Moving Mountains (Patrick Kane)

The Change of the Wind .58

Valerie

On this beautiful spring day I ask Patrick to join me in the park. It was early, much earlier than he would have liked it. He finally got to sleep in and I pull him out of bed. But as his girlfriend it is my job to make his life a little harder. I might not have been a relationship before but that much I knew.

I see him dragging his feet behind him as he heads to the spot we like to hang out. A bench a little ways away from the bean. You can still see the famous structure but we weren't close enough to be bothered by the sight seers passing through.

Once he finally makes it to me he plops down on the bench. He rests his head on my shoulder before taking my hand in his. I look down to see his eyes closed, he really wasn't a morning person, not like me.

"Wise men say" he starts mumbling, "only fools rush in. But I can't help, falling in love with you" he sings softly.

"Shall I stay, would it be a sin? If I can't help falling in love with you" I sing back. He smiles nice and big as he keeps his hand in mine.

I still wasn't all that into music but I loved that one. He liked Elvis and I liked him, it wasn't that complicated. And whenever he's tired he sings a song and lately it's been this one. The least I could do I learn the words.

"Why did you ask me here today" he wonders.

"I wanted to tell you something. And it's. A beautiful day, we should be out here. The wind on our skin, changing the world we live in" I say.

"And what does that mean" he asks as he finally opens his eyes. He turns to me with nothing but sleep written across his face.

"The way I see it, change and the wind are one in the same. Strong. Unpredictable. A force to be reckoned with. And there's nothing you can do that stops the winds of change. You can dance in it or drown in it. You can't see it coming and you can't see it leave. Just as quickly as change comes it goes before we can even say thank you, or maybe process what the difference is. We can feel the wind, reach out and touch it. But you'll open your hands and there will be nothing there. You can see it's effect, what's different now that the winds of change have passed over us. But all you can do is pick up afterwards. And you can't see the wind coming, just as it is thrown upon us, so is change. Forever changing our direction" I say.

"Why are you telling me this" he wonders.

"Because I quit my job today. And things are going to change. Just like the way the wind changes directions so does life. And we can curse the wind for all the things it changes but it is beyond our control. Like the wind we do not control change. That's scary, but that's life" I explain.

"Seriously? You quit again? I thought you were going to stick with this one" he claims.

"I'm not getting stuck in a place I am not meant to be simply because I want to be there. No one is meant to be in one place forever, there's no place in this world the wind cannot reach. Nothing that cannot be changed. From the start you knew that like most things in life my part in that place was temporary. They knew it too. You take one look at my resume and it is apparent that my purpose is not to stay. I'm not the kind to be the cornerstone in these jobs, rather someone who helps move from one place to another. They teach me about new skills and I share what life has taught me so far. In the end we all end up in a better position, ready for a new future" I defend.

"Is that what's going to happen with me? Huh? I'm just someone in your life who is meant to be temporary too" he accuses.

I look at him weird because it's not like him to get temperamental like this. I figured he knew that he wasn't like anything else I've ever known, and he wouldn't be treated like so.

"Patrick you aren't like my jobs or anyone else I have ever met. I do things as I believe I am a meant to. Therefore going into these jobs I know I won't stay. You have a purpose therefore it makes sense for you to stick to hockey. There is no denying that you are meant to be here. But for me my purpose is to move from place to place, to learn everything I can from others and pass on what I know. From the start this is something I do to helps others and cut the ties before I get too far in.

But going into this relationship with you I didn't have a time limit or any expectations at that. There was never a plan to leave you. My purpose was to learn from you and keep learning. I was in too far before I could even start to think of a way out. Just because I treat my jobs and other relationships as a stepping stone doesn't mean that those stones don't make a path to a forever with you. Because in my mind they do.

I can quit jobs but I could never quit you. Even if loving you would kill me, I couldn't stop if I tried" I assure him.

He just smiles like a idiot as he starts to blush. "I believe you" he assures me. "I just wish your purpose was more... solid. And less windy" he claims making me giggle.

"I like the wind. It can change a whole life's trajectory. I think we can learn a lot from the wind. How to go with the flow, how to adjust the sails as we go. We might not end up where we want to be but it will always guide us to where we need to be" I admit.

"So where are you planning on working next" he wonders.

"I think I might take a short hiatus. I promised to go home with my boyfriends sisters and see the mountains in New York. Then maybe when I get back the wind will change direction again, and I will go wherever it takes me" I explain.

"I think that's a great plan" he smiles.