Chapter 71

Things settled down over the next couple of months and the children started getting ready to go back to school in the fall.  Samantha and Jasmine was going to the school daily in preparation for cheer camp in Canon City.  It was the new squad’s first competition of the season.  They would spend the rest of the fall season training and practicing, as well as preparing for football games.  As long as they were still living, David and Brie promised they would be at as many games as they could so that they could watch Jasmine and Sammi cheer.

Jake was busy with trying to find a doctor to take over in his stead when he retired at the end of the year.  He was tired.  It was time for to settle down for a while and enjoy some time with his wife.  She was planning on spending less time at the clinic so that the two of them could spend more time together as a couple as well as being parents to their last remaining children at home. 

Jeremiah didn’t teach over the summer.  Instead, he spent time with his own family, taking care of the kids while Jona worked at the clinic with Delilah, Maddie, and Damien.  He took Rina to her riding lessons while teaching Matt to drive so that he could get his license before school started.  He, Seth, and Sammi would carpool, each taking turns to drive home unless more than one of them had to stay after school.  If all three had to stay, then they waited around until the other two were done.  Jake and Jeremiah had discussed it when it came up that the three kids wanted to learn to drive so that they could go to and from school without having to rely on anyone else to take them.

David and Brie were spending less and less time in the house and more time alone together in the cottage.  Jake would call out and make sure that they were ok, but he didn’t push them to come in.  He knew that the two of them still being in the US was a miracle, frankly, and the fact that they were staying in the cottage more than in the main house was a sign that they only wanted a little privacy together.  There was nothing wrong with that.

On one of the few nights that they went into the main house to enjoy dinner with their sons’ families, Jake made sure that he sat down with them and discussed something that was a touchy subject for everyone.  “Mom, Dad, I know you probably don’t want to discuss this, but I need to know if you have arraignments made for when you finally pass.  Have you purchased the caskets?  What do you want to be buried in?” he asked while there was no one in the house but the three of them.

David looked at Jake.  “Son, all of that is outlined in the Living Will we gave you last year.”

“I want it known to everyone though that my wedding band is buried with me”, Brie said sternly.  “I know that there are many rings in my jewelry box that can be passed on so my wedding band is to be left on my hand or so help me I will be haunting whichever of your sisters that removes it from my corpse.  There are rings that my family has left that were passed on to me as well as a great many that your father had given to me over the years.  The division of my rings is outlined in our will, as with the rest of my jewels.  But, I will take me wedding band to the grave with me.”

Jake chuckled.  “Yes ma’am.  I will be sure that it happens.”  He took a deep breath.  “How are you two feeling today?”

“Tired”, they said in unison.  “We’re only in here to have dinner with your family, Jeremiah’s family, and the Masons.  If it weren’t for that, we’d be out in the cottage watching a movie”, David continued, standing carefully as he finished.  He knees went snap, crackle, pop as he did so, but he needed to stretch.  He had been sitting for too long and needed to move around.

Jake winced when he heard his father’s knees crunch.  “What do you need Dad?  I’d be more than happy to get it for you.”

David shook his head and the pain that was radiating throughout his lower body.  “No Jake.  I need to move around.  Just because my knees are protesting doesn’t mean I’m helpless.  I’m going to stretch and go get a drink from the kitchen.  I’m fine.  Back off.”

Jake threw his hands up and let his father move on.  “If you say so, Dad.”  Once his father had walked off, he turned his attention to his mother.  “How are you Mom?  Honestly.”

She shook her head.  “To be frank, I’m in near constant pain.  Not severe but it still hurts.  My hands are only getting worse and there’s only so much that can be done without getting shots in my hands.  Lord knows I’m not about to stick a damn needle in my hands to lubricate the joints so that they’ll work.  I’ll just fight through it.”

He chuckled.  “That’s a very you thing to say, Mom.  Is there anything I can get you?”

She shook her head.  “I’m fine for now, Jake.  To sound like your Grandmamma would have, don’t you fret none.  I’ll be fine.  When God’s ready for me, he’ll call me home.  Until then I’ll just keep doing what I have to.”

