We got up and started walking back towards home. I felt much more relaxed and felt inspired to write when I got home. Morgan said goodnight when we got to my door, promising to set up a day with me soon to drive around and look at some other local sites. I was actually looking forward to our next outing. I think Morgan will be a nice local friend to have, since I didn’t know anyone around here. After I wrote for awhile, I realized how tired I had become and I was out as soon as my head hit the pillow.
Jessie
Over the past couple of weeks, Morgan made sure to set up a day for us to take a drive around the local area to introduce different places to me that were outside of walking distance. He had come over one night after work and sat down and laid out some different places that he thought I would enjoy checking out after we drove around Thomasville and we would end at a nature center located outside of town. We planned to do this on the Saturday coming up and I was looking forward to being shown around. Morgan has become a good friend and ever since our walk he has not brought up why I moved here again, which I have appreciated. Morgan has been very open with me and I enjoyed the stories he had regarding his childhood and growing up with sisters. I have begun to think that having done this, it makes him more patient and compassionate towards other women, because he knew when not to push and he seemed to be able to judge my moods rather well. I had made the decision to open up to him more when we go on this upcoming day trip because I found that I could trust him. We have spent time together random evenings during the week either just watching TV or going for a walk and I have found I look forward to these days because I moved here not knowing anyone.
Amy contacted me today asking me to set aside time for a long weekend so she can come down for a visit. She seemed really excited on the phone and she got me curious what her surprise will be. I asked if Dean was coming as well, so I could make arrangements and she said she was trying to come without him for some girl time, just me and her. I looked over my school calendar and I found a weekend that is a month away where we have a holiday on a Monday and a teacher’s work day the following day, where I have the luxury of doing my work from home if I want to. I quickly texted the dates to Amy and then asked her if she could give me a hint of what her surprise was. All I got was a NO in reply, sighing I put my phone away, then decided to call it a day and went to bed.
The weekend is here, I got up and started preparing for my day trip with Morgan. I made sure to dress in comfortable clothing and decided to pack some lunch and snacks for both of us, because we planned on being out all day. I put everything together in a cooler bag and was just zipping it up when he knocked on my door. “Good morning, Morgan. I am ready to go when you are. I even packed some snacks and food since we will be gone all day.” I grabbed the cooler bag and my purse and walked towards the door. Morgan grabbed the bag from me saying, “I got this, let’s go.” We hopped into his truck and took off with him, showing me some of the sites we had not seen around town yet. I fell in love with all of the old buildings and homes that made you feel like you were stepping back in time. The one thing that I loved about them was the unique architecture that gave you a warm homey feel and they were all different and unique compared to buildings built today that all had more of a cold feel to the design. Since Morgan has lived here and knew the area, he became my tour guide, giving me a lot of history lessons that amazed me. “By chance did you love history, Morgan? You know so much about everything here, and I couldn’t tell you anything about the area I come from.” I jokingly added.
“Actually, I did love history in school, but my greatest information came from my grandfather. He always sat down and went over the history of this area with me and I loved it even if I heard the story 10 times. Those would be my fondest memories of him. I’ve missed him every day since I lost him 8 years ago.” Morgan looks a little sad as he reminisces on those memories. I reached over and touched his hand and said, “I am sorry for your loss, but that is the one thing you can reflect back on when you miss him. Those memories will always be there. Morgan looks over and has a small smile, “Thank you, Jess.”
“I have some fond memories of my parents, but I never got to meet my grandparents. They passed before I was born, but I do have some fond memories of things before my parents passed. They were in a terrible accident when I started college. It was really hard to get through it but the help I got was what inspired me to go to school to get a degree in this field. I reflected on my memories and some of the pictures I still have stashed away in my keepsake box.” I stared out the window at the fields and enjoyed the quiet. “Jessie, have you always lived in Tennessee or did you live somewhere else before with your parents?”
“I have always lived in Tennessee. I just relocated to a different town after college but I was always near Nashville. When I met my husband through a friend, it was after college and I thought I would live there forever. I was just hoping to eventually have a house and starting a family by this point. Needless to say, I don’t have either and soon I will have an ex-husband and no other ties to my former town. It felt good finally sharing with him, since I have been considering him a friend more as time has gone on. Morgan looked over at me shocked, “Do you mind me asking what happened? You seemed really guarded when I first met you. Did it have anything to do with your husband?”
“Ex-husband, and yes. My husband thought it was okay to cheat on me and I should just get over it and forgive him. Sadly, I caught him still doing it while he was begging me to come back home. I didn’t want to stay there and still risk running into him or have him show up at my job, so I decided I needed a fresh start away from everything. When we met Morgan, I was still struggling with what Mark had done, and I was still struggling with some trust issues that I was trying to work through, but meeting you has really helped me. You surprised me with how easy it was to talk to you and I hope you feel the same.”
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.