Keeps things moving. I guess I looked lost in thought.
"The 'Dream' again?"
"Yeah. The one part, the orange sky has become more ocher and opaque. The fall into the earth has changed too."
"Why don't you write down the differences? Maybe you'll see a pattern!" She suggested.
"Interesting idea."
I left first, around 10 am. Driving north on the Golden Gate would be against commuter traffic and fairly smooth. Picking up the boat, and heading back into the City and across the bay was a different story! Traffic was a nightmare and I didn't arrive at Ed's shop until noon! Ed's shop had a huge yard with an automatic gate. I pulled the truck in, backed the boat into where Darrell wanted to work on it, and then drove it to a bay. Manny was going to give the truck the once over. He did the usual fluids check, then raised it on the lift. He walked around underneath, twisting the drive lines, checking the brakes, and looking for whatever was out of place.
"Where's El Jefe?" I asked.
"He's out buying pizza for lunch."
"Pizza on a Tuesday? A little odd." I observed.
"He's in one of his 'moods'. He's a little maudlin about something. You know how he gets."
"Yeah. I think it's that passionate Catholic thing!"
Manny cracked a crooked grin.
Ed returned and I carried the pizzas to the lunch room. We ate and I went out into the yard to see if I could give Darrell a hand with getting the trolling motor installed. He had found 3 AGM deep cycle batteries that were half the weight of the old lead acid. He was missing a wiring harness and wouldn't be able to get it until tomorrow. Not a problem, I'll come back on Thursday, bring the boat back to storage, and get ready for Saturday. I went into the office and Ed's office manager, Linda, was having computer problems. Being the geek that I am, I have a soft-sided flash drive case with computer repair tools on the drives. I carry it in my messenger bag. The problems were simple and she was up and running in short order.
It was quitting time and I went out to the patio area, behind the shop. He had one corner that was covered with translucent fiberglass panels. Manny moved a number of palms, elephant ear, and palmetto in and around. It was nice on a hot day. I grabbed a beer and Ed was having some of his Kentucky sippin' whiskey!
"So, you have Manny talking about you. What's up?" I asked.
"Oh, no worries. I've been thinking about 'redemption'. I went to mass on Sunday and someone sat down beside me. It was Jake. Needless to say, that was a surprise, to say the least! We went out to eat after and he had some interesting things to tell me. He's back in outpatient recovery. Voluntary! I know how many times I've said that this time is different, but this time, it is!" He said.
"What makes you think it's different?"
"He hasn't asked for anything!" He proclaimed, raising an eyebrow. He went on to talk about realizing how losing his leg and the aftermath that followed. They both lost touch.
"Do you remember when I finally got out of the hospital, you gave me a tablet with an audiobook subscription?" Ed asked.
"Sure."
"Well, one of the free books included was Moby Dick. That story hit me!" He revealed.
"Care to share?"
"When I came back from Iraq with pieces missing, I realized it was more of a devastation than I first imagined. I felt I let down my men, the Corps, and my family, and I wasn't a man! I know you'll say Ed, that doesn't make any sense at all! Of course, you're a man!! The problem is that we are in the realm of irrational and distorted emotional perceptions. I read Moby Dick in high school, like everyone else. This time, it was very different. There are many memorable lines, but this is the one that was a 'gut punch'.
'He piled upon the whale's white hump, the sum of all the general rage and hate felt by his whole race from Adam down; and then, as if his chest had been a mortar, he burst his hot heart's shell upon it.'
I looked at him. I could see that this hit him deep.
"Hearing this, all the anger, hate, and resentment I was stewing in was a mask for how badly I hurt inside. The whale took Ahab's leg and left him a broken shell of a man. The Taliban took my leg, and my plan was to become a mercenary, and kill as many of those mother fuckers as I could! It became clear that if I didn't change course, I'd be the one tied to the whale and beckoning!"
"I remember that I wanted to visit you in the Palo Alto hospital, but you weren't too keen on seeing us. I thought you were angry with me. Mom explained that you were having a tough time." I returned.
