Field of Marigolds

The snow had just started to fall from the grey overcast sky. The cold nip in the air made Alexandria pull the hood of her coat over her head as she climbed into the back of her mother's black SUV. Once she had settled into the back seat, Alexandria put her headphones on and stared out the window. It would take over two hours to reach the airport, and the last thing Alexandria had on her mind was talking or listening to her mother tell her how everything would be alright. Alexandria knew deep inside that her life as she knew it was over.

The scenery outside her window seemed to fly by as Alexandria, and her mother made their way. The snow fell slowly and lightly covered the ground in a thin blanket of white. Alexandria's memories began to fill her head as the music she listened to filled her ears.

She was standing ‬near the terminal as she watched her best friend walk away and board his flight. The pain she felt inside her heart was like no other pain she had experienced before. He had told her months earlier as they laid in their secret place in the marigold field near her grandparent's farm. The marigold flowers there always helped her friend keep calm after dealing with things at home. It was there that he broke the news to her. He told her how he needed a break, a break from his thoughts, and the chance to prove himself to his father. He wanted to see the world while serving his country. All she could do was to let him go so he could find himself with the hope he would return to her in the end. True love, her mother called it.

Alexandria tried to stay strong, but as the tears started to flow down her cheeks, she began to feel lost without him. They were attached to the hip since the day they met when they were only five. She could feel the walls around her closing in, crushing her as panic began to set in. She had been strong for so long while he was still with her, and now with the realization of him gone, she broke down. She never realized she would need him this much. He completed her very soul. Looking up at the sky as the tears continue to flow, she silently prayed to God to keep him safe and have him return to her soon.

They had kept in touch the best they could. Alexandria learned he was stationed in different places over the year before being stationed in Iraq. Alexandria prayed every night, hoping her nightmares wouldn't become a reality.

Alexandria's mother's voice broke her thoughts. They had finally reached the airport. Alexandria closed her eyes and gathered her thoughts as they made their way to the airport tarmac area reserved for returning military personnel. She would be seeing him again, after two years of waiting at home, she will be able to see him.

Alexandria turned toward the plane, patiently waiting for him. She knew he would be the first one off the plane. She watched in silence as the cargo bay of the aircraft opened. Six uniformed men exited the back of the plane and strolled next to a flagged covered casket. All the strength she had left, dissipated and she broke down, collapsing to her knees. Her mother dropped to her side, holding her close as Alexandria cried in her mother's arms. Why him, she cried out. He had so much to live for; he was too young to die.

One of the soldiers approached Alexandria and handed her an envelope. New tears formed in Alexandria's eyes as she touched her written name crossed the front of the envelope. She wasted no time opening the letter and reading his words. Those words hit her hard; she was filled with pride and warmth, knowing he had fulfilled his dream and, most of all, he loved her.

Alexandria approached his casket and rested her head on it. Her tears fell and soaked the spot on the flag that laid upon it. She whispered the exact words back to him as he spoke in his letter to her. "Until I see you again, my love," Alexandria pressed a kiss on his casket and pulled away. She watched as the soldiers loaded the coffin into the waiting car, then drove away.

She stayed a bit longer and watched in silence as the returning soldiers greeted their loved ones. She watched them hug and cry in each other's arms before she got back into her mother's SUV and drove home.

It had been a few months since the funeral of her love; Alexandria stood in their secret spot in the field of marigolds. It was finally warm enough for the flowers to bloom, filling the area with bright golden yellow and orange colors. The summer wind blew softly around her. Alexandria closed her eyes and smiled as the wind blew through her hair. "I know that is you," she whispered, holding a small white ceramic urn against her.

Alexandria opened her eyes, looked at the urn that held her love's ashes, and opened the lid. She poured his ashes out and let the wind take and spread them over the field of marigolds. Alexandria had fulfilled his wish of returning to his favorite place in the world. "Until I see you again, my love," she said as she watched his ashes spread across the golden flowers.