Chapter 1

It was Black Friday, the morning after Thanksgiving and I was shopping. Of course, it was crowded, too. Two out of two miserable options. My mood had never been at its best during this year and performing this chore did not improve it one bit. I wanted to be at my condo sitting in my recliner or, even better, lying in my nice, warm bed.

This year started with a cold winter and, when Marsha broke off our engagement in early February, it became colder. I knew there were some issues but I hadn’t thought they were insurmountable. She did. She quit church which meant I didn’t have to see her at church events. It didn’t stop others from gossiping about us or me, however.

In March, my parents were killed in a car accident. It wasn’t their fault but that won’t bring them back to life. I am an only child. I inherited everything according to their wills. I was now well off. The suit settled for the maximum of the policy in October.

Since I already had the condo and a good car, there wasn’t much for me to buy. I did pay off both loans. My job was okay but wasn’t what I had really hoped it would be when I graduated college. Whether to continue in it or find something else was still a question that roamed about in my mind.

None of that explains why I’m shopping on Black Friday. The reason was simple and not totally unpleasant. My company was having a Christmas party early in the season. I was meeting with a co-worker to help her pick a gift for the party and for her to help me do the same. Fortunately, there was a twenty-dollar limit.

I met Kathy at Kohls. She is a nice older woman, who was one of my few friends at work or anywhere else. We walked through the store looking for gifts that would fit the woman I had or the man she had. We laughed about the luck of the draw. We found gifts reasonable for the persons whose names had been drawn. Our purchases were just under the limit. It was almost lunchtime so we went to a restaurant for lunch after working our way through the line and paying for our purchases.

Kathy said, “I think we did well on the gifts. Thanks for your help, Randy. I never have been able to pick good gifts for men. Even for Paul, my husband, I got a list from him that was even a little detailed.”

I chuckled. “I understand. I’ve never been very good at any kind of gift. The only female gift I had to pick was for my mother when she was alive. I wonder how I might handle it if I ever marry.”

Kathy winked. “I’ll just have to find you a nice young lady and get you married off.”

“Kathy, it’s been tried before without success.”

“I’ll have to think on it. What about at your church?”

“There aren’t any younger people there at all. It’s an old church that has an aging congregation. They haven’t been as open as they could to new people who have moved into the community. I wish they were. I’ve been thinking about moving my membership so I won’t be the last one left when they all die off.”

“That’s not a nice thing to say.”

“I know. However, it is a reality. They’re good people but just don’t welcome new folk. I’m okay because my parents were members before their accident and my grandparents before then. It’s a long-time tradition.”

Kathy chuckled a slight bit. “How old are you, Randy?”

“I turned twenty-eight two months ago. Sometimes, I feel older.”

“What do you mean?”

“Oh, it’s just a number of things, most of them little, that add up to not fitting with my age group. I like old music from the forties and early fifties. I don’t have a tattoo. I’m a church-goer who is serious about his beliefs. My clothing choices are old-fashioned. My hair is worn neither long nor short and I tuck my shirttail into my pants. I just don’t fit my age.”

Kathy grinned. “Maybe you should start going out with older women.”

“Maybe I should.” We both chuckled though I knew there was an element of truth in that. We finished our meals saying that we would meet again Monday at work. We gave each other friend hugs and went our separate ways.

I returned to my condo and wrapped my gift to Julia. She was a nice, married woman in her thirties who worked in accounting. I had met her twice at work when my duties in engineering brought me into contact with an accounting person. She was pleasant and I was able to resolve her question quickly and easily each time. She thanked me and I had gone back to my area and worked. I hoped she would like the present Kathy picked for her. I put a tag on it and set it to one side for Monday. I would put it under our “holiday tree.”

It was quiet and I went to bed early. Saturday was a bust. I had nothing to do so I did it. I went to bed a little later to wake up Sunday morning feeling like I needed to be in church this morning. I went to the same little church and left feeling slightly let down as usual. The sermon didn’t speak to me. The singing was lackluster. I finally decided what I had known for some time. It was time to find a church that would minister to me and in which I could serve some useful purpose. I knew that there was a little cop-out involved but, at the same time, the pastor had to preach to the congregation and I was the odd man out.

On the way to my condo, there was a church on the road. It was just getting out and I could see a wide mixture of ages including many children. I decided that I would be at this church next Sunday. I noticed that they advertised a Sunday school time on their billboard that my current church didn’t even have. I was heartened.

Monday was work and I went in as usual placing my gift for Julia under the company tree. The work day was uneventful and I caught up on paperwork. I thought to myself that, somewhere, someone would be happy to complete their file. Kathy and I went to lunch with Jim McDavid who actually went by Mack. We went to a Mexican restaurant that was close. We enjoyed our meals.