Choosing a Soulmate
“Hey there, Piper! Fancy seeing you here,” a male voice called out from the parking lot of the Collins’ Foster Home. Piper turned her head to find Chase closing the door of his new shiny red Porsche. He walked towards her with Cherie by his side, both wearing blue jeans and light jackets. Cherie’s hair was pulled back into a ponytail, which helped to settle it in the wind, while Chase’s wavy hair bustled about his head.
“Good seeing you guys too! I like your red sled. Pretty fancy, Chase.”
“Thanks.”
“Will this be your first shift volunteering?”
“You got it. We’re all signed up.”
They stopped and looked around the campus, catching within their views a handful of cream-colored two story homes, playgrounds, a pond, and many flourishing trees. The campus was idyllic for the foster children, similar to the landscape in a picture that Norman Rockwell would have painted.
Chase commented, “Nice place here. Very picturesque and homey.”
“It’s great for kids,” Piper added. “Very safe. Plus it’s zoned for the nearby “A” rated public schools. Just what the kids need.”
“That’s great,” Cherie said. “It’s good that we’re here, Chase.”
“Looks a lot better than I thought it would,” Chase said. He turned to Cherie, “This won’t be so bad. I can see myself doing what Nick’s doing on the courts. Hope I get an assignment like that!”
“He plays football with them too,” Piper said. “They love football.”
“I do too,” Chase said. “You might not remember, but I played on the team with Nick in high school.”
“I do remember that. Maybe you don’t remember I was a cheerleader with Cherie.”
“How could I forget the hot squad,” Chase said with a sheepish grin. He put his arm around Cherie and kissed her. “You guys hear about Bob?”
“How he proposed to Betty on Valentine’s Day? Yeah, we heard,” Piper answered.
“Nuts, huh?” Cherie added.
“Yeah, I guess. Hope it works out for them,” Piper said.
She looked over at Nick and recalled the way she thought he was going to propose on Valentine’s Day. And the way he didn’t. Valentine’s Day would have been the perfect day for a wedding proposal. Why didn’t he propose? Maybe he wasn’t sure about his love for her. Maybe he didn’t think she was right for him.
Melancholy weighed on her heart as she fought to dispel the memory before any tears welled up in her eyes. They should have been the next ones to get engaged. Why didn’t it happen? Maybe his promise not to drink anymore after their wedding day was too much. She needed to tell him that he wouldn’t need to keep that promise if they married. Flexibility. She would offer him flexibility. She again looked at Nick.
What is he waiting for? St. Patrick’s Day? He did say that St. Paddy’s Day was one of his favorites for what it represented…
Chase laughed. “Yeah, we hope so too. She’s going to be moving in with him next week. That should be interesting. I don’t know if you’ve seen his place, but it’s a disaster. Hope he finds time to clean it before she shows up. You can’t even see the floor under all the sweaty socks and dirty clothes.”
“Gross,” Cherie said as she fixed her ponytail. “I’m so glad you like things clean, Chase.”
“Yeah, our floors are so clean you could eat off of ‘em.” Chase paused. “Well, we better check in and get our assignments. We’ll see you soon, Piper.”
“Sounds good.” Piper watched them as they walked over and entered the main facility. She wondered what they would be assigned on their first day volunteering. Hopefully nothing too laborious. Her first day many years ago had been spent on clean-up duty. Working directly with the kids would be better.
Piper and Nick had playground duty that day. She was on the field watching a group of girls and boys as they played kickball, while Nick played basketball with the older teenage boys on the adjacent basketball courts. The day was typical of February in Florida: sunny and windy with a crispy chill that carried a slight, yet musky sandalwood aroma. The leaves of the many oak trees that surrounded the campus were whistling and stirring in the wind as they fluttered on their limbs and danced in the sunlight. Birds of varying sizes and colors chirped as they sailed over the campus, landing every so often on a tree limb. It was a perfect day to be outside.
She turned her attention to the kids, who were laughing and running about the kickball field, challenging one another for the “ultimate win.” Most were in elementary school, with a small minority in middle school, and they represented all races. Despite those differences, they were getting along well and were achieving the teamwork and sportsmanship goals set in advance.
