Unknown Treasures Of The Heart

I have the story line, the name escapes me

She walks through the door knowing something is wrong but not sure what to expect.  Everything was gone; the house was completely empty.  No pictures on the walls, no furniture, nothing, it had all been removed in the last six hours and the room had been freshly painted. Confusion and fear engulfed her heart.

Robbed? No, no one in their right mind would rob a place of everything and paint the walls.  Who would have wanted the crap that her and Jake had collected over the past six years, it was second hand store, bottom of the bucket finds.  Could Jake have left her was the next question that screamed through her mind.  She knew that since her father had passed away she had been under tremendous stress and making their lives miserable with trying to get her business started; but had it been so bad that he would leave?  Things had been better since they had started seeing Dr. Beth.  They were talking instead of screaming at each other, mapping out the future of the gallery as well as their future together.  Sally desperately tried to remember their conversation from that morning.

"Are you going to be out all day" Jake had slipped his arms around her waist nuzzling her neck as he had don every morning for the past six years; it was his way of saying good morning.  She smiled and leaned into his grip, "Yes, I should be done by six, the investors will make their final decision today about when we can open the gallery."  Sally loved to talk about the gallery, it was her gift to the community as well as the local artists that would now have a place to display and sell their wonderful works of art.  

The memory of her father and his art crossed her mind, she had known he painted as a hobby but what she found in the storage after he passed had amazed her to no end. She just had to share his passion with the world.  When she had approached Jake with the idea he had been excited for her to be able to help her dad's memory live on and share it with the world.  The fact that she wanted to give other's a place to share their works with the world was just who she was and that is why Jake loved her so much. 

"I was so glad when they approved the Front Street location, it is just perfectly suited for display of art works", Sally's face lit up when she began talking about the gallery and Jake loved to see the sparkle in her eyes.   "How could they not approved it, you have such a gift and a blessed heart to put so much of yourself into this project.  How many artists do you have lined up for the opening?" Jake asked, knowing that the opening would only display her father's works.  

Sally turned in his arms and growled at him in a playful manner, "You know the opening is in honor of Dad," she quipped.  Jake squeezed her harder, getting that little yelp he searched for.  Kissing her on the nose he turned her loose and swatted her bottom, "You are going to be late for your meeting, get outta here goose, I love you and will call you later", Jake smiled.

He could not have left her, not today, not after they had worked so hard together to get everything in place for today.  Her father had passed away a year ago and when they had cleaned out his little rented apartment they had found so many works that we near but not quite completed.  Then they found the key with the address on a tag for the storage locker.  When they opened the shed, Sally had been amazed at what she had found.  Hundreds of paintings done by her father, beautiful works of all sizes and shapes.  She had known he painted for stress relief; but she was not aware of how much he had painted.

Thomas Tumbleman had been teased all his life about his name and used his ability to paint to deal with the cruel world that had made him feel like nothing.  However, his fear of being teased more had kept him from ever sharing his creations.  Sally decided to start a gallery for those artists who desired a safe place to display their works and the focus would be her dad.  

Thom's Treasures started to grow in her head and for the next year she had worked so hard to find investors, a place, get it ready to open and tomorrow was the day. "Where the hell are you Jake?" she growled, "How could you do this to me today, how?"  Today was her day d****t, he could not do this to her today, not today!  Her mind began to scream No! No! NO!  She thought it was her mind but found that lost in her thoughts the words had been cried loudly.

"Sal", Jake came running into the room.  Her face was pale and it scared him.  She dropped to her knees in relief at his face, crying "everything is gone. How could someone take everything in just a few short hours, what are we going to do", as the tears flowed from her heart.

"Sally, please, it is okay baby, it is okay I promise." Jake slid to the floor next to her wrapping her tightly in his arms rocking her back and forth in hopeful comfort.  "You were not supposed to be home yet, you were supposed to be at the gallery until six.  Why are you back so soon?  Jake's voice sounded odd and Sally looked up to see he was crying right along with her.  "Jake?" she paused to stare at his face.  "I had such a great surprise for you, why are you here?" were the words that he kept repeating.  His face was becoming angry and Sally began to pull away.  

Jake realized that he was holding her too tightly and he loosened his grip, and began to laugh.  His laughter was contagious and Sally began to laugh was well. They laughed and cried together until the tension began to melt away.  "I love you Sal, you mean the world to me, but you can't keep a time schedule. I am so blessed to have you in my life.  I have been saving fifty dollars a week for the past three years to get you some new furniture.  Because of your meeting today I thought it would be a nice surprise for you to come home to a freshly painted house filled with all the pieces we have been looking at for home while we searched for things for the gallery. I watched your longing and desired to fill that need.  But you came home too early and the surprise is ruined, guess I should have planned better," Jake's chin sank to his chest in surrender.

