The Lock Picker

Life was moving at an even pace. I was a happy, divorced mother of three with only one left in the nest. The even pace stepped lively with work, friends and family. I could not have imagined that all of that was about to change.

Now this is not a story of tragedy or bold adventure, but rather a simple story of a quiet coming of age. Most would probably expect a coming of age to follow the cumulative years of angst associated with teens and young adults. Mine however, came at a time of advancement. While society no longer claims me as a young woman and I have certainly yet to conquer the concept of the mature woman, I am none the less chronologically middle-aged. Some might question at this point if what I allude to is a true coming of age or just a traditional midlife crisis.

Midlife, yes it is true that this transformation has come in my life’s middle, but let me assure you there is no disaster or calamity. No crisis here. It’s actually quite the opposite. A satisfied and content woman’s life transformed by a serenity that can only be found in the reflection of one’s self in another. You see, love finds you when you least expect it.

Now, I could describe this unique being with his physical attributes, of which he has many for he is tall and handsome with soulful smiling eyes. All of which I found to be very agreeable from the start! Yet, as the physical represents a strong element of polar attraction, reality signals the importance of responsibility. Always the responsible one, I did not allow myself to linger on such niceties because, this was after all a professional relationship with at most only a sideline flicker of observation. And more importantly, one of us was very married. And so, after a fleeting v...

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...tentiously asked me out on a date. It is fair to presume that his efforts did not unleash a fury of offenses, but rather this was a second retrieval of contents. My woes had been released long before our friendship rooted. However, with his simple but genuine gesture, just as with the second opening of Pandora’s Box, he unleashed the promise that life holds happiness.

So, is this coming of age just another anti-climatic love story? Some may say yes, but to me it is so much more! It is a new beginning filled with opportunity a reminder that second chances are worth the risk. This man, my friend with turned key, laid before me a foundation of trust that we are building a future on together. Lock picker no more, he brought us to a mantra that is simply encoded on all of our written conversations as “ah”, always in my heart, always, all ways.

ah