by K Broas
The day arrived, and Hope was packing up her things in her small red bag. “I really wish you didn’t have to go,” Grace said with an empty stare in her eyes. “You’ve become family, Hope. It’s like I’m losing a sister.” Hope continued to pack, wanting so much to put down her bag and forget her plans.
“We need you here, Hope. The town is devastated that you’re leaving,” Chris added, trying to persuade her to stay.
“I know guys. This is hard for me too, but it’s what I have to do,” Hope replied. “I just don’t believe things will turn around like you guys do. Believe me, I wish I did.”
Chris’s eyes welled up with tears as he held his wife’s hand firmly. “You’ve had such an impact on us Hope. How can we repay you? You can’t just walk out of our lives,” Chris pleaded. “Wait, I want to give you something. I’ll be right back.” Chris disappeared back into the bedroom only to return with one of his many acoustic guitars. “Here take it. This way every time you play you’ll remember us. And this isn’t a gift. I’m simply letting you use it. Make sure you come back and return it someday. Okay,” Chris explained with a single tear rolling down his gaunt face.
Hope looked at the kind man standing next to his strong wife and said, “Deal. Thanks for letting me borrow this.”
Grace then came to Hope’s side and put several small silver coins in her hand. She said, “It isn’t much, but it should be enough to get you settled.”
Hope looked at the small gesture of friendship and said, “Thank you. I’ll never forget you guys.” Then, from somewhere deep in the shadows of Hope’s injured soul, she found the strength to turn and walk away.
Chapter 15
Coming Home
Bright white explosions filled the enormous hall chasing away the darkest of shadows that clung and hid in the corners of the hot sweaty room. Mr. Howard walked triumphantly from the stage as Sariel Dranias remained behind at his podium fumbling with his small perfect note cards. The crowd was electric filled with vision at the optimistic message that was skillfully laid out by the talented public servant. The silvery haired man shook the hands of his many supporters as he left the room like royalty.
“That was perfect,” said the busy campaign manager as he rushed Mr. Howard down the hall. “Your delivery was spot on. You kept it high level yet nailed the points we talked about earlier.”
Mr. Howard loosened his pale blue necktie and stopped to shake hands and sign autographs as they reached the stairs. “I don’t want to be disrespectful, sir, but we need to keep moving. You have a meeting with the reporter from the Dover Times in thirty minutes,” the campaign manager continued.
Mr. Howard finished autographing the few remaining sheets of paper and quickly made his way up the steps. “Hey Matt, I wasn’t too hard on Sariel was I? That must have stung when I asked him about the new move for global consolidation. He was speechless,” Mr. Howard commented. “I really think he’s a good man, just a little misguided.”
Matt put his hand between Mr. Howard’s shoulder blades guiding him into his room. “No, I think it all went very well. We couldn’t have asked for more,” Matt replied.
Waiting for Mr. Howard in the lavish hotel room was his dear wife, Lori, who had already made her way back from the debate. “Amazing! That was fantastic. The people are really starting to hear your message. Looks like the country may be ready for what you’ve been saying for years,” Lori said with love for the old man.
“I think you’re right. Just when we think we’re out, they pull us back in,” Mr. Howard said with a mischievous smile on his thin face. “How’re ya hanging in there?”
“Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine,” Lori said warmly. “You’ve got ten minutes to get to that interview,” Lori said straightening her husband tie. “You go knock ‘em dead.”
Mr. Howard and his aides walked through the halls of the hotel making their way to conference room to meet the reporter. Just before arriving at his destination, Mr. Howard bumped into Sariel Dranias in the lobby of the hotel.
“Paul, great work out there tonight. You really had me on the comment about the International Monetary Fund,” Sariel said confidently. “You and I both know that you can’t fight the inevitable. Wealthy interests are at play, and one way or another, we’re going to succumb to these outside forces.”
Mr. Howard graciously leaned in and patted Sariel’s back like a dear colleague with much more seniority and whispered, “There’s nothing inevitable about this world, Sariel. That’s the one lesson you still have to learn. I don’t care what’s in the best interest of your donors. It’s about what’s best for my country.”
Sariel looked ashamed for a moment before anger flashed across his perfectly chiseled face. “Nothing’s changed old man. We’ve only just begun, and there’s plenty of time before election night. We’ll have to see what the people really want,” Sariel responded sternly.
The two men parted – Mr. Howard going to spread his gospel with the reporter, and Sariel back to his room in defeat.
As Mr. Howard sat down across from the finely dressed reporter, the questions began. “Hello Mr. Howard, it’s so nice to finally meet you,” the newspaper reporter began. “Thanks for taking the time to sit down with me. I know my readers will enjoy hearing more about your views.”
Mr. Howard smiled graciously and said, “Oh, most definitely. I'm always excited to speak about my beliefs.”
The reporter opened an expensive, leather bound notepad and began his questions. “Most people don’t understand the Libertarian Party, so let’s just jump right in,” the man from the paper said. “So how does the Libertarian Party differ from the existing parties out there?”
