Prologue 1 Sec. 2
Cut for space
The room was almost too dark to see anything, but to make sure, someone had covered his eyes. There was a fair amount of giggling and shushing as he sat in the chair in the dark room. The hands moved as his granddaughter giggled.
"No peeking, Grandpa," little Tracy said between giggles. It wouldn't have mattered much. The room was too dark to see much of anything anyways.
"Okay," he heard his daughter-in-law say. "Everyone ready?" A moment later the hands over his eyes were removed and he could see everyone gathered around the chair illuminated by the two candles atop a rather small cake. A rousing chorus of the Birthday Song was sung by everyone, each in their own key. The cake had two numbers on top, a six and a zero, each was a lit candle and announced to one and all how old he was; sixty.
"Happy Birthday, dear Grandpa/Dad/Thomas!" everyone sang, the last three coming on top of each other, and sung by whomever it applied to. "Thomas" only came from a couple of sources; his brother, Robert, and his wife, Marie. "Happy Birthday to you!" Everyone clapped and cheered him on as he looked at the two candles atop the cake.
"Just two?" Thomas Spence, Sr. asked his daughter-in-law, Janice. He winked his eye at her to confirm that he was kidding her.
"Yeah, Dad," his son, Tom Jr., replied for his wife. "I meant to say something to you about that. It seems that anything over fourteen is a fire hazard," he cast a quick gaze at his son, Tom, the third, or "Tommy Boy" to his family, before continuing, "so we had to use these." Tommy, who'd turned fifteen about six months back, cast a sour face at his dad before going back to paying attention to his new girlfriend.
Thomas looked at his wife, Marie, and then took a long look at the candles on the cake. He took a deep breath, felt a stitch of pain in his left side, and blew out the two candles with a big huff. He smiled as everyone cheered. The lights came back on, and the real party began.
The food had already been had, and there was more cake made beyond the small one presented to him that he and Marie ate together. Janice got on the up-right piano and played music to the delight of all of the adults. Most of the kids went upstairs to play the video games they'd received for Christmas. A few, like Tommy and his girlfriend, stayed with the adults. The adults, of course, teased Tommy, but it was all in good fun and he laughed along with them.
Janice relinquished the piano and Tommy then began to play a few tunes that his mother had taught him. Janice was an accomplished pianist, who often accompanied choirs both at school and church. She also gave lessons, and naturally taught Tommy everything he knew. The boy was a natural. Thomas had tinkered with the piano in his early years - teaching himself everything you're not supposed to do - and was therefore, not very good. Tom Jr. had no interest in music himself, outside of a passing appreciation for it, which was one of many reasons for marrying Janice, his father suspected. But Tommy blew even his mother away, even at fifteen. Janice could only play the music placed in front of her. Tommy could read music, and also "play by ear". It allowed him to begin to write some of his own tunes on the piano. Thomas listened with joy, therefore, when Tommy Boy played the song "Misty", doing a wonderful job of it. Tommy's girlfriend then egged and teased him into playing a new song he had just written "for her". After a minute or two of hesitation, and after a lot of teasing by the adults, Tommy caved and began playing his original piece.
It was new music, in the rock-'n'-roll pop style that was popular in 1984, which Thomas Sr. didn't quite understand, but it was nice all the same. It was a sappy ballad - an almost too sweet love song - but it had a very catchy tune, and Tommy played and sang it well. Thomas figured that he would forever have that song engrained into his head for the rest of his life.
At the end of the evening of January sixth, 1984, everyone said their final birthday wishes and parted company. Thomas and Marie stayed at Tom Jr.'s house and slept in the downstairs "hide-a-bed". Thomas spent most of the seventh with Tom Jr. at the family business, Spence Design and Construction. He helped with various issues and directed certain tasks. It felt good to be at work again, even for a little while. Thomas had retired five years before, leaving his son in charge of everything, and moved from their home in Simi Valley to a new one in Palm Springs with Marie. Tom Jr. ran the day-to-day work and Thomas drove in every once in a while to help wherever his son needed it. By the end of the day, Thomas was beat. Janice made dinner and everyone enjoyed a quieter evening than the previous night. Thomas and Marie spent another night in the "hide-a-bed" and left for Palm Springs the next day.
After a three-hour drive, each of them taking turns for an hour and a half, Thomas and Marie arrived at their condo next to the golf course. Thomas was in no mood to play golf. The activity of January seventh and then the drive home had already worn him out. Marie, ever more spry then he, managed to get up enough energy by the end of the day to make them dinner. She went a little overboard and made Thomas her own chicken-fried steak, complete with her own hand-mashed potatoes and homemade gravy.
"There we go," Marie said as she placed a full plate on the table in front of Thomas. She went back to prepare her own plate as Thomas began to dig in.
"Mmmm, I'm telling you, Marie," Thomas said. "Janice is a pretty good cook, but nothing beats your cooking."
Marie smiled as she looked away to her own plate and began dishing a spoonful of potatoes onto it. "You're a shameless flatterer, Tom," she replied just before a thunk came from the dining room table. Marie's breath caught in her throat a moment before she turned to look. "Tom?" Thomas just sat there, face down in his plate. "Tom?!" she said louder. "TOM!"
Time seemed to stop as Marie dropped her plate and began to run for the table. The dim light of the January afternoon brightened into a bright cloud-like haze.
