Opening the Packages

She had made so many mistakes in her life. She pushed her long hair back and finger combed its darkness as she pondered where she had gone wrong. First of all, she had picked the wrong man who robbed her of her self esteem and joy of life. When she finally had enough, she dumped him without fanfare. She had cried so much when she was with him that no tears were left when she kicked him to the curb. It’s not that she was a cold person but that she could finally breathe in huge gulps of relief, revitalizing her soul.

Although he had been with her a long time, she decided to draw a line in the sand. On one side was before and sorrow and on the other side was after and pleasure for the rest of her life. She didn’t have time enough in the day to do all the incredible things she had missed.

Her first date was a blind date where she went to a lounge with others and they sang noisily all night long at the top of their lungs and thus, began the release

of her pent-up anguish. She couldn’t remember when she had last had such an uninhibited time where she could be herself. She wasn’t even divorced yet but she wasn’t wasting any more time. Her separated husband was furious that she could do so well without him although he had never given her that much thought before. She tossed her head and headed recklessly into her future without looking back.

Soon, she met a Cuban man with bright red hair. It wasn’t a planned meeting because she had been working out at the gym when she decided to go outside and run the track. The ten foot fence was padlocked so she climbed up the chain links where she caught her shorts on the crossed barbs at the top. Try as she might, she couldn’t get untangled from the wire. Her soon to be boyfriend noticed her dilemma, climbed up the fence and untangled her shorts, much to her embarrassment because it became very personal very quickly. It really didn’t matter to her that he spoke little English until one of her Spanish friends asked her what she was doing with a man that was so stupid. “I’m not with him for his brains,” she answered. His gym workouts showed on his muscular rock hard body which is what she needed at that time.

Soon, an older man came into her workplace and asked her out. He was extremely wealthy and flew her places in his plane and wined and dined her. Enjoying his intelligence, she stayed with him for a while until she met Peter.

Peter was a gambler, in fact, that was all he did. It was so exciting to go to the races at the spur of the moment and to the dog kennels where greyhounds were trained by his friends. Together, they partied and drank and tripped the light fantastic.

There were many more men and many good times. She met them in stores and museums and wherever she went. She usually traveled alone without her girlfriends because she found it was easier to meet new men without friends hanging around.

Sometime down the line, she became tired of all the carousing and decided to settle down with a new man who was becoming part of her life. By this time, she had built up her confidence and was no longer afraid of the world and ready to take forward steps.

But sometimes, she felt herself smiling to herself as she remembered the many men in her life who had helped make her whole. The men were a gift to her but the packages had already been opened and she was ready to move on.