By E.A. Briginshaw,
Blind Bay
“Life-Changing Events” is the story of Frank and Katy who first cross paths during a traumatic event almost twenty years earlier, when Frank is a middle-aged man and Katy is a twelve-year-old girl.
They cross paths again later in life and Frank sees the damage he caused and tries to help Katy get her life back on track.
When I first started writing this book, the coronavirus was not on the radar, but since part of the story takes place in current time, I had to re-write the ending to incorporate the pandemic into the story. It was impossible to ignore, because COVID-19 has certainly become a life-changing event for many people.
The book is currently in its third draft and I expect it to be published before the end of the year.
CHAPTER 1
Kelowna, British Columbia
September, 2019
Frank Taylor opened the gate in front of the up-scale condominium tower and shuffled along the path with his little white dog toward the park. Even with his bad knees, it was a walk that he had done twice a day for as long as he could remember. Frank was now at the age where there were some things in his life that he wished he could remember a little better, and some things he wished he could block out forever.
It was a beautiful park with well-manicured lawns that sloped gently down toward the waterfront. Frank could see the park from his condo on the top floor, but sometimes he liked to get out among the people. He missed them and he knew he had been hiding away for far too long.
Frank was a big man, but he had a gentle nature about him, so people didn’t seem intimidated by his size. His white beard usually made people think of Santa Claus, although on closer inspection, the beard wasn’t as well-kept as it should have been. That was just as well, as Frank was no Santa Claus.
Frank liked people, or at least he used to. Now, he was more suspicious of their intentions. The dog seemed to pick up on those feelings because he’d either frantically wag his tail when someone approached, or give a soft growl.
There were numerous people on the path today, some jogging, some on skateboards or bicycles, and some just walking like he was, as if looking for something or someone.
Frank walked by the beggars and the homeless people who sat alongside the path asking passersby if they had any spare change. Frank always said no. He saw the same people asking the same question every day on his walk. A few didn’t bother asking him anymore because they already knew the answer. A few asked every day, as if they’d never seen him before.
Frank continued walking along the path and stopped at the bench in front of the playground that had numerous children playing. The playground was Frank’s favorite part of the park because the kids always seem so happy and carefree. That was the way it should be.
A small group of mothers were huddled together drinking coffee and talking among themselves while watching their kids play. But Frank knew some of them didn’t always watch closely enough. He wanted to warn them that a kid could be snatched in the blink of an eye.
Frank sat on the bench and watched the kids for a long time. He studied the mothers and tried to figure out which kid belonged to which mother, and wondered what their lives were like. Who was living their dream life and who was trapped in a loveless marriage, secretly plotting how they were going to make their escape?
When his knees started to stiffen up, Frank got up and started his walk back home, but he stopped at the next bench along the path where he watched the homeless people. In the summer months, the park always seemed to be filled with them, but their numbers started to fall off once the leaves started to turn color.
He knew the vagrants all had their reasons for being out on the street. Some had drug problems, some had mental health issues, and others had endured a life-changing event that had caused them to lose their way. Some of them had caused their own problems, but some had their problems thrust upon them through no fault of their own. Frank knew both kinds, the victims and the perpetrators.
One young woman who was sitting about twenty paces from the other beggars caught his eye. She was probably in her mid to late-twenties, but she didn’t seem as hardened as the other vagrants. Her face showed both hope and fear as she asked people for money as they walked by.
Frank watched her for a long time. She looked familiar, but he wasn’t sure why. She had a big straw hat sitting in front of her holding the small amount of change that passersby had given her. The hat had a light blue ribbon around it with some writing on the front, but the writing had been scratched out, as if trying to eliminate any trace of it ever being there.
Frank turned his head to the side and squinted his eyes to read what was written on the ribbon. “Katy”, that’s what the ribbon said. Frank took a closer look at the woman and it all started to come back to him. He had always wondered what had happened to her.
He slowly got up and shuffled his way toward the young woman. She watched him as he approached. Frank’s dog was confused and looked at Frank for some kind of sign as to whether he should growl or wag his tail as they get closer and closer.
“Do you have any spare change, sir?” she asked.
It was obvious she didn’t recognize him.
Frank didn’t say a word, but reached into his inside jacket pocket and felt for one of the envelopes that he always carried with him. There were numerous other envelopes just like it, safely hidden away.
As he walked by the young woman, Frank dropped the envelope into her dirty sunhat.
“Thank you,” she said.
Frank was worried that she might recognize his voice so he didn’t respond, but just kept walking and didn’t look back.
This was not the first time that Frank and Katy had crossed paths.
Life-Changing Events,
Copyright © E.A. Briginshaw, 2020