Sally could not but laugh more and more.  The more she tried to stop the more she cried and laughed.  She looked up to see Jake was staring at her as if she had lost her mind.  "When I first came in and everything was gone I thought we had been robbed; but who would want what we have, so my mind began to think you had left me and my world shattered" Sally's face was covered in tears that were dropping onto the bright yellow silk shirt Jake had bought her just for this meeting began to also add to the hysteria she was feeling.  "I just kept thinking you had left, selfishly today of all days".  Jake grabbed her "You are my world, my life, I have learned so much about you and myself since we started with Dr. Beth, leaving you is not an option, I would not have a life or a world if you were not a part of it".  

Sally heard a noise at the front door and turned to see a man standing on the stoop with a vase filled with yellow roses.  Sally loved yellow roses, they had also been her dad's favorite.  "Excuse me Ma`am, would you be Sally Janson?"  "I am", she responded, turning toward Jake.  "Don't look at me" Jake shrugged. "I spent my lot on the furniture that was to be delivered," Jake said, adding "Before you got home" with a sneaky grin.  Sally left into Jake's arms and began kissing him, she placed her feet back on the floor of reality at the little man's words.  "Excuse me lady, I have more deliveries to make."  She moved to take the beautiful vase from the man, he had such a sheepish look about her that it reminded her of her father.  Jake handed the man twenty dollars and with a smiling thank you the little fellow started to leave.  "OH," he exclaimed, "There was a card with it" and reaching into his satchel he produced a think greeting card and handed it to Sally.  Jake took the roses so that she could read the card, she had counted 29.  Twenty-nine roses was an odd number to be sent for most but to Sally the significance was great, but that was a secret she would keep in her heart.

Placing her newly manicured index finger under the lip of the envelop she carefully pulled open the flap.  As she removed the card it was upside down and several one hundred dollar bills slid to the newly waxed floor of the empty room.  Sally exclaimed catching her breath covering her mouth with her hand.  Jake began to pick up the money "Read the card honey" he could see the look on her face and knew something was not right.  As Sally opened the card her breath caught in her throat.  The card was scrawled with her dad's name in her dad's hand.  The card read: 

My dearest Sal, if you have received this card I am no longer with you.  I beg

        you to remember that I lived a beautiful life.  Your mother, God give her soul

rest, loved me for 29 years, enough to hold me for a life time.  She gave me the

most wonderful gift any woman could give a man, YOU!  I know by now that Jake

has picked up the money that fell to the floor because you have never opened a 

card that you did not drop what was inside.  Your individuality is what always made

you so special in my eyes.  There is $3000, that my dear is your inheritance as I

have nothing more to offer than an old man's art that I am sure you have found 

by now.  Do with those horrible things whatever you desire, kindling would be 

my thought, and forgive a semi crazy tired old artist for leaving you with so little.

I love you my Silly Sal.  Pops

Sally just stood, reading and re-reading the words, no tears.  She was not even sure she was breathing. How could he think his art was horrible.  Thom's Treasures would be her gift to his memory and his gift to the world. 

"Sally?", she jerked as if she had been slapped.  Jake was screaming her name.  She had gone pale and unresponsive.  He had taken the card from her hand and began to read the words scrawled by the hand of a man who had been dead a year now.

Jake did not know whether to be angry or glad.  Sally had grieved for her father for six months, seeing his face in the face of every old man she encountered.  When she started going through his belongings the grieving had worsened. She had sat for two days doing nothing more than staring at the paintings, remembering the adventures they depicted.  Shared adventures that had been preserved yet hidden from world.

The one of her and her mother had been painted shortly after her mom had been killed.  Sally, upon finding that one had decided that her father's works needed to be displayed and shared with the world and other artists needed a place to be shared and not judged.  Sally had known of the torment her father had suffered as a youth for his last name and wished she could have taken that pain away for him.

Sally's father had never spoken of how her mother had died.  She had been twelve and was only told that her mother had left for work never to return.  Each time she broached the subject with her father the pain in his eyes stopped her from asking for answers to her questions.  Her dad had loved her and did his best to bring her up as a lady.  Sally knew his heart was broken far past the point of rescue.  Her mother's sister, Ella, had tried to take Sally from her father but had been unsuccessful when a judge told her that Thom being a widow did not make him a bad father.  That memory came flooding back once more at the scrawl of her dad's hand reached her eyes.  She had thrown such a hissy in front of the judge that he knew something was not right with the limited information he had.  He ordered an investigation and made his ruling that a broken heart did not stop a man from being a good father.  She had not seen nor heard from her Aunt in over twenty years and if she never did it would be too soon for her. 

