One Love by David M. Cope (ereader android .txt) 📕

/>   We were married October 16, 1969. I signed my reenlistment papers one month later. It was during our blood tests we received the news that tore my heart out. Jennifer had cancer. She was devastated when they told her. Her mother and father were crushed by the news. My mom almost passed out when we told her. She loved Jennifer like a daughter. I was an only child and she always wanted a girl.
  She received chemotherapy at the military hospital after we were married. She lost her hair but even that didn’t kill her spirit. She always walked around the hospital making the kids laugh. Everyone at the hospital loved her. No matter how bad she felt, she always made sure to cheer up the kids.
  After a couple months of radiation treatments, the doctors said the cancer was gone. Jennifer started feeling better and her hair grew back. For a few months, she was her old self again. Our lovemaking returned to its former splendor. Jennifer was voracious in bed. She was always willing to try new things, making our sexual encounters wilder each time. She was the woman every man dreams of.
  Six months later, the cancer returned. Once again, she received radiation treatments and again she lost her hair. While she kept her spirit, I could tell a difference in her this time. So could everyone at the hospital. She was just as  determined to beat it but the fight wasn’t as fierce as it was the first time. She stayed tired more than before. It killed me seeing her that way. I would rather it had been me. I felt so helpless.
  As before, the cancer receded and she was almost normal again. Her hair grew back, also. A few nights later, she came to me and said, “Honey, will you make love to me like you did that first time?”
  “What?” I asked.
  “I want to feel like we are starting all over. And I want you to love me all night long.”
  “Of course I will, honey. Are you sure you’re well enough?”
  “I’m fine. Just carry me to the bed.”
  So I did exactly as she asked. That first time was etched in my memory. I carried her to the bedroom and slowly undressed her, kissing her all over her body, taking my time moving from one spot to another, my lips barely touching her. She was just as responsive as she was that first time, maybe more so. As before, we fell asleep at dawn, completely exhausted.
  The next day was the day we saw the little girl at the store and bought clothes for her. Jennifer always regretted not having children. She wanted a baby with all her heart. She would have been a good mother, too.
  Three months later the cancer was back. The doctor told us it was in her lymph nodes this time. There was no hope of radiation working this time and an operation was out of the question. Finally, he said she had three months at most. He may as well have given me a death sentence because my heart felt like it had stopped.
  I went to see my commander and asked for two months off. He asked what the doctor said and I told him. “Sir, I have 65 days leave due me. I’d like to take my wife home to her mother to spend what time she has left.”
  “If she needs care, is there a military hospital close?”
  “Yes sir, there is. That’s why I want to take her to spend the remainder of her time with her mother and father.”
  “You take all the time you need, Sergeant. My wife died from cancer. I know what you’re going through. I’ll have the papers drawn up. Go take care of your wife. And good luck, son. I’ll be praying for both of you.”
  “Thank you, sir. Thank you very much.”
  Ten weeks later Jennifer passed away in her sleep. The day after we buried her, her mother gave me a letter Jennifer had written and given to her for safekeeping. It read…
 
My Darling David,
I love you so very much. It hurts knowing I will soon be without you. I’ve gotten used to being with you. I am sorry I couldn’t give you a son for company after I’m gone. I would have loved to have had a baby girl. You have been the best husband a woman could ask for and I know you would have been a wonderful father. I’m getting weaker by the day. It won’t be long before I have to go. However, I’ll be watching over you until you come to be with me again. Please take care of yourself. I want you to marry again. Maybe your new wife can give you a child. Don't worry, I'll be waiting for you.
With all my love,
Jennifer

  I haven’t remarried and I don’t intend to. I still love Jennifer with all my heart. If I remarried, I would always be comparing her to Jennifer even though I wouldn’t mean to. Besides, I feel like it would be cheating on Jennifer. And I could never do that. I put flowers on her grave regularly. Now that I’m retired, I can visit her every week. I enjoy talking to her. I miss her so very much.

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Publication Date: 12-21-2009

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