Feeling satisfied with her contributions to the home, Piper reflected on her precious memories within. The children were what made everything so special. They were warm, loving, and kind. Many had endured traumas early in their lives that would have sent some adults into deep depressions, yet the kids were resilient. They had a way of turning lemons into lemonade. So many of them had started their tenure in the home full of anger, bitterness, and resentment, yet almost all finished strong. The time spent in the home embraced by its many caregivers, volunteers, and children had a way of healing and nurturing them.
Over the years, Piper had watched some of the more bitter children coming into the home become its most caring, forgiving and loving. Witnessing those dramatic changes helped to grow her faith and after a while, she began to feel the presence of God in the home. She saw Jesus behind the actions of the caregivers and the volunteers and the most loving children. That’s what kept her coming back year after year.
As she glanced over the playground, she caught Nick’s attention and waved to him. He lifted his arm to wave back, yet stopped short as he was in the middle of an intense scramble on the courts with the older boys. He outsized most of them as many were in the middle of growth spurts and had the lanky bodies familiar to teens. Some had stopped growing and were more bulky, though no one’s size inhibited their natural agility on the courts. They gave Nick a run for his money. Piper laughed to herself as she watched him dart about the court, trying to steal the ball from his worthy opponents who were hooting and hollering as they bounced and threw the ball back and forth to one another. Again she reflected on a future marriage with Nick and pictured him to be a very good husband and dad. One day.
Piper turned her attention to Benson, who was sitting on the sidelines in the grass, avoiding the kickball game. Benson was ten years old and was relatively new to the home. She approached him and asked, “How come you’re not in the game?”
“Too boring.”
“Don’t you want to play with your friends?”
“Friends? My friends aren’t here. I haven’t seen them since I was in the first grade.”
Piper sat down next to him in the grass and put her arm around him. “I get it. But I just want to let you know that we’re all your friends too, Benson. We care about you. That’s why we’re here.”
“Thanks,” Benson said as he wiped a tear from his eye with his sleeve.
A white ibis landed on a bench about ten feet away and chirped.
“See that bird, Benson? That’s an ibis.”
“Yes.”
“Do you see any other white ibises?”
Benson looked around. “Nope. Why?”
“The ibis is like you. Though it may not know where its biological family is, it knows that the sun will come up each morning. And just as sure as the sun coming up, it knows that its Lord is smiling upon it each day.” She paused before adding, “Jesus loves you, Benson, and He directed your path here so that you could learn about Him and feel His love through the warm embraces of others. He loves you more than anyone you’ll ever meet and wants the best for you.”
Benson paused and then looked Piper in the eyes. His eyes welled up in tears as he responded, “Thanks. I love Jesus too. My mom loves Jesus. Just hope she makes it back from the war.”
“I do too.”
Cherie and Chase exited the main building and crossed Benson’s path carrying garbage bags and wearing gloves. Clean-up duty. Geez. Piper chuckled a little while watching them as they headed into the parking lot, picking up any trash they found along the way. After a while, they approached her on the field.
“Trash duty,” Chase said. “Great use of a college degree.”
“Oh Chase. This won’t last long. When Piper and Nick leave in an hour, we’ll get to replace them. And next week, you’ll be helping them prevent cyber-attacks.”
“Yeah, I know. Guess it’s not so bad.” Chase grabbed his phone from his pocket and said, “Cherie, you got this? I got to take this call.”
“I guess.”
Chase dropped his garbage bag and headed back towards the parking lot, holding his mobile phone to his ear.
Cherie looked at Piper and said, “Gambling. Found out on the honeymoon that it’s sort of a problem for him. Can’t stop. You should have seen him at the Blackjack table at Atlantis. Blew so much money. I don’t even want to tell you how much. It’s embarrassing.”
“That’s scary. Maybe he needs help.”
“I don’t know about getting professional help. Just know we won’t be going back to any casinos anytime soon. He’s probably on the phone with his gambling friend, Oren.”
“You still happy you married him?”
“Yeah,” Cherie chirped in a soft voice as she looked down on the ground, avoiding direct eye contact with Piper. Maybe she was having regrets. Maybe they had jumped into marriage too quickly. Maybe she was learning things about him that she didn’t like. “You know, Cherie. If you’re having doubts, it’s not too late to get out. It’s not like you have kids or anything.”
“I’m pregnant, Piper.”
“Oh. Uh. Congratulations.” Piper managed an uncomfortable smile.
“Thanks. We just found out. Must’ve happened on the wedding night. We haven’t told anyone yet.”