"Sally?" Jake's tone had softened as the tears began to creep from her eyes.  His heart broke to see the pain in her face that he could not save her from.  "Honey, are you okay" he asked tentatively.  The sound of his voice soothing the cracks in her heart bringing a smile to her face.  "Oh yes, I will be.  It was a shock to see his writing so long after his death. You know it will be a year in a few days.  I did not realize how much I missed him until this.  It brought back all the memories of when momma died.  Aunt Ella and the pain she caused, and the judges face when I voiced my opinion."  Sally took a deep breath to steady her thoughts, "did not know Jake that my mom was murdered?  It was kept secret from me but we live in a small town and people talk." 

"Excuse me," the big man at the door growled, "where is all this furniture going?" Jake and Sally were snapped back to reality.  Boxes of dishes were placed gently into the cabinets, the kitchen filled with new things that made Sally smile.  The new bedroom set was placed perfectly.  Two dressers, two nightstands that matched done in a dark deep rich cherry wood. The kind sized four poster bed that her and Jake had found at the mall so often dreaming of one day it belonging to them.  The deepness of the wood adding a masculine touch to the room painted a light lavender for her, the perfect match just as her and Jake.  Sally could not help but smile as the delivery men set up her new vanity with the jewel trimmed mirror, the perfect place for her makeup to get ready each morning, although she did not wear much, it was nice to have a place to apply what she did and fix her hair. New linens, towels, sheets, curtains for the bath all in a soft green that was so relaxing.  Last but not least they began to set up the living / dining room area.  The leather sectional she had been drooling over for the past two years appeared in her own home, perfectly placed near the large picture window and fitting to the door frame on the other end.  It was as black as pitch, soft and shiny enough to see your reflection.  The coffee table, contrasted well in the light oak, could be raised toward the sectional to make it easier to work from home should she need to. Next was a beautiful mahogany table with four chairs for her dining room.  Jake placed the twenty nine roses in the center, they perfectly matched the yellow curtains. 

As Sally looked around her old apartment filled with beautiful furniture her heart filled.  Suddenly she screeched, "Oh, I have the perfect accent piece."  She grabbed her keys and running out the door hollered over her shoulder, "Be right back" leaving Jake standing in the living room with four delivery men thinking his wife had lost her mind.  Twenty minutes later she returned carrying a large painting.  The last piece her father had completed was dated three days before his death and had been of a beautiful ocean scene.  A mom and dad walking along the edge of the beach with a little girl running just forward with her dog.  It was the perfect scene to accent her beautiful new living room and would fit perfectly over the walled section of the couch.

Once the painting was hung she and Jake went into the kitchen to begin dinner and she began telling him about her meeting with the investors and artists.  "Jake, we own the gallery building, the investors gave me the ....The ring of the bell stopped her in mid sentence.  "I don't know how many more surprises I can handle today" she quipped and went to answer the door with Jake on her heels.  

Her smile filled the room as all their friends and family began to fill their apartment, the celebration of a new life had begun. Jake new they would never be millionaires, but Sally's smile made him feel rich beyond their wildest dreams.

Author's Note

When bored at work...WRITE a story....

Reviews

[Rita L. Sev]

This is a nice story, Constance - I love the relationships you created, not only with Sally and Jake, but with her late father as well. I am much better with poem titles than story titles - I am thinking some pretty corny things like "The Art of Affection" (blech!) ;) I'll toss it around in my head a bit. I did enjoy this!

[Constance Payne]

I actually like that line of thinking.....I look forward to your thoughts on this. Thank you so much for reading.

[A. Amos]

I really like the flow and your story telling is simply spectacular!

[Constance Payne]

Thank You so much. That makes my heart smile.

[A. Amos]

You're welcome my dear

[Claire Twinn]

A heart warming story of love easing our pains. I don't think I'd get away with writing a story at work, I don't even have time for a lunch break!

[Constance Payne]

I work in a feast and famine business (I do finance and insurance on used vehicles) and we are either slammed or we are twiddling thumbs...I don't like to twiddle so I write. Thank you so much for reading.

[Riding the Rainbow]

it was really sweet and she was lucky to have Jake in her life after her huge loss. But she has her dad's paints and she can see his heart on them.

[Constance Payne]

Thank You for reading and your wonderful comments.

[Riding the Rainbow]

you deserved it, hun!

[Samuel Dickens]

This far better than what I used to write at work. It's a great story, and as for a title, well, I'm not the best with those. Maybe "Gifts"?

[Constance Payne]

Interesting thought....hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm