Post by hurltomato on Nov 13, 2006 7:36:40 GMT -5
Strand Of Pearls – Part II
[/b][/center]“We are navigating a flight plan that is skirting a patch of inclement weather over the Rocky Mountains; we request and appreciate your continued patience. Please observe the seat belt sign and move about the cabin only as is necessary.” The captain’s voice droned while the most of the passengers mentally added travel time to their arrival in Denver. He pulled out his ticket information and questioned if the scheduled stop in Denver would only take as long as the baggage retrieval for those passengers not continuing on with the flight.
“I have one of those too.” Justina pulled multiple sheets out of her purse and offered them to him. He looked the papers over and discovered that their destination was Dallas. These two youngsters were not deplaning in Denver as he had assumed and the pair would be his seatmates for the duration. Suddenly a busy metro airport, the holiday rush, and the unexpected weather problems coalesced into a complicated premonition. An awful thought beckoned-
“Girls? Your family, especially your mother- she does know all about these flight arrangements, doesn’t she?”
“Well it’s like this,” Joni began as she swept her hair back over her ear, “daddy said his cell phone was dead and he was going to find a pub-lick one and use his calling card, but mommie’s phone was busy at work and it was getting later and daddy told us not to worry because he’s our daddy and he would take care of things.” Joni’s rambling did little to explain and did much to question if their mother knew any of the details of the flight, the weather factor and what he suspected might be bad karma regarding the scenario in Denver. Damn and damn again…
“Mommie made real sure that daddy was there to pick us up last week. We went out to see him to have a turkey, then Aunt Izzy had a problem and it wasn’t the turkey. So we had chicken catch-a-story instead and now mommie can have a real turkey for us at home…see?”
Oh yeah… he saw alright. Saw that the only real turkey in Joni’s head spinning explanation seemed to be her father. Saw that he had better make double sure that airline child attendant service was aware and available to help the girls. Saw that he might even inherit the thankless task of telling “mommie” that her children were dependent on a bearded stranger with headliner Hollywood connections. Why yes mommie... I have strong ties to law enforcement. You might remember me in a film scene playing a deputy showering with my gay lover, wearing a clinging wet towel? Big surprise mommie…the only gun I was packing at the time wasn’t a prop.. Sure-- that ought to encourage great confidence and reassurance. On that depressing thought, he looked about the cabin and noticed the tension in the air and the general unease with every bump through turbulent air. Outside the windows there were only the dark patchy rain trails of gray early evening while both girls sat quiet, still clutching each of his arms.
He knew he needed to distract them and keep them busy. When he pulled his laptop computer from under the seat, both girls haggled over playing the Name-Game. He recognized the word game and realized it would keep them occupied as he jotted down their suggestions and stories for J-O-N-I. The girls giggled about a Jabbering Jay- -“because Mommie says Joni could never stop talking even when she was asleep.” They struggled with an Opposite One- “but that’s because- Joni always has her own ideas about everything until Mommie says enough.” They mentioned a Naughty Necklace- “because Joni had broken Mommie’s nicest one and Joni had cried so long and felt so bad that Mommie had cried too. Mommie had taken one of the broken pieces to get fixed and she gave it to Joni to wear as a ‘minder’ to always ask first and never forget that Joni was more important than any old necklace.”
The girls launched into chit-chat about some Incredible Insect- , but he was still surprisingly caught up in their Incredible Mommie. Sure enough, around Joni’s small neck was a sizable ivory pearl on a delicate old silver chain to remind her that she was of more value. It came as no surprise when he looked at Justina and saw a matching pearl on a delicate golden chain. His original thoughts played back to him: similar, yet different; equally treasured and yet each unique. He and Incredible Mommie thought alike.
“We are beginning our Denver approach and are still experiencing some air turbulence. Please stow all bags in the overhead compartments or underneath the seat. We ask that you remain in your seats, observe the seat belt signs and the cabin attendants will direct you. Estimated time before landing is about ten minutes. We ask that you please retain your boarding passes as you will be directed by airport personnel upon landing.” The captain’s announcement startled him out of his reverie as he looked out into the blurred dusk. He had a significant foreboding about landing in this sleeting mess and even darker thoughts about ever taking off in it. Constantly aware of the two little girls next to him, he grabbed their small hands and he wondered: Would the flight be able to continue on? What the hell was he going to tell their mother, if it wasn’t? And why the hell was he making it his problem anyway? Damn and damn again…