'Sweet September'

Chapter 7- 'Comfort and Sorrows'

'Susan looked In the mirror that night, brushing her hair before bed. Wearing her silky night-gown. She daydreams in the mirror, remembering Ted when he was alive, on how he used to hold her from behind as she brushed her hair, kissing her on the neck, telling her that she is beautiful.
Susan kept looking and looking at the mirror. A reflection of Ted, like a very light reflection, appears behind her. She can feel a warm feeling behind her neck and back, all down behind her back for a second. Susan's heart beats very fast.
"TED!!"..."TED!!"....TED!!"....TED!!" COME BACK PLEASE!!" Susan looks back at the mirror and nothing is there behind her anymore. Susan tears up. "OH...my Ted.." Susan runs out of the house and hops in her truck, driving down the street to her mom Betty's house. Susan knocks on the door really loud. Betty has on a nightgown, rollers are in her hair, she rushes to the door, noticing Susan's eyes were very watery from crying.
Susan shaking, looking shocked. "Oh sweetheart.." "What happened?" Betty said. Betty hugs Susan, bringing her to the house. They both sat on the couch in the living room.
Betty went into the kitchen, pouring two cups of coffee. Betty then comes back into the living room and sits the coffees down on the living room table. She sits next to Susan on the couch, holding her in her arms. "My sweet princess, momma is here now." "What happened my dear?" Betty said. Susan went into silence for a while.
"Mom... I don't know how to explain this but... but... I...I... saw Ted." "It was like this spirit, like a light reflection of him." "I was in the mirror brushing my hair before bed, and all of a sudden as I'm looking in the mirror, I saw him behind me smiling." "I remember those nights, when he held me from behind, as I brushed my hair."
"He will look at me as we both faced the mirror." "He was holding me, his arms around my waist." "He used to say, I'm beautiful as we both looked in the mirror together." "Mom, I miss him and want him to come back." "Yes it scared me to see him in spirit but at the same time, I was so happy." "I feel him all the time, I know he is always with me." "First time seeing him in spirit," Susan said.

Susan takes a sip of her coffee. Betty stares at Susan smiling. "What mom?" Susan said. "I see your dad spirit, roaming around here all the time," Betty said. "When you first saw that, was it scary?" Susan said. "It kind of caught me off guard but once I accepted that, I started to feel that joy in my heart, cause I know he is always with me always." "Like I even noticed weird things happening around here."

