Allan's Happy Ending Poem by David Welch

Allan leaned back in his chair as he munched
on a piece of bread at the small cafe,
he daydreamed idly as he sat there,
his wife Janet was again running late.

He didn't mind, since he had the time,
one of the perks of being your own boss,
and every Friday they went out to lunch,
Allan much enjoyed these few hours off.

He finally saw her coming towards him,
she sighed, "The traffic was just a nightmare,
and the kids' baby-sitter showed up late,
Allan just smiled, glad that she was here.

They'd wanted to try this place for a while,
and were glad to find it didn't fall short,
talked of the things marries couples do:
taxes, the kids' school, things of that sort.

"I can't wait to go away next weekend, "
she declared as they finished up the meal.
He'd booked three days in a bed-and-breakfast,
their need for some alone time was real.

He kissed he goodbye, then she bounced away,
heading back home to take care of the kids,
he had pleasant thoughts as he watched his love go,
he didn't speak them, but would soon wish he did.

Allan was at work when he got the call
from the baby-sitter back at the house,
Janet hadn't returned from their lunch yet,
she had no idea where she was right now.

He called Janet's phone, but got no response,
not even a message there did he find,
only dead air, and that couldn't be good,
frightening thoughts started to cloud his mid.

A half-hour later another call came,
and this one was from the local police,
they told him sadly that there had been a cras...,
In his office Allan fell to his knees.

He moved through the next weeks, lost in a daze,
his sister had to come help with the children.
He was numb through all of the funeral,
feeling a pain known by very few men.

It was nearly a month before he realized
that his own grief would not black out real life,
that he had two kids, and a job to work,
so he tried to get on without his wife.

He had to hire a nanny full time,
his daughter was four, his son only six,
and still had to work to bring money in,
plumbing systems always needed a fix.

He tried to spend his free time with his kids,
and had to shelve any plans to expand,
knew kids of single parents faced real issues,
he did he best, but was only one man.

It was all he could do to maintain their lives,
to keep things running and stay out of debt,
he had his own grief, and the children's too,
and the consequences had not come yet.

Years passed and Allan tried dating once more,
but soon gave up, as it didn't feel right.
How could he when he still loved his Janet?
This caused him to take up drinking at night.

The drinking, of course, screwed up his judgment,
and one night went to bed with his nanny.
This continued until he realized
she only really cared for him money.

Then firing her upset the children,
his daughter took it particularly hard,
started acting out in her teenage years,
she was pushing him, taking things too far.

He hired help at work, and took more time
to spend with her, help her make sense of things,
but she seemed to resent him more when he did,
his sister said, "Be patient, she's growing."

But then, when he tried to take her advice,
his daughter went out and got herself pregnant,
and she was only sixteen-years old then,
all of that ‘space' had been to her detriment.

He tried to help her through the pregnancy,
and set up things for an easy adoption,
but about this time, he began to notice
disturbing tendencies within his son.

The boy just had no interest in college,
or in much beyond going out at night.
When sober he was angry or resentful,
it was an increasingly worrisome sight.

Whenever he tried to talk to his son,
the boy just snapped at him and stalked away.
Allan figured this had to do with their loss,
but how to fix it, he just couldn't say.

But when his son got too drunk and drove home,
then side-swiped his car against a small tree,
Allan told him that he'd either leave home
or agree to go to real therapy.

Of course then his daughter decided that she
didn't really want to give up the child,
which meant to Allan he couldn't retire,
that he would still be working for a while.

As he reached his sixties Allan noticed
that it was more of a struggle to breathe,
and sometimes his chest felt locked up real tight,
so much that it was hard to find relief.

His doctor told him that he had to slow down,
wasn't a young man, had to manage stress,
that he couldn't keep going at this pace,
he needed to relax, and take on less.

But his granddaughter would need a nest-egg,
to help both her and his daughter survive,
and his son was in a pricey rehab,
wouldn't speak to him, but at least was alive.

He wondered if he should have remarried,
found another mother for both his kids,
if that could have saved them all this hardship,
often regretted that he never did.

It was two years later, while at his desk,
Altan felt a pain he'd never known before,
Tried to call for help, it came out a croak,
the last thing he remembered was the floor.

When he came too, he found himself walking
towards a small and quaint outdoor café.
Janet waited there, tilting in her chair,
with a big piece of bread, munching away.

She smiled, and said, "Took you long enough,
I've been waiting a good while, you know."
He said, "I'm sorry, the trip here was long,
had to see to the kids before I could go."

She smiled, and said, "It's Friday, you know,
and the food they got here does not fall short."
So they sat and talked as married couples do,
about their children and things of that sort.

When finished she spoke, "We'll see them in time,
but I'm glad to have you alone right now.
They're waiting for us at the bed-and-breakfast,
it'll be good to get out of the house."

He grinned softly, and nodded at her words,
and felt a weight he'd long known disappear,
took Janet's hand and then strolled down the street,
just feeling happy he was finally here.