Mr. Howard paused for a moment trying to formulate his explanation. “I know there's confusion, and often Libertarians get bundled with the Independent voters. Even though that’s the thinking, it isn’t very accurate,” Mr. Howard answered. “Our system has many different views across the political spectrum. On one end of the spectrum, we have the Conservative Party with very traditional views on society. They tend to feel the federal government should govern behavior to promote social morality. They also have been fiscally conservative historically although this has been changing over the last several years. These parties have been proposing increased government spending and growth of the federal system.”
The reporter, who was taking very detailed notes, asked, “What about the other side of the aisle, the Liberals?”
Mr. Howard leaned forward in his chair and answered, “Yes the Liberals. I was just about to address them. On the other end of the spectrum you have the Liberal Party, who tend to be a bit more socially and fiscally liberal, creating many new entitlement programs. It’s funny how the Liberal Party has been proposing legislation directly attacking our civil liberties over the past twenty years. They too seem to be in the business of legislating behavior.” Mr. Howard took a moment to let his words sink in. He took a large sip from his glass of ice water as the reporter wrote down his words.
“So are you saying that although both parties are polar opposites from one another, they’ve been acting very similarly for many years?”
Mr. Howard’s face lit with excitement as he said, “Exactly!”
The man with the official looking press pass then asked, “So what about the Independents? Where do they stand?”
“They stand right smack in the middle,” Mr. Howard said in a slowly drawn out voice to add impact to his statement. “They seem to be moderate, standing in the center of the spectrum. They are fiscally liberal believing that we need to have programs for the less fortunate and socially conservative focusing on morality in the country.”
The reporter scratched his head for a second and then asked, “Now I’ve heard the Libertarians described as ‘moderate’, but then also in the same article as ‘Radical’. How can that be?”
Mr. Howard nodded his head quietly as the reporter asked his question and then replied, “This is where the Libertarian party
differs. We believe that it’s not the responsibility of the government to tell the people how to live their lives. We are very socially liberal believing in liberty and a strict interpretation of the Constitution.”
The reporter interrupted Mr. Howard asking, “But isn’t that just what the Liberals believe?”
“It is, but we disagree with their ideals regarding the strength and scope of the federal government,” Mr. Howard quickly responded. “We believe in strong state rights with a small federal government that’s charged with protecting the country and not much else.”
The reporter, struggling to understand, asked, “But what about issues like civil rights and abortion? These seem to be important issues for most people and should be addressed on a federal level.”
Mr. Howard respectfully shook his head, and said, “Well, we believe that everyone has the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. That’s why it’s so important for the states to regulate those things. By fostering an environment where states compete, we all win. If legislation was passed and people didn’t agree with it, they can vote with their feet and move to another part of the country. On the other hand, if the federal system was to legislate something that was unconstitutional, we’d have nowhere to run. We’d be left with just our system of checks and balances. The balance of powers between the executive, legislative and judicial branches would be our only mechanism. If this was to ever become corrupt, the people would lose their voice forever.” Mr. Howard continued, “We've seen that happen even recently as global structures influenced our federal system aligning us so closely to the United Nations.”
The mild reporter looked up from his notes, and asked, “Should we try to be part of the global community? Isn’t that in our best interest?”
Mr. Howard again shook his head, trying to remain calm, and responded, “When that happened, we lost our way and forgot our own national interests. We started legislating based on what was good for global interests. This is a dangerous situation.”
The reporter scoffed and asked, “Now you can't be proposing that somehow there's a conspiracy to control the American people?”
With his fiery blue eyes locked on the reporter, Mr. Howard answered, “No, I'm certainly not saying that. I'm simply stating that if you look back through history, mankind has a long and detailed past where government structures gained too much control and ended up grabbing power over the economy and eventually the people. We believe, as our forefathers did, in personal freedom and personal responsibility.”
The reporter calmly put down his fine writing instrument not wanting to further challenge the brilliant politician. “Well that certainly helps me differentiate the Libertarian Party from the others. I know that I feel more aware of the differences,” the reporter admitted. “So what are your views on the economy?”
“Well, six years ago everything changed. Without our mighty grid, supply chains failed, food became scarce, and we ended up relying on our local communities. Things are slowly getting better. We’re even importing automobiles from Europe again. Sure they’re expensive and only a handful of people have them, but that’s a big step. I guess my question is this, how can we, as a country, re-establish ourselves in the global community? How can we grow the economy when our currency is so weak? I think that's the point. With unchecked government spending, we’ve created the situation that drove the dollar to the unprecedented lows. This situation makes it very difficult for us to import the goods we need in order to grow the economy,” Mr. Howard said with certainty. “I believe the answer isn’t to fight the current trends only to return to the days of out-of-control spending. We need to embrace the life we’ve found after the collapse. We need to improve our local communities and return governance to the people. We need to realize that the people in their local areas understand what their community needs. They understand best what needs to be produced and at what price to sell their goods. The federal system, thousands of miles away, could never have the insight as local leadership.”
“But what about the global markets? There are many out there who feel our future is directly correlated to the success of our global partners,” the reporter said.