To be continued....
The room was almost too dark to see anything, but to make sure, someone had covered his eyes. There was a fair amount of giggling and shushing as he sat in the chair in the dark room. The hands moved as his granddaughter giggled.
"No peeking, Grandpa," little Tracy said between giggles. It wouldn't have mattered much. The room was too dark to see much of anything anyways.
"Okay," he heard his daughter-in-law say. "Everyone ready?" A moment later the hands over his eyes were removed and he could see everyone gathered around the chair illuminated by the two candles atop a rather small cake. A rousing chorus of the Birthday Song was sung by everyone, each in their own key. The cake had two numbers on top, a six and a zero, each was a lit candle and announced to one and all how old he was; sixty.
"Happy Birthday, dear Grandpa/Dad/Thomas!" everyone sang, the last three coming on top of each other, and sung by whomever it applied to. "Thomas" only came from a couple of sources; his brother, Robert, and his wife, Marie. "Happy Birthday to you!" Everyone clapped and cheered him on as he looked at the two candles atop the cake.
"Just two?" Thomas Spence, Sr. asked his daughter-in-law, Janice. He winked his eye at her to confirm that he was kidding her.
"Yeah, Dad," his son, Tom Jr., replied for his wife. "I meant to say something to you about that. It seems that anything over fourteen is a fire hazard," he cast a quick gaze at his son, Tom, the third, or "Tommy Boy" to his family, before continuing, "so we had to use these." Tommy, who'd turned fifteen about six months back, cast a sour face at his dad before going back to paying attention to his new girlfriend.
Thomas looked at his wife, Marie, and then took a long look at the candles on the cake. He took a deep breath, felt a stitch of pain in his left side, and blew out the two candles with a big huff. He smiled as everyone cheered. The lights came back on, and the real party began.
The food had already been had, and there was more cake made beyond the small one presented to him that he and Marie ate together. Janice got on the up-right piano and played music to the delight of all of the adults. Most of the kids went upstairs to play the video games they'd received for Christmas. A few, like Tommy and his girlfriend, stayed with the adults. The adults, of course, teased Tommy, but it was all in good fun and he laughed along with them.
Janice relinquished the piano and Tommy then began to play a few tunes that his mother had taught him. Janice was an accomplished pianist, who often accompanied choirs both at school and church. She also gave lessons, and naturally taught Tommy everything he knew. The boy was a natural. Thomas had tinkered with the piano in his early years - teaching himself everything you're not supposed to do - and was therefore, not very good. Tom Jr. had no interest in music himself, outside of a passing appreciation for it, which was one of many reasons for marrying Janice, his father suspected. But Tommy blew even his mother away, even at fifteen. Janice could only play the music placed in front of her. Tommy could read music, and also "play by ear". It allowed him to begin to write some of his own tunes on the piano. Thomas listened with joy, therefore, when Tommy Boy played the song "Misty", doing a wonderful job of it. Tommy's girlfriend then egged and teased him into playing a new song he had just written "for her". After a minute or two of hesitation, and after a lot of teasing by the adults, Tommy caved and began playing his original piece.
It was new music, in the rock-'n'-roll pop style that was popular in 1984, which Thomas Sr. didn't quite understand, but it was nice all the same. It was a sappy ballad - an almost too sweet love song - but it had a very catchy tune, and Tommy played and sang it well. Thomas figured that he would forever have that song engrained into his head for the rest of his life.
At the end of the evening of January sixth, 1984, everyone said their final birthday wishes and parted company. Thomas and Marie stayed at Tom Jr.'s house and slept in the downstairs "hide-a-bed". Thomas spent most of the seventh with Tom Jr. at the family business, Spence Design and Construction. He helped with various issues and directed certain tasks. It felt good to be at work again, even for a little while. Thomas had retired five years before, leaving his son in charge of everything, and moved from their home in Simi Valley to a new one in Palm Springs with Marie. Tom Jr. ran the day-to-day work and Thomas drove in every once in a while to help wherever his son needed it. By the end of the day, Thomas was beat. Janice made dinner and everyone enjoyed a quieter evening than the previous night. Thomas and Marie spent another night in the "hide-a-bed" and left for Palm Springs the next day.
After a three-hour drive, each of them taking turns for an hour and a half, Thomas and Marie arrived at their condo next to the golf course. Thomas was in no mood to play golf. The activity of January seventh and then the drive home had already worn him out. Marie, ever more spry then he, managed to get up enough energy by the end of the day to make them dinner. She went a little overboard and made Thomas her own chicken-fried steak, complete with her own hand-mashed potatoes and homemade gravy.
"There we go," Marie said as she placed a full plate on the table in front of Thomas. She went back to prepare her own plate as Thomas began to dig in.
"Mmmm, I'm telling you, Marie," Thomas said. "Janice is a pretty good cook, but nothing beats your cooking."
Marie smiled as she looked away to her own plate and began dishing a spoonful of potatoes onto it. "You're a shameless flatterer, Tom," she replied just before a thunk came from the dining room table. Marie's breath caught in her throat a moment before she turned to look. "Tom?" Thomas just sat there, face down in his plate. "Tom?!" she said louder. "TOM!"
Time seemed to stop as Marie dropped her plate and began to run for the table. The dim light of the January afternoon brightened into a bright cloud-like haze.
To be continued....