The Last Goodbye

She’d managed to catch a ride with a friend who was driving from Seattle to Spokane, and now, after a night curled up on the chairs in the hospital waiting room, she was a bit weary. 

 That’s when her ex-husband arrived, looking fresh from a morning flight from Seattle.

They were both on the same mission—to see their daughter, and her tiny baby who’d just arrived—their first grandchild. 
Their divorce had been nearly a decade ago. Whatever animosity remained, didn’t really matter now. 

He’d seen her sleeping uncomfortably in the waiting room.  So he’d gone in search of some coffee. He returned and handed her a cup of vending machine coffee—the only thing available. 

He smiled, that same toothy smile she remembered from long ago.

They took turns checking in on their daughter and wearing the hospital gowns required in order to see their premie granddaughter. They both had cameras and took dozens of pictures. 

When evening came, he noticed she was calling about flights home. 

 “Let me do this for you.” All of his business travel came in handy for last minute flights. He called a taxi, and the new grandparents left the hospital together.

Arriving at the airport, he secured their boarding passes, and ushered his former wife into the cushioned first class seats. He thought they both deserved it—a celebration of sorts.

They chatted on the quick flight from Spokane to Seattle—life had moved forward for them both. And now they had a grandchild. The flight landed—and with it, the brief time they shared.

They said goodbye, and it really was goodbye this time. Neither one knew that life wouldn’t intersect like this again. But for one special day it had.


Later on, when Dad shared this story with me, it reminded me that love can unexpectedly show up, just when we need it most.


  Happy Heavenly Birthday, Dad        

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