The Last Birthday

Sarah Robinson took a seat closest to the window at the coffee shop. She slowly sipped her hot caramel macchiato and broke off a crumb of her scone. She smiled for a moment as she remembered how last month how she shared her orange flavored snack with her son, Julius. Her joy quickly faded and a frown took its place. The coffee shop was busy with sounds of grinding and foaming of drinks. The air was filled with a pleasant aroma. Usually this makes Sarah happy and relaxed, but today she found it was causing her grief.

Rain dripped down the front window. Sarah stared emptily into the street watching people hurrying out of the rain. She took her time getting to the café and her clothes showed the truth. She was soaked through her socks. Sarah didn’t have the energy to rush and didn’t care either. On a good day, Sarah would always check the weather, but the last few days she wasn’t herself at all. She didn’t recognize herself in the mirror and barely returned anyone’s calls. Her friends often checked on her, but she was a shell of her old self.

The first Saturday of every month, she and Julius would go to the café. This was their tradition for many years. They would discuss art, poetry, books, and the latest trends. They only missed three dates: twice for head colds and once for a vacation. They always made it an effort to see each other. Julius looked up to his single mother and treated her like a queen. He turned 25 the month before and they splurged and got an extra slice of chocolate cake. Sarah is a health fanatic, but allows special treats for these kind of occasions. His birthday was indeed a very special day. They spent an extra hour telling old stories and reminiscing of fun trips.

Today, she didn’t have any excuse to treat herself, but the scone didn’t seem to do the trick. She wrapped it up in a napkin and put it in the trash next to her table. She thought if she ordered the chocolate cake, it would bring her some joy. Sarah did and then took a seat again. While she waited, she thought back on the past few weeks. She experienced so much pain and loss that her heart felt it could fail at any moment. Julius struggled with addiction for many years. He had five rehab visits and five relapses. He tried hard for his mom, but his dependence was too deep. He was a good person, but fell in with the wrong crowd in his early teens. This followed him through adulthood.

It was a sunny morning when he let his addiction get the best of him. He left behind a mother, who fought so hard for him. There were many hugs, fights, angry words, and tears in the past. Now, there was only tears. She thought to herself how she could have stopped this from happening over and over again. Her heart pained and tears swelled in her eyes.

A waitress placed the slice of chocolate cake on the table and smiled at Sarah.

“Are you okay, ma’am?” The girl asked with concern.

“I’ll be ok. Thank you.” Sarah smiled back at the girl and picked up her fork and placed a napkin on her lap.

Sarah was a strong woman and wouldn’t let the world see just how much her heart was broken inside. She would honor her late son with his favorite dessert and go on with her life. She would continue to go to the café the first Saturday of every month just to feel connected to her lost son.