Piper looked out into the parking lot and watched Chase as he paced back and forth in an animated way discussing something on his phone. She recalled his same signature strut on the ski slopes many times.
So that’s what it was. Gambling. Though out-of-control gambling was a bad habit, Piper was happy to make the assumption that another woman wasn’t in the picture.
***
A week later, Piper lounged next to Nick as they sat in their beach chairs on the beach. She relished the familiar scent of the salty air and her Coppertone suntan lotion. The ocean always captivated her and she watched its waters roll onto the beach. February days were often windy, yet that day wasn’t. The ocean melted as glass into the deep blue sky.
Beachgoers who walked along the shoreline passed by and sometimes caught her attention. She liked to people-watch on the beach and to make random observations. Some were tall and some were stocky and some were lanky with sun-battered skin. She watched an old woman as she strolled by in her bird-shaped body. The beach attracted quite a few bird-shaped people with their chunky torsos and skinny legs. Or maybe bird-shaped people were everywhere, but you couldn’t tell that they were bird-shaped when fully clothed.
A husky man wearing a baseball cap threw a tennis ball to a spunky little dog. Piper watched the dog as it gleefully retrieved the ball and returned it to its owner. It appeared to be in the terrier family and looked somewhat similar to Chipper, yet with black fur. The man threw the ball again, this time out into the ocean. The dog ran up to the edge of the water and wagged its tail and barked. Instead of going into the water to fetch the ball, the dog waited by the edge of the shoreline for the ball to wash up, apparently fearful of the water. The man, who was wearing a pair of swim trunks and an old, beat-up plaid shirt, darted into the water and retrieved the ball himself. Then he threw it onto the beach, offering the little dog another opportunity to scoop it up. The dog complied and retrieved the ball for its owner. Piper watched the man as he hugged his dog. She could tell they were good companions for one another.
An old couple followed, holding hands and appearing to still be happy after many years together. One day, that would be her and Nick, old and still in love. Her thoughts soon turned to marriage with Nick. And Bob’s engagement. Feeling a sudden surge of emotion, she turned to Nick and grabbed his hand.
“We’ve been together more than three years. When are we going to take our relationship to the next level?”
He turned towards her and raised his eyebrows. His eyes were hidden behind his black-rimmed sunglasses, as were hers, which was a good thing. She didn’t want him to see her tears.
“I mean, do you think we’re meant to be? It didn’t take Bob any time at all to figure out that he and Betty were meant to be.”
Nick smiled and squeezed her hand. A rush of love overcame her, stirring her heart and shaking her soul.
“Honey, I love you. Just because Bob got engaged first doesn’t mean that I’m questioning our relationship. Are you?”
“Well, we’ve been dating a long time. Don’t you want to have kids?”
“Of course I do. Lots of kids.”
“What are you waiting for? We should move our relationship forward. I love you too Nick. You mean the world to me. I’m just a little worried that your promise was too much for you.”
“My promise?”
“You said that if we married, you would give up the sauce. Maybe that’s too hard. Maybe that’s why I keep waiting for a proposal, but the proposal isn’t coming.”
“That’s not it, Piper.” He paused and looked her in the eyes.
“Oh, Piper. You’re crying.” He took his sunglasses off, uncovering his own tears. He wasn’t afraid to shed a tear, and Piper considered that very attractive as it reflected his emotion, humility, and masculinity in a uniquely wonderful way. She shifted her eyes to his well-chiseled upper torso and noticed small beads of sweat reflecting the sunlight.
He pulled her close and kissed her. Then he whispered, “You’re a beauty. I love the way your hot body looks in that yellow bikini. Don’t think I haven’t noticed all of the men ogling you as they walk by. Did you see that one guy trip? He was so busy gawking at you.” Nick laughed.
“Oh c’mon. I’m sure it wasn’t me.” She grinned and wiped the tears from her eyes.
“Seriously. You should wear bikinis more often, Piper. It’s a shame I have to take you to the beach to see you in a bikini. How about wearing it tonight at the house?” Nick winked at her as he put his sunglasses back on.
“Only if you keep your shirt off. You’re my eye candy.”
Nick laughed. “Hey, if that’s all it takes, I’m game.”
He looked out into the ocean. “How about a swim? And a little snuggling?”
