Cafe Ladies

Café Ladies

Mr. Geoffrey walks out on a Saturday afternoon, as per his custom. Mr. Geoffrey loves to stroll along the river walk observing the city and its people. This particular Saturday is especially fine as the sun is shining with only a few small patches of clouds and the temperature has risen to a high of seventy three, perfect spring weather in February. Mr. Geoffrey chose to live in San Antonio, Texas precisely because of its combination of life, weather, and proximity to the ocean. Life here always seems to be moving at its own pace and the weather in fall, winter and spring is absolutely wonderful; for the summer months he spends most of his time on the beach.

            Today, the river walk is beautiful, with the small tables beside the walk covered by colorful umbrellas and crowds of people shopping, sightseeing, and milling about. It seems like the warm weather has brought everyone out. Mr. Geoffrey strolls along, pausing here and there, watching the people passing by and listening in on pieces of conversation hoping to find something, some kind of spark. Mr. Geoffrey is an author and he is searching for a new story. For days he has been staring at note after note of scribbled ideas but still the words will not come, everything he has written so far this week has been dull and lifeless. He wants to find a character that will breathe, a character that has his or her own story, one that his pen struggles to keep up with. But Mr. Geoffrey is still walking along, sitting at tables and talking with strangers to no avail. About mid-way through the afternoon, Mr. Geoffrey sits down at a table across from the Marble Slab Creamery. Mr. Geoffrey watches as a man and his son leave the store, each with a double dip ice cream in a sugar cone and he is reminded of his childhood. Mr. Geoffrey takes out his journal and begins to write:

The morning air was crisp and clean as Billy stepped outside the little white frame house and filled his lungs. His dad, William, had already been up for a couple hours and almost had the morning chores finished. Billy heard the tractors engine rumble to life and took off running toward the machine shed; if he could get there fast enough he might be able to ride along as his dad fed hay to the cows in the feedlot. Out of breath, Billy called out across the yard, “Wait! Wait! Dad, Wait!” William had seen Billy standing on the wide front porch as he had walked from the barn to the machine shed an had been expecting this very thing so he paused just before the edge of the barn lot to give Billy time to catch up.

Mr. Geoffrey pauses, lost in thought, and then shuts the journal and places it back in his pocket. Wiping a tear from his cheek, Mr. Geoffrey gets up from his table and moves on down the river walk. Billy is a fine character but somehow Mr. Geoffrey is just not ready to write about him yet. Finally, tired and hungry, Mr. Geoffrey stumbles into a small café at the end of the river walk and takes a seat in a booth where someone has been kind enough to leave a copy of the day’s newspaper. Mr. Geoffrey orders a small dinner, a classic burger with chips and a tall glass of iced tea and begins to peruse the newspaper; maybe his character is hiding in newsprint. Just then, two ladies came through the door and looking around the café, they proceed to make their way across to the far side of the room to sit in a corner booth away from the other diners. This piques Mr. Geoffrey’s curiosity and he begins to watch them with his newspaper held up as if he is engrossed in its headlines; all the while his mind is whirling and his characters began to stir to life… Mr. Geoffrey pulls out his journal and writes:

In a small diner, Joan and Lizzy sit in a corner booth, as they do each Saturday evening, chatting over coffee and the remnants of their meal. Joan and Lizzy have been best friends for ages, ever since Lizzy moved to the city from her small country town after graduating high school; she had been accepted at Our Lady of the Lake University and was excited to begin life after high school. Joan had always lived in the city; she had grown up on the eastside of town where she still lives in a small one bedroom apartment with her cat, Major. The girls had started out meeting at the café on Saturday evenings to talk about their week, their dates and anything else that came to their minds; but now, years later, it has become a tradition or habit. Sometimes it seems a little sad, they both thought that they would have families and “lives” that would take up all of their time and that they would struggle to find time for one another by now. But week after week, month upon month, years passing by and here they are, another Saturday night alone together.

            “Do you remember when we used to make fun of women like us?” Lizzy asks Joan. “What, us ‘Café Ladies’, is that what we have become? Oh god… you are right! We are those ladies. How depressing, thank you for that! Now you have ruined my day! I cannot believe it, we swore we would never become this… What are we going to do?” Joan replied. “Ha! Do? I do not know what can be done aside from marrying some wishy washy loser like the guys we work with or throw caution to the wind and leave our lives behind on a search for ‘The One’ maybe he only exists on paper” said Lizzy. “Speaking of paper, how about this one, I started this new book last night, get this: ‘ Light sparkling from the chandelier above gives a magical appearance to the room; yet my heart breaks with each thought of you. The yearning is almost more than I can bear. I feel as if I will surely die without your touch. Where have you gone, my love? Anywhere, my love, even to the grave; just tell me and I will follow.’ What would it be like to be loved this way? Where are the men like the ones we read about?” ask Joan. “I think that is why it is called ‘Fiction’! I have never met a man like this… I do not think I can believe anymore” replied Lizzy. “Oh wait; I have another one, listen to this:

‘My heart is my own, so you say. But a lie it is, you have been mine since first our eyes met… Within a glance our souls united and we two have been one, as if we had never known a moment apart. Search yourself; there is not a corner within without me. Just as I am lost completely, until upon reflection, I see only you.’ Can you just die? I can’t wait until they are able to produce human robots that you can buy and program any personality you like. I think it is the only way… Until then, I will just have to continue living through paperbacks” said Joan.

            Looking around the diner, Lizzy comments, “Well, let us see who is dining with us today… Nathan is collecting dishes, while Julie and Charlene wait tables. Over in booth number one there is a family with two young, noisy children. In booth number two there is a man with his newspaper, I think it may be his lover; look how close he is holding it to his face! And what do we have in booth number three? Definitely a ‘Café Lady’ if I have ever seen one! And here on our side booths four and five are empty which leaves us all alone here in booth number six. What is that supposed to mean, even the diners shun us!” “Oh Lizzy, do you have to be so dramatic? I thought we picked this side because everyone else is sitting on the other one” Joan said. “I guess you are right” Lizzy said with a sigh, “it just gets old.”

            “Wait, who is that,” ask Joan. “Who is who?” ask Lizzy, “I cannot see, what is happening?” “Just look at all those roses, and the guy is not half bad either… What is he doing? It looks like he is coming in here!” Joan said. “Can’t be” scoffed Lizzy, “no one knows I am here besides you.” “Oh, ha ha” said Joan, “I am serious. Here he comes.” A tall man with dark wavy hair falling across his tanned forehead and brushing the collar of his light blue oxford shirt ducked into the little diner and looked around until his eyes found her… The café became silent as everyone turns toward the open door. Everyone holds their breath as they watch the young man. Walking across the room, his eyes lock with hers as if no one else existed, he kneels beside her booth and says, “Heart of my heart, what shall it be? Shall I love you, or you love me? My hand in yours’ yours in mine… Let us forever be so entwined, lost to the boundaries of yours and mine. Promise me, this day, your hand.” If an answer could be given in a kiss then one could only suppose her answer was yes… Like the breaking of a spell, the diner breathed a collective sigh and then burst into applause. Joan and Lizzy sat starring at the lady in booth number three. “Okay, so how did that book go? Read it to me again…” said Joan.

            Mr. Geoffrey closes his journal and signals to the waitress, “Check please!”