Too Late For Dreams

The chaos and confusion were everywhere.  No matter which direction I turned people were running and screaming.  It was strange that I could not hear them.  I started to pick my way through the wreckage.  Nothing seemed familiar to me.  Then I saw my children standing off to one side.  They were clinging desperately to one another.  I must get to them.  Obviously something devastating had happened.  As I got closer, I could see a body at their feet that had been draped in a cloth.  My poor babies.  Someone close to them had died.  As I hurried to them, I saw my best friend.  Surely she would tell me what was going on.  I guess she did not see me.  She walked up to my children and wrapped them in her arms.  They all clung to one another.  Then I saw my husband off to the side.  He appeared to be describing something to the policeman standing next to him.  I stumbled.  Why was my mind so fuzzy?  As I got closer, I could see a car…. our car, if you could call it that.  It was a mangled mess of twisted metal and broken glass.  Suddenly everything flashed before my eyes.  We had been arguing.  But that was nothing new.  That is all we ever did anymore.  He had only taken his eyes off the road for second.  But it was just long enough for him to not notice that the garbage truck in front of us had stopped.  I could hear the screeching of the tires, the shattering of glass and then nothing.  I walked to where the policeman was making his notes hoping he would not mind my looking over his shoulder.  He was making his notes...."Passenger air bag did not deploy.  Passenger DOA."  But wait!  I was the passenger.  Could they not see I was standing right here.  My friend started to lead my children away.  I had to stop them.  I turned to run after them but somebody grabbed my arm.  FINALLY!  Somebody knew I was there.  Everything was going to be ok.  I turned to see who had a hold of my arm.  "Daddy?"  This could not be.  My father had been gone for years.  He looked so young, not a trace of the cancer that had ravaged his body.  He reached for my hand and said "Come.  I am here to take you home."  I pulled away from his grasp.  "NO!" I shouted.  "There must be some mistake.  I have only begun to realize my dreams.  There is so much I want to do."  He looked at me with sadness in his eyes and gently placed his hand on my cheek as he said "I am sorry.  You waited too long."

Copyright 2012 by Betty Williams