He took his mother hand and kissed the back of it gently.  “I know Mom.  It’s just what you do, you and Dad both.”  A single tear bit at the back of his eye.  He’d be damned if he cried in front of his mother.  “If you need anything, Mama, just let me know.  Now, if you’ll excuse me I need to go make a business call.”

She nodded once.  “Go on, Jacob.”

He walked away and stopped at the bottom of the stairs.  “I love you, Mom.”

She smiled.  “I love you too, Jake.  Go take care of your business.  I’ll be fine.  If I need something you’ll know.”

Jake walked away and headed up to his office.  Once the door was closed and locked, he swallowed a huge lump that had formed in his throat.  She’ll be ok, Jake, he heard in the back of his mind.  Soon they’ll both be done suffering sooner than you think.  You won’t have to watch their pain much longer.

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When she came in from cheer practice, Sammi flopped down in one of the large fluffy armchairs that had been in the house longer than she had been alive.  “OH MY GOD!” she said.  “I love cheer but I am SOOO tired.”

Brie laughed.  “Aren’t you the one that insisted on tumbling and dance lessons?”

“I did, Gramma.  And I’m glad that I took them, but with all of the tumbling and dance lessons I’ve taken and still take I’m still not prepared to be the one of the flyers.”

“So you’re one of the girls that gets tossed in the air during stunts?” David chuckled.

“Yeah.  And let me tell you now, it’s just a little scary.  I’m not used to putting that kind of trust in a person, letting them toss me in the air and praying that they’ll catch me.  But, I’m one of the smallest girls on the squad as well as one of the lightest so I have to put that trust in the bases.”

“Are there any big strapping boys on the squad?” Brie teased.

Sammi blushed.  “A couple and I may or may not be seeing one of them”, she smiled and giggled.

“Samantha Cheyenne, does your father know?”

She shook her head slowly.  “Nope.  We haven’t officially been on a date.  When that happens I’ll bring him over so that he can meet Mom and Dad and all that fun stuff.  Right now, it’s just eating lunch together, holding hands, all that fun stuff.  And the fun this is that he’s doesn’t do anything but cheer during the fall.  Spring however will be the beast.  He’s in basketball and track.  Then again, I run track too so it will be fun.”

“Maybe you’ll be like your Uncle James and you two will be high school sweethearts.”

“Aunt Kenna was Uncle Jay’s high school sweetheart?”

David cleared his throat.  “No dear.  Your Uncle Jay’s high school sweetheart died their senior year.  Her name was Brittan.  She was a very sweet girl.  When she died she was pregnant.  But, if she hadn’t died then none of your cousins would be here.”

She nodded slowly.  “Interesting.  Well, I’m happy that I have the cousins I do but it sucks that he had to go through that.  I hope I don’t have to deal with that.  That would really suck.”

“It took him a little time to little time to get over it, but by the time we were all sitting at her funeral, he had finally let her go.”

“That’s good.  I really hope something like that doesn’t happen with me and my boyfriend.”

“It’s unlikely, Samantha”, Brie said.  “Now, what is your boyfriend’s name?”

“Caleb Mathers.  He’s a sweet guy.”

“Well, we hope that things go well for the both of you.  Everything is awesome so far.  We’re just getting started on the dating thing.  We’ll just have to see where it goes.  I’ll keep you as informed as possible.”

They both laughed.  “Sammi, why don’t you go up to your room and get a shower.  You kinda stink”, her grandmother said, waving a hand in front of her face as if to wave away the smell.

Sammi laughed.  “Ok Gramma, I’m gone.  I’ll be back at dinner.  I have a lot of stuff to do in order to get ready for camp in a couple of weeks.”

“Go.  We’ll see you in a little while.  Have fun packing and if we don’t say it before you leave, good luck and have fun at Cheer Camp.”  She smiled and walked away.  Once she was gone, they laughed.  “Remember the days of sending a child off to cheer camp?” Brie laughed.