“Sounds excellent!” Piper stood up and followed Nick into the water, cheerily anticipating what was next to come.
***
As she sat in her bikini on the leather couch at Nick’s house that night, Piper couldn’t help but feel silly. Nick was preparing their surprise dinner in the kitchen, where she was forbidden for the time being. She could hear the clanking of pots and pans, water running from the sink, a knife cutting something on a cutting board, and the occasional opening and closing of the refrigerator door. The scent of garlic permeated the air, tickling Piper’s nose and stimulating her desire for dinner. She looked down at her legs and again felt silly, so she pulled a pillow over to cover them. At least he had kept his end of the deal and was dressed in only his swim trunks.
So easy on the eyes, she cherished every moment he appeared in the room to check on her. She entertained herself by flipping through a sports magazine that she found on the coffee table in the center of the room, next to the Bible and a couple of books by A.W. Tozer and Lee Strobel. A few articles from the magazine caught her interest, but none merited any sort of elaborate discussion with Nick. The articles mainly focused on football players and injuries. Brain injuries. Research had demonstrated that playing football and developing later brain injuries go hand in hand, despite the fact that high school, college, and professional football players wear helmets. Nick had played football in high school and college, though mostly on the second string in college. His aspirations to go pro were never realized.
Nick’s little schnauzer-mix dog, Chipper, scooted herself closer to Piper on the couch and glanced at her as she put her head on the top of the pillow that Piper had placed over her legs. Piper could tell by her wagging tail that she wanted to be petted, and she was more than happy to oblige. That little dog had grown on her. Nick and his mom had rescued her and he loved her with a passion. She was so sweet and kind, such a blessing from above. Piper stroked her salt and pepper colored fur in a very loving manner. Chipper wagged her tail in appreciation.
“Little darling. We love you Chipper.”
Chipper grunted in a loving way and then turned her head towards Piper, locking eyes. Just a God-send. She stared into Chipper’s little round eyes, almost seeing beyond them and into her sweet soul. Her long tail kept wagging.
“You look so beautiful tonight Piper.”
She looked up, finding Nick in the doorway to the family room. “You do too.” His body was beautiful in every way. Yet what made Nick even more special to Piper was his love for others and for mankind. She knew that his physical beauty would fade over time, giving his passions from the inside the opportunity to grow. He was more loving and caring about people than anyone she had ever known. Always looking out for the little guy, Nick was the person who could be counted on to hand a random homeless man in the street twenty bucks without judgment, to donate generously to the church without contingencies, and to delay judgments on those who had hurled insults at him. He always saw the bigger picture of life.
Piper recalled the words of her deceased mother, which she had shared with her when in full knowledge of her cancer diagnosis. “When choosing a soulmate, look into his soul. Watch the way that he follows the pathways of our Lord.”
While thinking about Nick’s character, she realized that she couldn’t recall a single time in which she had seen Nick judge his friends. He never even judged Bob or Chase. She reflected on the interactions she had witnessed between Nick, Bob, and Chase and a few times stood out in which Nick could have become inflamed. But he wasn’t the sort of person who became inflamed at those sorts of trivialities in life. He always had the bigger picture in mind.
Such realizations caused her to take pause. Judging wasn’t a part of his composition. Some might claim that his failures to judge others coincided with being naïve or clueless, but Piper knew better. Nick was trying to emulate his Savior. She recalled that movie that she had seen, which portrayed Jesus’ life. The time Jesus stood in front of a female adulterer who was about to be stoned in Jesus’ time flashed within her mind. Those who planned to stone her stood around her with their stones in their hands. Jesus asked the ones without sins to cast the first stones. No stones were thrown. Everyone left the scene.
Such thoughts helped Piper to realize why God had placed Nick into her life and had placed her into Nick’s life. Each served as an example to the other in different ways of how best to be. She would try to follow Nick’s example of not judging others.
“I’m working on a very special meal for you. Shrimp Scampi.”
“You know I love the Scampi!” She smiled at Nick and admired what he was doing for her.
Nick grabbed his mobile phone and pulled a small speaker out from a drawer in the kitchen. Seconds later, Sinead O’Connor’s “Nothing Compares to You” played. “Nothing compares to you my fine lady. You’re the best.”
She lit up even more. “Or you.”
