Live the Love That You Are Given

He appeared shocked. Unwillingly able to speak.

“What is it?! What’s happened” I exclaimed!

The phone had slipped out of his hand and he fell onto the floor…

“RODGER!” I screamed, as I stumbled down after him. He was as pale as a ghost, almost like his soul had left his body. I placed my hands upon his cheeks and stared into his bloodshot blue eyes, analysing the pain that had surfaced.

“Moira I…” Rodger replied, with such frail words escaping his mouth. Immediately tears scrolled down his eyes, then not long after, my husband began to sob into my arms. He began shaking; his uncontrollable wail could outperform that of a banshee.

Tears escaped my eyes whether I liked it or not, this was just such a fright. It had to be some very bad news.

We both got back up onto our feet, and he finally had me sat down on the sofa and gently broke the news to me.

“They’ve found traces of the cancer again, sweetheart.” He paused. “They want me back in for tests and a thorough examination they said. They think it’s serious…” He explained with despair.

I couldn’t move. My whole body had frozen. I couldn’t even close my eyes for a single second. Now it was my own soul that had left its body. I gained the courage to say all but one word.

“When...”

____________________________________________________

12 weeks later

“Rodger was a strong man, as a matter of fact, he was the strongest man I ever knew,”

Moira said sadly whilst looking over to her boys. Then she smiled and continued.

“He lifted me high when times were extremely low. He helped me the most in this world; not one day did he ever let me struggle. He worked tirelessly to provide food on the table, and good clothes for our boys to wear. He was one incredible father, and such a loving husband! What I’m trying to get across here the most, is that he gave me life. He gave everyone around him life! Which is incredibly ironic now, considering that he has been given the complete opposite. I see now that he is gone, but I still choose to maintain a firm belief that death is not the end of something old, but the start of something new.”

She looked up to his coffin, and said wholeheartedly, “Wherever you are baby! I will find you sooner rather than later!”.

Moira walked down from the stage and took her seat. The same church she married her beloved with, was the same church she was burying him with.

“Mom, that was certainly something! Dad would’ve been so proud. You were majorly fierce!” Said Rodney, whilst embracing his mother in a tight warm hug.

After the service, Michael- Moira’s other son came running up to her as Rodney had left. He was immediately raising concern in his voice about a journalist he had apparently spoken with not longer than two minutes ago, who had wanted contact with his mother. She was apparently waiting outside.

“Stay here, this will only take a second!” said the fierce matriarch as she marched on to see what this new mystery woman wanted.

The sound of heels clicking got louder and louder, the journalist turned around to see Moira standing at the main church doors.

The exchanged looks of wonder and recognition prevailed.

“You… I know you!” Moira began.

“You were that woman from the café four weeks ago…what are you doing here?!”

The woman simply nodded at her and told Moira to hold out her hand- which she did. Moments later Moira had a small black book in her hand, and the woman left!

“MOM!” Rodney shouted, “Mom what are you doing out here?”.

“That woman; the journalist, she just gave me this strange black book and just ran away…”

“Mom? What journalist?” said her son.

“The one Michael mentioned, I just met up with her. She didn’t say much, just told me to hold out my hands to receive this book. What do you think it means?”

“Mom, that isn’t one bit funny, you know Michael’s been dead for three years. What’s gotten into you? I think you need to see someone…” Rodney said concerningly.

Moira looked dead into her son’s eyes, and then collapsed…

____________________________________________________

It was dark, Moira couldn’t make out anything. It was like she was here- but wasn’t.

She felt unconscious, like she was in a dazed dream.

“Moira…Moira…. I” said her husband.

She couldn't see him. Yet she could feel him. She embraced him, and just then- a wave of natural white light surrounded her presence.

“MOIRA OPEN YOUR EYES, OPEN THE BOOK! YOU WILL DIE, BUT NOW IS NOT YOUR TIME! MOIRA OPEN THE BOOK!”

Moira awakened. Sweat pouring out of her. Scared, confused and sore.

She was alone in her bedroom. The sound of silence overwhelmed her as she began to cry. She looked over to the bedside table and noticed a glass of water. Beside that glass lay the a familiar black book. It was still there. It must have been moved with her when she collapsed.

“Oh, that’s right, I think I fainted…” she recalled to herself. Whilst rubbing her head.

Without hesitation, she leaned over her bed and snatched the book up from the table. The book felt unusual. The material felt light, as if she wasn't even holding anything.

She opened it.

