The Ever After

Once upon a time....

There was a massage therapist I went to for a number of years.  He liked to talk and tell stories about his life.

One day he was so excited and he just had to tell me the story.

His story had to do with a woman he met at a week long camp when they both were teens.  They hit it off immediately and spent every moment they could together.  But, the camp ended.  Life went on.  They lost touch.

As an adult, he tried to find her and couldn't.  He married a bit later in life than some, had three children, and divorced.  He found himself a single father of three.

And then came the fairy tale. I forget the details, but someone he knew (I think) found her on Facebook.  They reconnected.

"J" was a career military veteran now retired.  If I remember correctly, she had grown children.  She lived about 1200 miles (1962 km) from here. He was going out to meet her and he was just bubbling with excitement.  Would she remember him?  Would she want to rekindle the relationship?  (She was also single).  This being a true life fairy tale, the answers were Yes, and Yes.

I met J once.  My spouse had come to this appointment, and she was there, too.  While I got my massage, they talked.   I think they both enjoyed it.

So, how do fairy tales end?  Massage Therapist and Career Military Veteran got married.  They took his three children on the honeymoon.  All was well although they lived apart for a time because she had to go back home to help take care of her elderly mother. 

 In January of 2020.  I got a massage.  I then traveled to Florida for a couple of weeks, and when I got back, there was this mystery virus active in Europe....

I never saw Massage Therapist again, because, well, you know, the lockdown.  When we were reopen again in New York State, I found a chiropractor through my son, only five minutes from where I live.  Massage Therapist practiced further away and I would have to be with him for an hour or more.  The chiropractor was doing a good job with my back in just a few minutes.  Yes, different routes of healing, both quite legitimate  At this point in time, I got what I needed from chiropractic. 

I lost touch with Massage Therapist.

Then, last week, my local sister in law texted me.  Do you know, she asked, if Massage Therapist was here or if he had moved to his wife's area?  I told her I didn't know.  A couple of days later, I decided to look him up online.

What I found was....his obituary.  He died in March this year.

Younger than me.  Survived by J and his children.  No cause of death was given but I saw, on Facebook, a posting from his church back in September of 2022 asking for prayers of healing for him.  I wonder if he had been injured in an accident.  He lived a rural lifestyle, worked on roofs, and did tree work, besides being a massage therapist.  He helped a lot of people out.

Too young.

He wasn't perfect, but none of us are. 

No fairy tale ending after all.  The ever-after has hit his wife and children hard.  I'm sure she didn't count on something like this, but who does? 

But it does make me wonder.  He had big dream for his practice, for his life, for his children.

He died too soon.  I don't know what happened to those dreams.

Sometimes, I wonder what happened to some of my childhood dreams, for that matter.  Perhaps it's time I started to dream again, before it's too late; before the ever after comes for me.