Mr. Howard started to chuckle in disbelief as he responded, “I fully understand that there's a push to return us to the global system. There's even talk of moving to a global currency. Something like that would create real problems in America. I don’t know why we would ever go back to a system that generated the conditions for our collapse. Maybe we’re doomed to repeat history after all.”
Down the coast, less than seventy miles away, Hope exited the train station stepping onto concrete she had left many years before. She took a deep, long breath, pulling the salty air into her body. “Home…” she thought to herself as she stood and watched an albatross glide on the ocean breeze. It was mid-April and the Atlantic was filled with whitecaps - foamy white, filled with spray, covering the sea. The sound of the surf blanketed everything. It reminded Hope of her joy as a child. She began to walk, unsure where she was going, until she found a small café along the boulevard. She sat down, ordered a large cup of coffee, and drank the bitter brew while watching the surf crash into the sand.
As the cool sea breeze warmed, summer arrived in Ocean City. Hope had settled in and started working at the café she found the day she arrived in town. Working as a waitress, she’d spend her days talking to people and enjoying her simple existence. She’d come in early in the morning, start the morning coffee, bake off some muffins and cookies, and then spend her day serving the people of Ocean City. Of all the duties Hope performed at the café, her favorite one was the opportunity to perform on Friday nights. When the owner of the café found out Hope played guitar, he asked her to play one night. The instant she began to play, he knew she’d be a permanent attraction.
Late one afternoon, while Hope was busy serving the customers, she happened to look up and see something amazing right outside the window. Walking down the boulevard, she saw the familiar face. The woman turned and entered the small café. Hope couldn't believe her eyes. She was dazzled by what fate had sent her way. She shook her head, rubbing her eyes, not believing who was standing before her. It was Joy. Her old friend looked up and noticed Hope instantly. Both women stood silently, frozen in time, unable to process what was occurring.
Joy dropped her purse in shock, and said, “Is that you Hope?” Joy stuttered. “I can't believe what I'm seeing.”
“Oh my God, Joy! It's been so long… how are you girl? I missed you so much!” Hope exclaimed. “What brings you to Ocean City?”
Joy, feeling as if she was speaking to a ghost, carefully answered, “I’ve been living here for a couple years now. How ‘bout you? When did you get here?”
Hope, excited by seeing to see her dear friend replied, “I came into town this spring. Been working here ever since. I’m so surprised to see you. What brought you to Ocean City?”
Joy thought about the question and grabbed Hope’s small hand. Looking at Hope lovingly, she replied, “I remembered all the stories you told me of your childhood. You spoke so kindly of this wonderful town. When I was lost in St. Louis, I saw a poster for Ocean City. I knew right then Ocean City was where I had to go. Right now I work as a waitress at Chez Moerae – a couple miles down the road. I’ve been working there for almost two years now. It's fun, and I get to meet so many great people.”
Hope said taking a giant breath, “I still can't believe you're standing here in front of me!”
Joy smiled at Hope, eyes filled with admiration, and said, “What are you doing tonight? We totally have to get together. It's been so long since talked. We need to catch up.”
Hope, putting her hand on Joy’s arm, replied, “Well, tonight I'm actually performing, so I can’t. Hey… you should totally stop by later. I’m playing at eight o’clock.”
Joy’s face lit up at the thought of seeing her best friend play her songs again. “I’d love that. But I need to go pick up my boyfriend first.
He's coming in from Dover tonight.” Then Joy gave Hope an affectionate hug adding, “It’s so wonderful to see you. I’ll be back a bit later. We’ll talk and catch up.”
Hope waved her hand at Joy as she left the small café. She was overwhelmed with excitement knowing she’d see her friend again later that evening.
“Hey Dad, I’m heading back down to Ocean City this afternoon. I should be back again on Monday,” Isaac said tossing a couple of wrinkled shirts into a bag.
Mr. Howard looked at his son with pride filling his thin yet strong body. He was so impressed with his son’s ability to meet his obligations with the campaign and still pursue his new girlfriend. Isaac had been making this trip almost every weekend for over six months.
Isaac and Joy were completely in love. Every moment they spent together felt so natural, so destined, that they both were entirely consumed with destiny.
“Do you need any spending money?” Mr. Howard asked his son.
“No, I should be fine,” Isaac answered proudly. “I still have plenty in my savings.”
Mr. Howard walked over to his son and began to help him pack. “So when do I get to meet this Joy?” Mr. Howard asked razzing his son. “She must be pretty special considering she has you always on the move.”
Isaac smiled sheepishly trying to avoid his dad’s gentle teasing. “A couple weeks from now she’ll be coming up for the convention. You can interrogate her then,” Isaac said chuckling softly.
“Anyway… while you’re away you’re going to miss the surprise I have planned,” Mr. Howard said mysteriously.
“Let me guess, you’re not going to tell me what it is,” Isaac replied sarcastically.
Mr. Howard put his muscular arm around Isaac’s shoulder and said, “On Sunday… we’re getting a car.”
Isaac jerked his neck to look at his dad and said, “No way! An automobile? How can that be?”