TWO OF A KIND
Scene is at the Church of Long Island and the year is 2025. There is Andrew lying in a casket. He is in his seventies, very pale looking and is dress in a blue polyester suit. He is wearying a hairpiece. His hair is dyed black and has a mustache. The place is packed with mourners. His spouse of forty-five years and his two children and their families are sitting in the corner. The place is very quiet and only sound coming is from a speaker playing some religious song. All of a sudden the door of the church opens up and all eyes turns toward a very dashing looking tall person who is very blond. There is hardly any gray hair. He is very muscular. He could have been a movie star. Everybody starts wondering whether he is a star. If his family was not around, he could have passed as being in his thirties. He along with his family enters the church and takes a seat in the front row, which was reserved. Upon seeing him, his wife, Alisha, gets up and walks toward this person and greets him and starts speaking "Hello Samuel, I am glad you could make it to this. Your friend, Andy, gave this letter to me. He has asked me to give it to you and wait for your instructions about the funeral. Also I will appreciate if you could say few words about your friend." She then goes back to her seat and waits for Samuel's instructions.
Sam's hands start shaking and he open's Andy Letter and start reading it. "Dear Sam: I know that when you get this letter, I will be dead and I would like to thank you for giving me the best moments of my life by sharing your life and the family. You were the best friend a person could have asked for. I still remember the first time I saw you. That day seems like yesterday. It was July 4th, 1998. It was a very hot and humid day, and my family had gone to Canada for a vacation and I was feeling very lonely. I had decided to take a trip to New York City, which was about 30 miles from my house, and watch the fire works. As I was walking in the city, I decided to enter a bar on 42nd street., and sat down at a table, and ordered a beer. I noticed that at the bar a male dancer was performing his act. After he left, the next dancer was introduced as "Sam." I noticed that this dancer was magnificent and as if God spared no expenses in creating this handsome guy himself. He was perfect. He was at least 6 feet tall, blond, blue eyed, and very muscular. As soon as he enters in the stage, all the people in the bar stopped in their tasks, and started admiring at the magnificent beauty that was on the stage. One could see that all of them were drooling. Even if I had a dictionary and used all the adjectives in it, I bet I would have run out of them in describing the radiant personality that was on the stage. He starts dancing. It seems that my eyes were transfixed on this god's creation. I did not move while he was dancing. After the dance, the young star approached me and said "hello." I could not say a word because I was in a state of shock. I was trembling because I could not believe than a handsome guy will talk to a very ordinary looking guy like me (what is the name of that popular star in 90's, at my age some times it is hard to remember names. Now I remember, to me you looked just like Brad Pitts, while I looked more like Danny Devito. Remember Brad was in the film Meet Joe Young, and Danny was the short brother in the Twins. Why I am telling you this. Your memory is worse than mine is). We started talking. Then you asking me if I could join you for a lunch at the restaurant since you were going there. We talked and talked. I was very impressed with you. You talked about your family and your life. I told you all about my life and even some things that I never told anybody.
After the lunch we went back to the bar, as it was time for you to perform again. It seems that the day went very fast and it was already midnight. I inquired you about your next time you were schedule for the act. I could not wait for the July 17th. because that was the date you were schedule for the show. Again I had a good time you. We talked and had lunch at a Chinese restaurant and order a 'Pu Pu' platter, which you never had before. I spend the whole day at the bar. Somehow I was a different person when I was around you, as if I had a dual personality. I saw different sides of me that I did not realize that it existed before. From then on I made a point of meeting you once a week, either at the bar or had a lunch with you at a restaurant. Atleast I started looking for these meetings. Sometimes used to travel over seventy miles just to have lunch with you and pretended that I had a business in your town. I am not sure whether you had the same feeling or not. We found out that, even though, our families migrated to the States from different parts of the worlds and brought up with different culture values and social settings, you from liberal family and me form conservative one, but we still had lots of things in common. We both like same foods, same type of songs and radio stations, same hobbies, same types of movies. We had more things that we liked together than what we dislike. By looking at this, it seems that we must have been bothers in our previous life.
One time I had a meeting in Newark, NJ. This place was very close to your house. I was very honored when you insisted that I stay with your family instead at the hotel. I felt as if I was on cloud 9 when I met your lovely family. Your wife, Bernice, was so nice to me that I immediately decided to make her my sister, as I never had any sister. Your three kids, Gregory, Iris, and Stephen were so cute. We went out for dinner and after the dinner we went to the town to enjoy the night..
One of the happiest moments in my life came when you asked me to be the godfather of your fourth child, Todd. The other moment was when your daughter, Iris asked me to give her away along with you at her wedding as I always considered her my daughter since I only had two boys and also named her first son after me. The other moment was when your son, Greg, asked me to be his son's godfather. I was very happy whenever you asked me to baby-sit for your kids so that you and Bernice could go out for a dinner or a movie. I was very lucky that I had the love of two families.