____________________________________________________

The book was empty, the pages were blank.

As Moira flicked through, she noticed something strange in the very end page. It was a pouch.

She placed her hand in and pulled out all the pieces of paper. There were about five folded sheets. As she unfolded them. Her eyes widened.

“FOURTEEN…FIFTEEN…MILLION!” she squealed.

She kept opening all the cheques. All the numbers increased with every fold that she unfolded. Then she came across the note. “Look in my black bag Moira” it read.

Moira knew exactly the bag that it was talking about. There was a cassette tape and the instructions said, “Play Me!”

…

Moira sweetheart, as you know now, the cancer took over and won. Although, I couldn’t leave you without saying a final farewell…we didn’t have much growing up. It was foster home after foster home for us. We were great at just making it work. What you’ve surely found if, my daughter, has given you the book now…is a solution. That woman who was in the café was an investigative journalist, who as a matter of fact, was trying to track down her daddy. It was many years ago! Way before you and you love! I’ve left instructions on what you have to do with all the money, and if you wish to contact my daughter on the email attached, you will find out more. Please forgive me sweetheart for not telling you about her. I was going to, but it happened so suddenly, when the time was right you were eventually going to be told, but the cancer just blew everything out of order.” Rodger said on the tape as his voice begun to crack.

“I will always love you baby, come find me one day! I promise, I’m always here, and I’m waiting on you…”

Moira sobbed into her husband’s jacket, she cried and cried. Her heart was truly broken…

On the enclosed note in the jacket, Moira found exactly what she needed to find.

The list read: -

- Send cheque number 1 to Rodney. Make sure our grandchildren have the future we always wanted for them!

- Send cheque number 2 to my daughter on the address mentioned.

- Split the biggest cheque, number 3, into 1 million dollars each for every foster home in the county.

- Cheque number 4 is for any medical expenses that you need covered in the future! Look after yourself sweetheart!

- The last cheque Moira is for yourself, even when I am dead…I’ll still provide for you! You’re my girl always, and I will forever protect you in any way I can.

Moira read that last sentence again. Tears just slid out from her eyelids and she just stopped.

All she could do was stop, and process all of the information; all of the unprecedented feelings.

"I love you Rodger" she mumbled to herself.

____________________________________________________

One Month Later

Moira met up with her husband’s daughter. She was incredibly sweet and kind, and had those same beautiful blue eyes as her father. She smiled and laughed at all the stories that were shared. The story of how Moira and Rodger met; the time they were caught drinking at Rodgers foster dad’s house; or even the times that Rodney and Michael were born.

Moira never really mentioned her son Michael. He died in a car crash after he was returning home from a friend’s house one night when he was twenty-three.

It broke Moira to pieces, and one day she just never spoke about it.

A couple of weeks after the funeral though, Moira took her son's advice and saw a professional, she got diagnosed with dementia which explained why she began to see her son everywhere that she went. She wasn’t concerned though, as she knew that it was a gift; as if she had gotten him back. She was headed wherever Rodger was, but she wanted to enjoy the last few years of her life that she had left.

...

It was a cold September night, and the skies were clear. the stars were awake, and the moonlight lit up Moira’s room like a Christmas tree. She admired the light that surrounded her, she knew. It was time.

Moira had a glass of water placed in the same spot as she always puts it on her bedside table. The black book was also positioned in the same spot. She began to feel lightheaded and then she finally slipped away peacefully.

She was falling, that same white light surrounded her, and she fell further and further and further…

She screamed, until two manly arms eventually caught her.

“Didn’t think I wouldn’t catch you now after all this time, did you?” said her husband.

Moira shed continuous tears of happiness and embraced her husband in the warmest hug. She heard her favourite music playing from a distance and was immediately greeted by her son! He looked the same. She hugged him tight and she whispered gently, “I am never letting you go again!”

Just as Moira had predicted, her other son got to continue the family…although he felt the pain of both his parents now leaving him, along with his brother, he knew that he still had a family of his own now to take care of, just like his dad; with a new sister to celebrate with.

As for Rodger’s daughter, she received the cheque and funded her own magazine business. It flourished! The main story of the century, however, was the story of Moira and Rodgers life, it was an icon throughout the ages, and many people had hoped to receive the same love as Moira did.

As Moira once said… ‘Death is not the end of something old, but the start of something new.’ And for this family's tale, that was in fact true.

No life is promised a happy beginning, middle or ending, but it is promised peace, and that is now what Moira got, and she couldn't be happier...