Is Anyone Out There?

It was June of 1992. I was a single mom of two very impressionable teenage boys. No, they weren’t perfect, and they weren’t mean-spirited, or wild. They were normal teens – well, ok, they were older teens. They were 16 and 18. We talked about everything and anything and often, we’d disagree. More often, being the teens they were, they’d agree with each other leaving their mom out of the loop, or, just maybe, I was in the loop, and they weren’t.

I worked in a defense plant and had the opportunity to meet many people who worked for the government. Their jobs were to oversee the contract that was awarded to my company. On rare occasions, we had the opportunity to have our lunches together and conversations ensued. One topic that always intrigued me was UFOs. I always believed that we should not be so egotistical to think we are the only beings in the vastness of so many universes.

My boys and I often disagreed on this subject. “Mom, do you honestly think there are spacemen flying around out there?”

I always responded, “Hey, you never know. Can you say without one doubt that there aren’t any?”

Touché. I had them there!

One late afternoon, my co-worker asked if I’d like to accompany her for a beer once we were finished for the day. I said yes but warned her that I couldn’t stay out long. I wanted to have dinner with my sons. We had a rough day; our boss was at his worst behavior, and we only wanted to unwind. I called home and advised my sons I’d be home by 6:30.

We arrived at the lounge around 5:15pm and ordered our beers. We sat at the bar and began to hash out the day wondering if there could have been anything we could have done to avoid the wrath of our boss. We conclude that there was nothing. He was just in a foul mood.

A person standing behind me was knocked into me by the person behind him. He apologized for almost spilling his drink on me. It was easy enough to include him in our conversation however, six o’clock was fast approaching.

I finished my beer and told my friend it was time for me to head home. The man we’d just met, asked for my phone number. Although I hesitated, before I walked out the door, he had the paper in his hand.

Due to unforeseen circumstances, we didn’t start dating for another three months. My sons were delighted that their mother was now not sitting home every night. They felt more at ease and more comfortable going out with their friends.

“So, mom, when are you going to bring this mystery man home?”

Rich would ask, “So, when do I get to meet your sons?”

He and my sons hit it off perfectly. Their conversations were easy, and they never seemed to run out of things to talk about.

As the Christmas holiday was upon us, I cleaned and decorated the house for the holiday. Then I invited Rich for dinner, but he had another idea. I hadn’t yet met his children. Therefore, he felt it only right for us to have dinner at his house where our kids could be together. Since his house was bigger than mine, it made perfect sense, and we joined Rich and his children the day after Christmas for a post-holiday dinner. I didn’t feel right intruding on his family during a holiday. I thought having our kids meet for the first time, and me not having met them yet, might be a bit too awkward.

We arrived at his house around four in the afternoon as he suggested. We all talked, laughed, and enjoyed each other’s company. Then it happened. Rich said excitedly, “I’ve been dying to tell you this but wanted to wait until we were all together. On my way home from work a few nights ago, I saw a UFO!”

We all stared at him as though he were the alien. He continued with his story and knew he had at least a dozen people that could back up what he said. My sons and Rich’s kids laughed but I looked at my sons and said, “See? I told you we weren’t alone!” My older son and the more skeptical of the two asked if Rich knew anyone of the so-called dozens of people who might have witnessed this event.

“Laugh all you want," I remarked, "but I believe there are others out there somewhere, just watching and waiting. Watching and waiting for what, I have no idea but one day, they’ll make themselves known.”

Rich said, that as a matter of fact, yes, he did know a few people who’d seen what he did. There were four men in the car with him. All friends who were also co-workers saw what he’d seen. My kids were still a bit bewildered but said nothing further.

After we retired, Rich and I moved to Florida. Not too long after our move, there was a news report in our local paper about a UFO spotting. While I didn’t see that craft, a few months later, while driving home from the supermarket, a bright pulsating light in the sky caught my attention. I slowed and pulled over and watched. Others did the same. After almost half an hour, the light turned even brighter, made an acute left angle turn, and took off faster than I’d ever imagined anything could. It was gone in a heartbeat.

What was it? No one I know could ever get an intelligent answer from anyone in authority.

I didn’t own a cell phone at the time and even if I did, they had not yet been equipped with cameras.

Yet, I know what I saw, or at least, what I think I saw. Now, as often as possible, I watch the skies. I look at people differently. Are their eyes a bit wider? Darker? Do they walk a little strange?

I’m always aware and wonder if, maybe one day, I might come face-to-face with my neighbors from another galaxy.

Often, I look up at the skies and wonder, is anyone out there?