I remember that twice I was really mad with you. First time I was mad when as usual I had a drink waiting for you after your performance, but without telling me, you joined another person for a drink. I was so mad that I left without telling you. I could not stay mad with you when you called me at home. The other time I was mad when during the performance you decided to perform differently, and told me that this is what I wanted. I became very upset that all this time I have been telling you that I was not interested in knowing you from the outside but what's inside your heart, the one that makes you Sam. I felt that you made me a part of your show and you treated me just like one your customer. After your performance you caught me in my thoughts and wanted to know about what I was thinking. I pretended that I was just dozing off. Through the evening I pretended to be laughing but I was really thinking whether you misjudge me or I gave you wrong signals. After I left you, I though about this, found out that there were more positive then negative things between our relationship, and the life is too short to worry. I should enjoy every moment with you.
Through out my life I kept my promise. Do you remember the year 2002 when we decided to go to Atlanta for a vacation. We checked into Hyatts Regency and found out that there was only one bed in the room even though we had asked for two beds and the hotel could not find any other room with two beds because they were full. I made an excuse that I had cold and could not share bed with you since I did not want you to get sick, therefore I slept on the sofa. Every time we took vacation together, I always made some kind of excuse for not sleeping in the same bed. I knew that if, I was in the bed with you, then I may become weak and may regret my actions.
Other thing that bothered in the beginning was that you used to tell me things in details that happened between you and your so called "customers". You never knew that those details used to make me very envoy of those people because they could do things that I was unable to do. Every time a customer came into the Bar or wherever we went, I saw people coming to you and reacting toward you, the way I could not do. They got hug from you whenever they came in or left. As a human being, I would have loved to do those things all the time, then I was afraid of losing my self-respect and your friendship. I knew that you felt no pressure from me. You knew that you were not dealing with a customer but a friend. Over the years, I learned to control my emotions because those things used to give you so much pleasures. All my life I made sure that you stayed happy and never do or say things that would make you unhappy. All my life, I kept hoping to get a hug from you, and which I rarely got. From time to time, I was very mad for setting up my standards and rules so high, even for me they were impossible to break. That is why I preferred to go places where I knew that I would not run into your so called customers and would be easy for me to control my emotions and my urges in touching you. Through out my life I kept looking for the answer to this question. Am I madly in love with you or just crazy? Because, every free moment I had, I thought about you.
You always a complaint that most of the time you did the talking while I stayed very quite. I have a confession to make. The reason I stayed quite was that every time I was with you, my sole purpose was to keep admiring you and I did not want to lose any precious moments from that. Sometime, I admit, I had no idea what you were talking about, all I would do is nod my head as if I was paying attention to you. All I wanted to do was to get lost in the aroma that was being given out by your beauty. To me admiring you was more important thing in my life than any thing less. Couple of times you caught me staring at you. Now you know the reason.
This seems very funny, when I was about 25 year old I went to Ocean City along with my friends. Over there we met this palm reader. She saw my palm and immediately she told me that I would love two people in my life. I asked her whether I would have two marriages, two affairs, or what. All she told me that I would have atleast one marriage. As I look back now, I realized how true those words were. My first love and only marriage was with my wife, Alisha, other love (you) was neither a marriage nor an affair because it was one sided. Every week I found time to meet you. Twice I was fired from job because I was taking too long for lunch breaks, but I never told you about this. Even when you retired from the bar and opened your business, Designer Boutique in Jersey City, I still manage to visit you once a week or more. I always hoped that some day you would call me instead my calling you all the time. Even though my family always surrounded me, from time to time I felt as if I was lonely because you were not there. If I had an urge to see you or hear your voice, then I would drive all the way to your club or business and would park my car at distance and would see you whenever you came to work. As soon I saw you, then I would leave. >From time to time you caught me in the area and I pretended that I was your imagination. Sometimes I would call you at work and as soon I heard you voice, I would hang up the phone.
You always used to make fun of my fear of height and you tried very hard so that I could overcome that fear. Remember, in 2006, we went to Atlantic City and we went to this place where one could scale 40 ft. wall. You forced me to climb this wall. I was half way thru when suddenly I slipped and landed on my back. I lost my consciousness and was in coma for three days. You stayed by my bed till I recovered from my ordeal. The first things I said after I woke up was when are we going back to this place, and you almost killed me for saying those words. At that point I realized how fortunate I was, to have a friend like you.
