Just a Feeling

Just A Feeling
by
Dr. Leyrose

"Hard to believe it's almost the end of May. It feels like fall
outside. Here, feel my hands." As Charley reached toward his mother's
neck, she warned, "You better not put those cold hands on me." Then
reflecting on her son's comments, she began to relate a memory from her
childhood. "I remember once, when I was a little girl, we got a big
snow this time of year. There were icycles hanging off the porch eaves,
and the only room in the house that was warm was the living room. We
all had to take turns going to the wood pile. When we came back in we
shivered and shook for almost an hour. The flu on the heater was almost
cherry red, but if you got more than about six feet away you could feel
the chill. And in the kitched, there was ice on the inside of the
windows. Since there was only the one heater, we all had to sleep in
the living room that night. And the next morning, well, there was snow
up to daddy's (your grandfather's) waist. There were drifts almost up
to the roof on the barn, and the big oak tree was creaking and groaning
from the weight of the snow and ice. That, that was the first time I
ever had snowcream. It doesn't snow like that anymore it doesn't seem
like..."
As Charley sat listening, he thought back to the last time they had
snowcream. It was so good, and he ate so much so fast that it gave him
a headache. But that was one headache he didn't mind getting. That was
a wonderful weekend. His Aunt and Uncle had come up for a visit. They
stayed up late into the night eating snowcream, telling stories, and
just sharing a strong family bond. It was during a following visit to
their house that he met the girl he was going to the Prom with this
weekend. He was a Sophomore and this was expected to be the biggest
event of his life - at least up to this point. There were too many
things to remember, but hardest of all, he had no idea what a Prom was
about. He just hoped his date would know, after all she invited him. He
had heard talk at school, but most of it was about things that, well,
frankly made him uneasy. He was all for making lifetime memories, but
it was important to him to make the right kind. At the same time
though, he wanted to be part of the crowd. He wanted to at least try to
do, and enjoy, some of the things guys his age enjoyed. His parents had
told everyone about his big date, and it made things at school a little
more difficult. He knew what the other guys expected, and what they
were all saying, but he had other ideas. Foremost, he just wanted Kelly
to like him for who he was and have a good time - a time they would
both remember and cherish.
With his mother's help he selected and packed the things he would need
for the weekend and the Prom. As soon as his father got home from work,
had a chance to rest, and they ate supper, they were going to head
south. Charley tried not to think about the Prom, but it was a
struggle. He tried to pass the time talking with his mother. He asked
about stories he had heard many times before. They talked about
baseball, when he was younger, and about the weather again. But, in
spite of every effort, the subject of the Prom kept coming up.
Thankfully, his father arrived early from work and gave him a short
list of tasks to perform. At least he would have something to do,
anything to do, time was just dragging by.
The first thing on the list was checking out the car for the trip. He
loved that car. It had everything for a car that was five years old.
But the best part of the 1968 Chrysler Newport Custom, was it's 440
cubic inch engine fed by a huge four barrel carburetor. Although it was
a fairly large car, it accelerated like a sports car. His father, a
pretty good mechanic, kept the engine in top condition. And his father
had taught him how to care for a car. Yes, to him, it was a labor of
love. As he opened the hood excitement filled his whole body. Every
time he looked at that engine, every time he checked it's vital fluids,
he could hear that huge power plant rumble. He also relived the
sickening, heart pounding power of the first time he floored the gas
pedal. He loved driving fast, a trait he inherited from his father. He
was also very proud to drive around in that car. He knew it was wrong,
but for some reason he couldn't help himself. Every time he drove that
car, every time, he had to let it stretch it's legs - like allowing a
thoroughbred full rein and just hanging on for the ride. And this
weekend, well he would get a chance to impress Kelly.
Finally his father asked, "Are you all ready to go?" Charley had been
waiting for those words all day. Within minutes they were on their way.
Just a few miles down the road his mother asked, "Ok, do we have
everything? Did you pack socks? Get a razor?" These type questions
continued until her homemade checklist was complete. Usually they would
forget something only to remember what it was whe it was too late to
turn around. This time, hopefully, they hadn't forgotten anything. But
as usual, time would tell. His mother summed it all up whe she said, "
If we did forget something, and I have a feeling we did, we'll just
have to do without it. Isn't it funny how we always feel like we're
forgetting something? I wonder why that is?"
An hour and a half later they were pulling into their familiar
convenience stop. There were many reasons why this had become their
favorite stop on this trip. The town, which had changed little in 30
years, had a dreamlike charm. It was an accomodating, friendly little
part of Ameriacana. Each stop was met with the warmest of welcomes. The
store, much like the general store of yesteryear, was family owned and
operated. And every time they stopped it was like visiting family. They
would often sit, have coffee, and visit before continuing their trip.
