Tell Me Everything

Didn’t anyone ever have anything interesting to say? They talked of movies they were all watching, of series on Netflix, they spoke about their children, but always carefully and in terms meant to hide their private disappointments, and they talked about one another. Of course.

People did not care, except for maybe one minute. It was not their fault, most just could not really care past their own experiences.

We like to think that our lives are within our control, but they may not be completely so. We are necessarily influenced by those who have come before us.

“I wonder how many people in long marriages live with ghosts beside them.”

Bob has a big heart, but he does not know that about himself; like many of us, he does not know himself as well as he assumes to, and he would never believe he had anything worthy in his life to document. But he does; we all do.

“That was about the same thing that every story Lucy and I have shared is about. People suffer. They live, they have hope, they even have love, and they still suffer. Everyone does. Those who think they’ve not suffered are lying to themselves.

Love comes in so many different forms, but it is always love. If it is love, then it is love.”

He was not aware of how much had been taken out of him by his concern for Matt Beach, for his brother, for Margaret, for the many people who depended on him. Nor was he aware of just how much his feelings for Lucy were taking from him.

“No. That’s not evil, Larry. These are broken people. Big difference between being a broken person and being evil. In case you don’t know. And if you don’t think everyone is broken in some way, you’re wrong. I’m telling you this because you have been so fortunate in your life, you probably don’t even know such broken people exist.”