The last three months were very hard for me because I had a tumor in my brain. Alisha wanted to call you, but I made her promise me, not to tell you that I was dying. I even made her lie to you when you called by saying that I was out of town. I told Alisha not to call you, because I did not want you to get upset and see your sad face. I wanted to remember your smiling face before I die. Lot of times, when I was suffering with pain and in my unconscious state I would call your name and wished that you were by my side. But still I told Alisha not to call you, as I could not face the fact that I was not too strong to see your sad face. I told Alisha that, she always had control of my body while I was alive and my friend Sam had control of my body when I die. He is the one who will decide about what to do with my body. As I believe in life after death, I hope that in my next life, again I get you but this time in the same family so that I can get more time to spend with you and not find excuses to meet you. Please, do not shed any tears on my death but wish me good luck that my dream for next life will come true. I never say good bye, but told you that we will meet again. So long. PS you will always be my Shining Star and please forgive me for anything that I didn't do it right.
Your Friend. Andy."
Sam gets up from his seat and goes to the coffin. He kneels down and gives a hug to Andy's body and whispers some thing in his ear "Andy, I hate you, I really hate you. Why all those years you never told me how you felt about me. You told me your every thought and ideas, but kept the most important thing from me. I never realized how a man could love another man so much. You always kept me on the pedestal. Why? For you I was always a star. Why you kept your feelings to yourself? I Love You. I should have told you these words long time ago. I know, you have been waiting all your life to hear these three words from me, but I was afraid to say them, because I was not sure whether you would like it or not and was always afraid of giving you a hug. Why you denied me the opportunity to see you alive for the last time? Why you didn't have enough faith in me?"
He walks to the podium and start speaking to the audience. "Ladies and Gentlemen, today we have gathered here to pay our respect to a man who was a great husband and a friend to his wife, Alisha, and a great father and friend to his sons, Vernon and Anthony. Above all he was a best friend to my family and me. Even if I had looked all over the world, I could not have found a better one. I always used to joke about his status and my status but he used to tell me that in friendship there is no place for race, sex, or status. Friendship is all about giving and not expecting any thing in return. He always gave to me. He also told me that friendship is not worth a price if it comes between a husband and his wife. He also said that whenever he finds out that he becomes a cause between Bernice and me, than he will walk out of my life forever. One time, joking I told Andy that when and if Bernice me, I would go to England or Mexico. Since then Andy made a point to see that Bernice and I stayed together.
Andy had a heart of gold. He went out of his ways to help other, I used to ask him why he was doing this. He used to tell me that he got pleasure seeing smiles on people's faces, and but was always afraid to show his emotions to other. I remember the day when I had an auto accident and was in the hospital. Andy stayed in the lobby for seven days without eating and drinks, but would not enter my room. Most of the time he was crying and praying for my recovery. He even told Bernice not to mention to me about his presence in the hospital. All the time I was thinking why Andy never came to the hospital. Now I know why. He was afraid of losing me.
Andy's favorite song used to be an oldie form the Movie Titanic. I would like to recite few lines from that song, I hope I remember the lines correctly, as Andy would say that my memory is bad:
Every night in my dreams I see you, I feel you
That is how I love you
Far across the distance and spaces between us
But you're here in my heart
And we'll stay forever this way
At that time I did not understand why this song was so important to him. Now I see that this song reminded him about me. I used to wonder why Andy thought about me 24 hours. He knew my schedule at my work better than I used to. No matter where my work was, he never missed a week where he never came to see me. If he was out of town, he would call me long distance..."
Sam starts cry.
After he composes himself, he starts again "To Andy and Alisha, education was very important. As you can see their two sons, Vernon and Tony are successful doctors in the community. Andy used to say that he has not only two kids but also six kids. He persuaded my kids to go to college. Today my son, Greg is a doctor, my daughter, Iris is a nurse, my son Steve is a computer professional while my younger son, Todd is entering the graduate school for his law degree. I would like to thank Andy and Alisha for their persistent persuasion.
One thing about Andy was that he never complained about any thing. I used to design these costumes for the celebrities and would use him as a model. I loved to dress him up so I could see how they would look on those stars. I would use all kinds of silly makeup, wigs on his baldhead, crazy costumes, and jewelaries, but he would not say a single word no matter how silly he looked. Here I need to tell you that on occasion he would look far better in those costumes than the celebrities would. Other thing about Andy was, that his voice was such that, and his habit of making comments about people's personalities, used to get us in troubles lots of times.
My kids were so fond of Uncle Andy, that it became an annual ritual for them to go to the Yankee game once a year with Andy and to spend one week of summer vacation at Andy and Alisha's house.
We all know that God always take the good guys earlier and leave the bad ones behinds. Well Andy God can take you away from us, but he can never take your memory form our heart. You will always remain there forever. I--I--I--I--I..." He could not finish his speech. He walks toward Andy and hugs him, and starts crying loudly. There were hardly any dry eyes in the auditorium. Everyone was so moved by the display of the affection. Upon seeing this, Alisha gets up from her seat and consoles Sam by giving him a hug. After he composes himself, he asks Alisha and says "Alisha, why you didn't call me and told me that Andy was dying. Why I could not see Andy for the last time. You go ahead with the cremation and make sure that you give me Andy's ashes so that I can be buried with my friend's ashes."
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