This time, as his mother and father sat to enjoy their coffee, he made
his way back to the drink box. His favorite treat was a 7-Up and small
pack of sunflower seeds. When he reached the drink box, standing right
in front of it was an old man. The man had white hair and his face
looked like the sun reflected off it. Patiently, Charley waited for the
old gentleman to move or at least make his selection. But the old
fellow just seemed to linger, not particularly interested in anything
in the box. No, he just stood there like he was lost in his thoughts,
or like he was listening to someone. Finally, with a strong, powerful,
but gentle voice he said, "Oh, excuse me young man. I didn't realize I
was in your way. Here, let me move so you can get to the box."
Immediately, Charley responded with, "Sir, you take your time. I'm in
now hurry. How are you doing this afternoon?" With a smile and a fiery
twinkle in his eye, the old man slyly replied, "Fine, I'm doing just
fine. Some folks get in a hurry or sometimes do things without
thinking. Are you folks making a journey?" Charley, captivated by the
older gentleman, politely continued, "Yes Sir, we are on our way to
visit my Aunt and Uncle. And tomorrow night I'm going to a Prom." Then
with a more serious demeanor and a concentrated look into Charley's
eyes, the old man said, "I have a feeling the weather is going to turn
bad. Tomorrow night will be very dangerous. For some will be a night that will pose special challenges. Pleasure meeting
you, have a safe journey, maybe we'll meet again sometime." With that
the old man ambled toward the door.
A chain of events, already in motion, began to unfold. It was
something that was extremely rare for that area. Something that few had
ever seen and noone was prepard for. A weather front, moving slowly,
was heading for the area. These type of events, these special
conditions, although rare, were building to produce a tremendous snow
storm - a storm of epic proportion. In this region, a snow, small or
large, would become very dangerous. Unfortunately, the events leading
up to this storm would go unnoticed. This storm would catch everyone by
surprise.
The second half of the trip passed much quicker than Chrley thought.
Soon they were stopping in front of his Uncle's house. Minutes later,
as the visit built up steam, he called Kelly, who lived close by. It
was more of a courtesy call just to let her know that he had arrived.
Both nervous, they spoke awkwardly for a few minutes. Then, with a
promise of seeing her day he said good night.
The next morning, Charley and his first cousin set out to buy a
corsage for Kelly. The only problem was he had forgotten to inquire
about Kelly's dress color or her preference of flowers. So, against his
protests, they drove over to her home. There, they were sheerfully
greeted by Kelly's parents and asked to join them for some hot apple
cider and cookies. As he talked with Kelly, his cousin found an
opportunity to ask about the dress. Then on cue from his cousin, they
left to finish the task they began earlier. He loved his cousin, they
had spent many wonderful days together. Although they lived many miles
apart, through the years they had grown very close. He trusted her
judgement and was depending on her to pick out the corsage. They talked
openly about the Prom. He wasn't nervous when he talked with her. And
she shared "secrets" about the opposite sex with him. His cousin loved
him too and would do everything she could to make sure tonight was as
perfect as possible. He listened carefully to her advice, and later
even elicited her help with a few dance steps. Even with all the
coaching and talking he was still nervous as the time approached to go
pick up Kelly. With a few last words form his cousin, mother, and aunt,
he left.
He was still nervous as he drove over to kelly's house. When he
arrived, her mother had to take pictures. And with sweaty handsnhe
attempted to pin on Kelly's corsage. Her mother, noticing his shy
nervousness, pinned the corsage on for him. With a few more pictures,
then, they were finally on their way to the Prom. They meandered
through the streets of the city. Kelly, in the role of navigator,
eventually led them down a dirt road on the West side of town. Here,
she instructed him to stop in front of an old ramshackle stoor. Then,
handing him money, explained she wanted a bottle of wine. With
reservations, but wanting to please her, Charley walked into the store.
As he made the request, looking straight at the proprietor, he never
flinched or faltered. And, with a glance at the car and back at him,
the proprietor grabbed two bottles of wine and placed them in paper
sacks. As he walked from the store, he saw a man walking away from the
car. Once behind the wheel, while handing Kelly the wine, he asked,"Who
was that?" She responded, brushing off the encounter with, "It was some
old man. He just told me to be careful tonight and something else. I
don't know, it was weird. He gave me a weird feeling. Let's go, it
isn't far from here."