“All too well.  All Makayla wanted to do was fly but she was too tall.  She hated it”, David chuckled.  “And now Makayla is a Grammy and Oscar winning choreographer.”

“All because we sent her to dance and tumbling classes when she asked to do them, then sent her to cheer camp when she made the cheer squad.”  She took a deep breath and sighed.  “Do you think we did a good job with our kids?”

He thought about it for a moment, taking the question seriously.  “Yeah, I do.  Look at all of the things our children have accomplished.  Jessi is an authority on Middle Eastern language.  Marc is an Academy award winner for his computer knowledge that is branching out and directing a movie.  Meagan and Jeremiah are both PhD- Jeremiah’s a professor and Meagan works for NASA.  We’ve already talked about Makayla.  James is a top notch record executive now that he and Justin are running Intoxication and have been for 15 years.  Maddie is following you and breaking down barriers in massage.  Jake is a Nobel Prize winner.  And Reckless Disregard is being inducted into the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame.  Need I do on about Jordan and Malachai?  We did a damn good job.  With my being gone as much as I was taking care of business and touring, they could have rebelled and all be on different paths than they are now but they didn’t.  We did a damn good job.”

She smiled.  “I’m glad that I never have to wonder ‘what if we had done things differently?’ because they went down the wrong road.  Our kids turned out rather well.”

“And all because we made really good decisions while they were young.  Yeah, the first eight grew up in a time when they had no idea what things like trick or treating, or school were except for Malachai.  Growing up during the Occupation made them all the people they are now.  They had to learn how to make good decisions from watching us have to make certain decisions for their well-being.  Now, they’re off doing amazing things.  We really got lucky, I say.”

She laughed and kissed him softly.  “I completely agree.”

---------------

At dinner that night, Matt proudly showed off his new drivers’ license.  “I’m gonna drive Mom to work in the morning”, he said proudly.

Jona fought off a shiver.  “I’m really nervous about it”, she laughed, her nerves raw.

“Jona, love, don’t worry”, Jeremiah said.  “Matthew is a good driver.  He’s safe and cautious.”

“But it was just yesterday that he was a little baby in my arms.  Now he’s driving.  I didn’t give him permission to grow up.”

Her parents and in laws all laughed.  “Nor did I you, Jona Eavan”, Skyler laughed.

“I don’t recall giving my shy little ‘Miah permission to grow up, either”, Brie said.  “The fact of the matter is that it’s part of the cycle of life.”  She shrugged.  “Just wait until he’s coming to you and saying that he’s found his soul mate and he’s going to ask her father for her hand in marriage.”

“Or until Rina brings a boy home, saying that she’s fallen in love with him and he’s asking the two of you permission to marry your little girl”, David said.

It was Jeremiah’s turn to fight off a shiver.  “I’m dreading that day, just to let you know.  I can’t imagine going through that as many times as you have, Dad”, he said, shaking his head.

“You’d actually be surprised at how easy it is when the guy’s cool”, Jake laughed.  “Look at Miri and Jax.  Delilah and I are now planning a wedding because, well, Jackson Tompkins is actually a decent guy.”

Jeremiah laughed.  “If you say so Jake.  I think I’ll just thank my lucky stars that Rina says, and I quote, ‘Boys are gross’.  I hope she thinks that for a very long time.”

“And if she turns out to be a lesbian?” Kaylian asked.

Jeremiah shrugged.  “To each their own.  At least she and I will have something to talk about.  I can help her with girl trouble.  The first boy to break her heart I’ll want to kill.”

“How many times have I felt that way?” David and Skyler both asked their wives at the same time.

“Too many to count”, the women said in unison, causing everyone at the table to erupt in laughter.

As the meal progressed, David and Brie had a feeling of completion overcome them.  There was something remarkable about seeing everyone that lived close by eating together and laughing that made them feel whole.  It wasn’t hard for them to look around the table and see all of their blessings, though most of their enormous family wasn’t there.  They just glanced at each other out of the corner of their eyes and smiled.  It was a beautiful sight to see indeed.

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“What a wonderful dinner”, Brie said as she and David climbed in bed that night.