Something about the way he moved captivated her, reminding her of the words of a classic Beatles song. Something so special. She felt the urge to get up and kiss him, but resisted. He had instructed her to relax and remain in her seat while he cooked for her. Such a gentleman.
The delicious scent of garlic made its way into the room, triggering Piper’s hunger. Her stomach growled, so she took another sip of tea to calm it down. “Would tonight be the night?” She wondered. He was being especially romantic. A proposal? She longed for a proposal. She was more than ready to accept the proposal.
A short while later, she sat next to Nick at the kitchen table, which was decked out with his fanciest dishes and several white candles. Another love song was playing, which Nick had hand-picked to complete the feeling of love that had embraced all of her senses. She took her first taste of the shrimp scampi. Wow! Yum! His cooking skills were amazing, especially in light of the fact he was a meat and potatoes sort of guy. His mom had taught him well.
“What do you think?”
“Nick, it’s perfect. As are you.”
“I’ve got a chick flick for us to watch after dinner. I think you’ll like it.”
“Really, a chick flick? That’s crazy! That’s so not you.”
“Maybe not me, but I’m into you.” He smiled, exposing his perfect pearly whites. “It’s all about you. And I’ll do whatever it takes to make you happy.”
Piper took another bite of her meal, relishing its flavor. She was tempted to say something again about marriage, but restrained herself. “So, how’s work?”
“A little stressful. Still. Lou is just a piece of work. His only strategy for achieving our performance goals is to cut costs by firing employees. He uses a forced distribution performance evaluation in which all employees are forced into A, B, or C categories. Those ranked in the C categories for two years in a row are fired. And I get that. Top-grading makes a lot of sense. But what I’ve been hearing a lot about lately is that many of those categorized in the C group aren’t C players. Many are hard workers who have been with Fox ‘n Fields for decades. They’re told they’ve earned C’s without any sort of explanation. Just bias. And most of them are old. Lou said he wants a younger, more diverse workforce. But he won’t listen to opinions or alternative strategies to achieve market growth.”
“That’s terrible.”
“I know. I try not to think about it, but morale has plummeted, especially for the older people.” Nick shook his head. “They’re family to me. When my mom was CEO, she would have never done this to her people.”
“Really awful,” Piper added.
“Let’s talk about something else. How are things at your work?”
“Not bad. I’m working with my boss on a new marketing promotion. She’s an excellent motivator and I’m learning a lot from her as a person. So happy she’s my boss, Nick. I had so many problems with the last one. A good boss makes such a difference.”
“Man, that’s so true. Maybe I’ll try to get a job at your company!”
An hour later, Piper and Nick laid next to one another on one of the couches in the family room, snuggling under a blanket in front of the romantic movie he had selected for them. It was a love story about a man sent off to war, leaving the only woman he ever loved behind. The story was very sad, bringing tears to both Piper’s and Nick’s eyes. Piper was surprised that Nick picked the movie out for them, given that he and any of his friends would call such movie a chick flick. It was obvious to her that he was trying to impress her by doing something that he knew that she would like.
When the movie ended, Piper realized that Nick had fallen asleep, though he was still holding her tightly. Cuddling closer to him, she fell asleep, and thoughts on why he hadn’t proposed that night dissipated.
Piper had a dream. She was in a motor boat with her younger sister and dad and they were cruising in the ocean. She and her sister were in the back of the boat on either side, while her dad was in front of them, captaining the boat. He sped up the boat, carving in and out of turbulent waters, as if he had no fear. The waters grabbed the boat and shook it, back and forth and up and down. Piper noticed a huge wave as it formed in front of them. She wondered whether they would be able to get past it. Fearing for her life, she held onto the side of the boat with everything she had. Her sister was doing the same. The wave grew and Piper felt the engine roar as her dad had increased the speed of the boat to get past the wave. Piper noticed other boats in the waters, crashing all around them. As their boat made its way through the huge wave, it crashed into a smaller boat, knocking its two male passengers into the water. Piper’s dad didn’t notice the accident, though, and gunned the engine to get out of the rough waters. She pondered the meaning of the dream.
“What do you think it meant?” She asked Nick one day.
“Well, it could be that your dad has chosen a difficult path in his life, one with much turbulence and difficulties. He’s trying to lead you and your sister down that path. Others are also impacted by his leadership, though he doesn’t realize it.”
“Hmm. Interesting. And you don’t even know him that well, but you’re probably right about his choices.”