Blog: ​ABOUT Being

Richard Wilberg: Creativity Coach and Musician
  • Home
  • Coaching
  • Music
  • Photography
  • About
  • Blog
  • Contact

Redemption

6/28/2019

4 Comments

 
Picture
Scene 1 – CLEAN UP – Northern Lights Apartments, St. Germain, Wisconsin, October 1954
“Sally loves you, Bobby,” she’s confused.” Larry’s words are sweet honey on a rainy Monday evening. “Your wife moved out. That doesn’t mean the end of your marriage unless you decide the relationship is over.”
Gripping the phone, sweat beads on my brow. “Can you come over? I know it’s a long drive, but I need you buddy.” I slump against the wall. The phone’s black cord cuts across my neck.
 
“I’ll drive straight through the night.” Larry says. “I can be at your place by dawn. Have a pot of coffee on for me, pal.”
 
Larry’s headlights pierce Tuesday morning’s fog as he wheels into my apartment’s parking lot. He walks through the front door after a single knock and sits at the kitchen table. “If you think I could be helpful, I’ll talk with Sally,” he says. “She trusts me. I’ll tell her you love her and are afraid to lose her. Maybe I can reason with her.”
 
I join Larry at the table. We sit on red padded, vinyl chairs; the chill of chair’s chrome cools my legs. I pour two steaming mugs of Folgers from a percolator. Black brew overflows my cup. “Damn, I never liked this dinette set anyway.”
 
“I’ll clean up, Larry says.
 
“Thanks. You’re a real friend.” My eyes meet Larry’s. “I need your help and you show up. I appreciate anything you could do. Come back after you see Sally. We’ll have lunch. I want to hear what happened and if you feel there’s hope.” My shirtsleeve wicks a spot of coffee Larry missed.
 
The rear wheels of Larry’s saddle brown Chevy 3100 pickup truck kick out loose gravel, spraying other cars as he guns the engine and speeds away. Larry never returned.
 
Scene 2 – MESS UP – Northern Lights Apartments, St. Germain, Wisconsin, March 1959
I answer the phone on the second ring. “Hello, this is Robert.” 
 
“Hey Bobby,” it’s Sally. “Can we talk?”
 
I sit at the dinette. “What’s up?”
 
“Something’s been bothering me since our divorce,” she says. “We had our problems. I messed up, but this wasn’t one of them. He came on to me you know.”
 
“What are you talking about?” I stammer.
 
“Larry,” Sally says. “Remember when he came to visit you last year? Well, he showed up at my place and said, ‘Sally, I know that this is rough for you so I drove right over to comfort you. I always wanted to make it with you and now that it’s over with Robert, I’d like to get it on with you.’”
 
I lean forward on the table, cradling the phone in both hands. “Why are you telling me this?”
 
“I threw the bum out. I just wanted you to know.”
 
Scene 3 – FOREVER DAYS – Due Drop Inn, Ashland, Wisconsin, June 1964
“Ever wish you were someone else?” I ask the audience. I know it’s a rhetorical question, so I answer. “About five years ago my marriage was over. Friends couldn’t help. I imagined an island called Merably where I could be a different person. Here’s my song.
 
“Hosted a party, no one came.
Tried to love, then it rained.    
Asked for help, he went away.
How will I find my way?
       
        Come with me to Merably.       
        You’ll be happy to be with me.       
         I’ll lift you up to see the sea.      
        We’ll while away forever days.     
 
My old town has gotten me down.
In a rut I can’t give up.       
To go or stay I cannot say.     
I will follow my own way.
     
        Come with me to Merably.       
        You’ll be happy to be with me.       
         I’ll lift you up to see the sea.      
        We’ll while away forever days.”      

If this story is meaningful, please like or tweet below or leave a comment. Thank you for your interest and possible action you may take.
 
Richard Wilberg, MS, PLCC, ACC 
Creativity Coach for Personal Fulfillment and Career Success
​
4 Comments
Wayne Brabender
6/29/2019 07:32:39 am

Love the rich details. Another insightful piece. Makes one appreciate real friends. Well done, my friend.

Reply
Richard Wilberg
7/10/2019 11:20:56 am

Wayne,
I count you as a real friend, unlike Larry! Thanks for your insight!

Reply
Jill Dybdahl link
7/2/2019 06:29:35 am

Well done Richard! You captured me in the opening sentence. And what a surprise in Larry! Loved ending it in a song. Beautiful.

Reply
Richard Wilberg
7/10/2019 11:22:53 am

Jill,
Thanks for your comments. Character and friendship show when we think nobody is watching.

Reply

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    About the Author

    Picture
    Richard Wilberg writes fiction, creative non-fiction, self-development, and career counseling articles. He lives in Madison, Wisconsin.

    Archives

    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014

    Categories

    All
    Acceptance
    Aging
    Alternatives
    Anomie
    Appreciation
    Assertiveness
    Assumptions
    Avoidance
    Awareness
    Balance
    Baseball
    Behavior
    Being
    Betrayal
    Blame
    Brand
    Careerdevelopment
    Career Development
    Caregiving
    Certainty
    Change
    Choices
    Coexistence
    Commitments
    Communication
    Compacency
    Compassion
    Conflict
    Conversation
    Creativity
    Crowd Behavior
    Customer Experience
    Dating
    Decisiion
    Decision-making
    Desire
    Distraction
    Dreams
    Driverless Cars
    Driverless Trucks
    Emotion
    Empathy
    Escape
    Expectations
    Family
    Fatherhood
    Fathers
    Fear
    Fiction
    Flashfiction
    Flash Fiction
    Friendship
    Future
    Gerontology
    Goals
    Grieving
    Habits
    Harmony
    Healing
    Healthcare
    Humor
    Hunting
    Imagination
    Innocence
    Innovation
    Instinct
    Intentions
    Intuition
    Jobs
    Land
    Leadership
    Legacy
    Lies
    Listening
    Loneliness
    Loss
    Love
    Management
    Marketing
    Meaning
    Mentoring
    Music
    Mystery
    Nostalgia
    Opportunity
    Ownership
    Parents
    Passions
    Patience
    Perception
    Perfection
    Perseverance
    Personality
    Perspective
    Photography
    Positivity
    Presence
    Reason
    Redemption
    Relationships
    Reputation
    Resilience
    Respect
    Romance
    Secrets
    Selfawareness
    Self-care
    Selfconfidence
    Selfdevelopment
    Self Development
    Self-knowledge
    Self-worth
    Shame
    Song Lyrics
    Sons
    Stillbirths
    Success
    Technology
    Transformational Learning
    Transition
    Trust
    Truth
    Unknown
    Values
    Vision
    Well Being
    Writing

    RSS Feed

Home | Coaching | Music | Photography | About | Blog | Contact
© Wilberg, LLC. All rights reserved. Login.
  • Home
  • Coaching
  • Music
  • Photography
  • About
  • Blog
  • Contact