"You remember when your father used to hate, every time I left the wine on the counter?" "Ha.." "Ha.." He couldn't stand that."
"He always said the wine shall be chill right away but I love my wine a little warm." "Anyways... let's just say I have been leaving it out sometimes and the next day I noticed it's back in the fridge."
Susan looks at Betty with wide eyes. "I know it's him, plus he had this stubborn thing about him." "I'm like what happens if I want my wine warm.." lol.. "But your father will say it's better on ice."
"You remember recently when me and you were in the kitchen cooking a meal?" Betty said. "We'll... I was looking for the Paprika seasoning," ''Though I misplaced it when I checked back on the counter, next to the pan that had the roast in it, it was there next to the pan."
"So your father always loved Paprika on his roast and always thought it was important to have all the ingredients and other items right in front, on the counter, when preparing that meal." "He couldn't stand looking for stuff when cooking, he always wanted everything to be all out first, like the things he will need for that meal before he started preparing dinner."
Susan was in shock. "So my dear, yes your dad was difficult at times and I was too, Sometimes we couldn't even see eye to eye times but we truly loved each other." "Our rule was that, no matter how many problems we had in our marriage, we will always be together and work on making things better in our marriage."
"So mom, did it take you a while to move on and start dating people?" Susan said. "It did but I knew that your dad would want me to be happy and so he wouldn't mind me moving on, meeting new people after he passed away," Betty said.
"I have someone special I have been seeing.. but.. that's another topic for another time," Betty said. "Mom, Is it the pastor at the church?"Susan said. Betty took a huge sip of her coffee. "No worries dear, you will meet him, if things get more serious between us," Betty said.
Susan smiled, giggling.
"Mom earlier today, Rob Davis came to the shop to check out my garden class." "Really!!" Betty said in a surprised tone. "We talked after and he started going into this long story of how he changed from back then." "He even got on his knees and asked me out." Susan got quiet.
"So.. what do you say?" Betty said. "I said no, I turned him down mom," Susan said. "My dear, you always had feelings for Rob Davis." "I know in high school, he was a creep but people really do change." "Why would he just come over out of the blue my dear?"
Betty said. Susan looked at Betty. "Mom, I don't know if I trust him though." "He admitted that he always liked me but he played the crazy cool jock creep act, just to be cool and popular." "He said I was the girl who always had morals, that I'm sweet and kind." "He loved that." "I guess it's not always true, that handsome jocks don't always fall for girls like Marsha Brady at the end but in movies, it seems to happen that way."
"The handsome hot jock wants the most beautiful stuck-up girl in school," Susan said. "Let me ask you something, my dear." "So from him being on his knees all those minutes and pouring his heart out, you didn't feel no hope in your heart?"
"I mean from all that I gathered from that Sunday when he came by and then hearing how he came to see you earlier, I think he is very serious," Betty said. "Mom I'm confused," Susan said. "My dear, you have to move on from Ted."
"Don't miss out on something so great." "Ted opened that door for Rob, to enter into the gates of your heart, to meet the light within." "You met Ted in college and so I think that both of these guys are meant to be with you." "Ted opened your eyes to what real love is when Rob was just learning and becoming a better person." "So Ted gave you something special, you both became one." "It was Ted time to go but he will always be with you, dear." "You really need closure."
"Open your heart and let Rob show you the great man he is today." "Believe me, if I thought he was still the crazy creep still, I wouldn't have let him in at all."
"He seemed so polite and such a gentleman when he was here." "I remember when I met his folks when you both were in high school." "I met them at a neighborhood gathering and they're lovely people." "So sad that his dad passed doing the time Rob was in the ninth grade." "I truly think that's why Rob started to party a lot and became such a creep doing that time," Betty said. "He told me, mom, about his dad that died," Susan said.
"Mom I'm feeling better, you're always a great person that lifts the soul." "I have the best mom in the world," Susan said. Susan and Betty hugged. "Awww... my princess, the best little girl that a momma always enjoyed coming home to," Betty said. "Mom... I'm not a little girl anymore," Susan said with a smile. "Well, you will always be my little girl, no matter how old you get."
"You and Rob are now thirty years old, wow... how time flies," Betty said. "Don't remind me, mom," Susan said. "Baby lay on my lap like old times." "I used to read you this beautiful poetry piece called 'Sweet September.'
Susan laid her head on Betty's lap, both still on the couch. Betty gently touches Susan's face, and touches her hair, comforting her as she starts to read. "Summer left on the train, that breezy Sunny early morning as September moved into a new season." "Autumn and Harvesting came together." "The Heaven's light shined down all over the lands of freedom. "Each crop, Every flower, Every Fruit, Every plant grew with love."
"Water each soul, giving wisdom into a freeing spirit." "They all rise into a new beginning, moving forward into the sky." "They never looked back from the seed that brought them up from the soil." "A new beginning started that Sweet September."

"The winds blew so gracefully in a slow dance so freely." "Mother Nature was now at peace." Betty stopped reading, she looked down at Susan laying on her lap. Susan is sleeping so comfortably and gracefully, so peacefully. Betty looked up and noticed a white reflection of her husband.
Susan's dad's spirit appeared in the living room, in front of the fire-place, across the living room. He puts a thumbs up, whispering the words," I love you both, Always."
He then disappears. Betty smiled and then looked back down at Susan, touching her hair softly, caressing her head softly.'