He proudly escorted her into the old VFW building, taking in
everything as they sat down. It was spectacular! He had never imagined
anything like this. He felt like he was in a movie or a character in a
fairytale. No longer nervous, he began to converse with others seated
close by. Then, as the band began to play, he impulsively asked Kelly
to dance. They danced, mesmorized by the music and atmosphere of this
special night. Song after song, like the only two people in the world,
they swayed and turned - their hearts intwined. They laughed and met
each others glance with warmth, kindled by the special magic of the
evening. Then on the first of many breaks, they began to drink along on
the wine they had brought with them. By ten o'clock the dancing and
alcohol began to take it's toll on Kelly. As he noticed the change in
her demeanor, he told her he would bring the car up front. When it was
ready, he instructed, he would return to escort her out.
Walking through the door, the spell of the Prom was broken when he was
suddenly faced with bitter cold wind and a parking lot covered with two
inches of snow. The wind whipped and threatened as he picked his way to
the car. Ill prepared for such an event, he used his arm to clear the
windshield and other windows. With a hurried turn of the key, the car
roared to life and just like a cat, sat purring as he switched on the
heater. He sat shivering as a deep chill gripped his entire body. As
soon as the car warmed up, he would go collect his date and they would
head straight to her house. She had to be home by eleven, so he would
have to hurry. When he did finally bring her out to the car, she
elected to lie down in the back seat. He didn't mind, he knew the way.
It was more important to him that she was comfortable.
As he turned onto the main road, he knew he had enough time to drive
the eight miles. Even so, he gradually pressed down on the accelerator.
The car responded instantly, like a horse chomping at the bit. The feel
of that tremendous power was more than he could resist. With snow
pelting the windshield, obscuring his view and covering the roadway, he
pressed the car for more speed. Now, traveling at more than 60 miles
per hour, the car sped into the swirling darkness. His lack of
experience coupled with a sincere desire to meet the eleven o'clock
kerfew, kept him from realizing the peril. Then as the car nudged this
way and that, as it edged closer and closer to disaster, the passenger
door opened. Just seconds later it closed again.
With eyes glued to the roadway and both hands firmly gripped on the
steering wheel, he only managed a quick glance toward the passenger
seat. What he saw sent a chill through his entire body, followed by an
uncanny weakness that seemed to settle in his knees. As he sat there,
frozen in time, he barely managed to take his foot from the
accelerator. Then gripping the wheel even tighter, he looked straight
ahead. He didn't want a second glance at his passenger. There, seated
beside him, was a dark shadowy figure. The figure never uttered a
sound, just sat in silence as the car gradually slowed down. With
utmost dread, and every hair on his body electrified, Charley once
again shot a glance at his passenger. No, he wasn't imagining it. The
dark figure was still there, sitting silently. The figure made novement
nor still didn't utter a single sound. But, just his presence made
Charley begin to shake as a deep sickening feeling began to set in. He
could feel sweat running down his face, arms, and back. But inside,
deep inside, an iceberg was beginning to form. In the back seat, his
date was sound asleep. He wished she would awaken so he wouldn't have
to suffer this alone. But, she just lay there completely unaware of
anything around her. For a brief second Charley started to reach over
and touch his passenger, just to make absolutely sure he wasn't seeing
things. When he took his right hand from the wheel to reach over his
heart began pounding and he began to shiver even more. For just a
second, just the shortest period of time, he tried to reach over, but
he couldn't. He wasn't sure whether it was fear or what, but he just
couldn't move his hand any closer. He quickly placed it back on the
wheel and resumed his forward stare through the windshield. When the
car had slowed to about 20 miles per hour, and as terror had began to
overpower him, the passenger door once again opened and within seconds
closed again. The mysterious figure, his dark passenger, was gone as
quickly as he had arrived.
He eased the car into her parent's driveway, more than ten minutes
late. Then after waking his sleeping princess, escorted her to the
front door. They were met immediately by her mother, who instantly
invited him inside. She smartly instructed him to sit down as she
began. "You're as white as a sheet. You look like you've seen a ghost.
I had a terrible feeling a little while ago. I called your folks, I
felt so strongly about it. I'm just so happy you both made it home
safely. On T.V. they're talking about all of the accidents because of
the storm. Oh, you can't imagine how relieved I am!" She continued for
some time, hugging them both, and expressing her joy for their safety.
In her mind she kept reviewing all the reports of stranded and wrecked
cars. There were just so many, and with each she had feared the worst.
She wouldn't relent, and as she continued this almost hysterical
display of emotion, she told Charley to call his folks. He needed to
call them to let them know they were safe. After a brief talk with his
parents, he handed the phone to Kelly's mother, then looked over at
Kelly. The full impact of the evening was beginning to settle in. He
was beginning to think how lucky they had been. Yes, they were
fortunate. It would be many years before he could really grasp the good
fortune they had recieved that evening as they blindly and foolishly
sped through the dark swirling storm. He never spoke of the dark
passenger, but never, ever, forgot the experience. And, he would never
forget that chilling, terrible feeling that had gripped him that
night.