TOMORROW & YESTERDAY

TOMORROW & YESTERDAY

The wind whipped around her soft grey skirt as she peeked in the windows of the old house. The years had been kind to her and her wrinkled face wore a smile on this day. She hiked up her hemline to get on tip-toe to look at what once was her kitchen.

She shivered as the breath of fresh salt air traveled down her neck; she thought she heard a seagull off in the distance. She adjusted the veil of her black hat so she could see better.

Thirty-five years had passed since she had been inside and yet she could still smell the seaweed and the old wharf. Some things never change.

Gazing at the old windows, she remembered her dog's face peeking out at her, waiting patiently, tail wagging. He'd been gone almost thirty years now and yet she still missed him.

The car was waiting for her so she rushed from window to window, peeking in. Although she was ninety-five years old, she could still move very quickly and only relied on a cane now & then.

As she gazed into the living room, she could see that some-one had a piano at one time. Perhaps it was that small French boy who moved there in the years after she moved away. She saw their clothes on the line once when she drove around before leaving the area.

And she was jealous......

She wondered if he had ever played an old favourite of hers called "The Frenchsong."

The old house had been hers and she missed it but she had relocated to escape the monotony and routine of a dull existence. She had no regrets.

Almost everyone she had ever cared for in this area was now dead and buried. She looked far out to sea and watched the many birds circling overhead. The foghorn blasted her back to reality and she headed for the car.

As she stood outside of the vehicle, she looked at the old home one last time. She saw beauty, she saw age, she saw forever.

She saw herself; and she cried.