“It was.  Having Skyler and Kaylian there was nice too”, David replied.  Once they were both settled into bed, he sighed in content.  “What’s on the agenda for tomorrow?”

“I have no idea.  I really wasn’t paying attention when Delilah was outlining it all for us after dinner.  I was too tired.”

He laughed.  “Same here.  I hope she isn’t angry that we don’t know what they all have going tomorrow.  I mean, we are in our 80’s.  We’re allowed to forget.”

She laughed.  “David, it’s a lame excuse and we both know it.”

“Stop raining on my parade, Brie.  I was finally admitting that I’m an old man.  James and Marc would be celebrating were they here”, he laughed.

“Holy cow!” she laughed out.  “Is the world coming to an end?  David Draiman has admitted that he’s old.  Stop the presses, ladies and gentleman.  This is a brand new headline!”

“It’s not that big a deal.  I’m 85.  For crying out loud, I’m old.”

She laughed harder.  “Holy shit, he’s said it twice.”

“What about you, Hannah Brielle?  I have yet to hear you admit you’re old.”

“If my physical well-being hasn’t been a testament to this, then let me say it aloud.  I am old.  I’m 82, my back doesn’t work the way it should, my hands don’t work the way they should, my eyes are going as are my ears.  I am old.  I freely admit it and have for a while.”

He chuckled.  “As I’ve said a million times, you’ve aged like fine wine.”

She shook her head.  “No I haven’t.  If I were like fine wine, everything would still be working the way it should.  Wine only gets better with time.  I’ve only seemed to go downhill.”

“You’re not the only one.  I’ve beaten up my knees so badly that I can barely walk.  There are many other problems that we haven’t even told our children about for both of us.”

She sighed and nodded.  “I know.  It’s kinda depressing.  You think we ought to sit them down in the morning, all of them that we can, and tell them everything?”

He thought for a moment, and quickly shook his head.  “No.  There are some things that our wonderful children don’t necessarily need to know.”

She nodded.  “True.”  She snuggled in closer to his side.  “Let’s change the subject to something a little less depressing please.  I really don’t want to think about our health issues.”

“What did you think of Matt and his brand new, shiny drivers’ license?”

“I was very proud of him.  Poor Jona though.  She seemed so afraid of the thought of him driving her to work in the morning.  She really has nothing to be scared of.  He’s always been careful when he picks us up and brings up back out here.  He’s a very careful driver.”

“She’s just a nervous Mama.  She’ll relax once she sees that he is.  She’s just being Jona.”

“Very true.”  She sighed.  “Is there anything on TV?  Not that I don’t enjoy our bedtime talks, but I kinda miss the background noise.”

He reached over and grabbed the remote, finding a show that they could both agree on.  “Is that better, dear?”

She smiled.  “Much.  Now, have you spoken to Malachai or Mandy recently?  How are Miranda, Callan, and Grace in Japan?

“He says they’re doing well.  I have to admit, I kinda miss having Gracie around, being able to play with her and all that stuff.  She was such a joy to have around.”

“Our first great- grandchild.  Where has the time gone?  We just got home from the hospital with Jessi and Marc yesterday”, she laughed.

He laughed.  “But didn’t we just admit that we were old?”

She buried her face in his chest as she laughed.  “That we did.  Like I said, where has the time gone?”

He took a deep breath and yawned.  “I have no idea”, he said before shaking off the yawn.  “Why don’t we try to get some sleep?  I’m sure that I’ll be up in a few hours anyway, watching the news and you while you sleep.”

She chuckled softly.  “You know?  Why don’t we do just that?  Go on to sleep and deal with yet another day?”  She rolled over onto her other side and settled in against her pillow as he turned over and wrapped his arm around her waist.  She turned her upper body enough so that she could see his face to kiss him good night.  “Good night, my love.  I’ll see you when the sun rises.”

He kissed her again, and returned her sentiment.  “Good night, my dear.  I’ll see you when you wake in the morning.”

And with that they close their eyes for what would be the very last time.  They were both asleep and wouldn’t be waking in the morning.