Shelia and the Seal

Went to visit a friend from college. When I saw her my heart sank. Her body was frail and boney. Dark circles under her eyes and bruise marks covered her arms. We used to do daily ocean swims from Campus Point to the pier. On one day I felt something bump into me from beneath. It tripped me out. I stopped and a little baby seal popped it’s tiny head out of the water. It stared at me with deep curiosity. ” Let’s swim to shore!’ ” Yelled Shelia. ” Why?” I asked while laughing at the baby seal . ” Because the Mother is gonna show up any minute. ” Suddenly baby seal’s mama pops out of the water and glares at me. We made a bee line for the shore and were safe and sound. When Shelia opened the door she just stared at me as if I was not real. ” Come in” She said as she sauntered back to the kitchen. ” I’m making tea. ” She served me a fresh cup of ginger tea then seated herself in a lime green love seat. ” I resent you for abandoning me. You should change your name to Casper, because you disappeared like a ghost when I needed you most. ” ” You know I had to move to attend grad school.” I told her. “
“I didn’t hear from you in years. ” Shelia came down with MS almost 15 years ago. I stared at her indoor jungle gym, which she uses to exercise to keep her muscles from dying. I was not prepared to see her . I was not ready to accept that she was dying. I looked into her eyes. Did not say a word. She could tell I felt bloated with guilt and remorse. “Come on. ” she said.
We went into her family room and laid down on a huge orange oval shapped bean bag. She put on Janis Joplin’s ” Me and Bobby McGee.” We stared at the Jimmy Hendrix poster on the ceiling. ‘ I remember your dance performance to this song back in the day. It was unforgettable. ” ” Yeah” She said as she smiled. ” Those were the days. Those were the days when I felt strong and I loved waking up. ” She grabbed my hand. I just stared harder at the poster of Jimmy Hendrix trying to escape my feelings. Sweat began to build between our hands , but I did not care. We listened to Fleetwood Mac’s RUMORS album from beginning to end without saying a word. She squeezed my hand really hard, and in that moment I realized that I hurt her more than I ever imagined. ” Remember when you saved me from Mama Seal?” I asked her. She laughed. ” Yeah of course I do. I have never seen you swim so fast. ” She giggled and held my hand even tighter. Sometimes I wish that Time Machines really existed.