Cathy closed the door and half-ran to the door to the garage. She tore the door open and switched on the light, but he was not there. Closing the door she returned and went to the center of the living room. She stood for a few moments, lost in thought and nervously chewing her thumbnail. As her eyes darted around the room, she noticed the blinking light of the answering machine. She went to it and pressed the play button. The machine revealed that there were two messages. The first had been recorded at nine forty seven a.m.

      “Rick, this is Tom. I noticed you were not at work today so I thought I'd call to see how you were doing. We can still get together for lunch today if you like. Give me a call.”

      The next call had been recorded at five fifteen pm.

      “Hey, Rick, it's me, Tom, again. I'm sorry I missed you. I'm headed home but you can call me on my cell.” Tom gave the number. “Don't isolate. Give me a call. Talk to you then.”

      Cathy picked up the phone and dialed the cell phone number.

      “Hello?”

      “Tom, it's me, Cathy. I'm worried about Rick.”

      “Yeah, I was getting a little concerned, too. How is he?”

      “I don't know. He's not here. He wasn't at work today, either?”

      “No. I thought he might be home sick, or something, but he never reported out.” Tom paused a moment. “He hasn't been himself lately.”

      “No, he hasn't.” Cathy related the events of that morning. “And when I came home, I saw his car here, but he is nowhere to be found.”

      Tom thought a moment. “He might've just gone out for a walk.”

      “In this weather?”

      “Maybe he left earlier and got caught out in it. Is there any place he might've gone within walking distance?”

      Cathy thought a moment. “The cemetery is about two miles from here. That's where Chelsea is.”

      Tom sighed. “Why don't you drive over and see if he's there? Call me and let me know.”

      “Okay. I will.”

      Cathy ended the call and grabbed her purse and keys. She quickly exited the front door, got in her car, and drove to the cemetery.

      Five minutes later she turned into the cemetery entrance. She followed the narrow road as it curved around the large oaks and finely manicured graveyards. As she approached the area where Chelsea was buried, she stopped the car. Through the rain and past the small stand of trees next to the footpath she could see Rick sitting on the ground next to a small headstone. She parked the car and got out, and then began walking down the path toward him.

      Rick was sitting with his back up against the side of the headstone. His knees were drawn up in front of him and his head was down. One hand was on his head, the elbow resting on his knee, and the other one was palm-down on the grass next to him. His clothes were soaked from the cold rain. He heard her feet on the wet grass as she approached and he looked up at her. She could see that he had been crying.

      “I'm sorry,” he said. Then he put his head back down and started to cry again.

      Cathy came and knelt down in the wet grass beside him. She put her arms around him and rested her head against his, wishing she could shield him from the rain.

      “I'm sorry,” he said, sobbing. “I'm sorry for all of this.”

      “It's okay, Rick.”

      “I don't know what to do.” He coughed hard and sniffed. “What's wrong with me? Why am I doing this?”

      “Come back home with me Rick. We'll talk about it.”

      “God, please help me. I don't know what to do.” He coughed hard again and sniffed.

      “Rick, we've got to get you out of this rain. Let's go home and talk about it. Come on.”

      He sniffed again. “It sounds so stupid.”

      “It doesn't to me,” said Cathy, holding back her own tears. “But you've got to get out of this rain, Rick. Please come with me to the car. Come on.”

      Rick nodded. They slowly helped each other up and walked back to the car. Cathy helped Rick into the passenger side, and then got in the driver's side. She started the car, put on the heater, and headed for home. 

      It was a perfect day for a walk on the beach. A tropical sun glowed warmly in the center of a radiant blue dome of cloudless sky. A steady, cooling breeze came in from the ocean, carrying with it the sound of the breakers offshore. Chelsea walked with her father along the narrow stretch of white sandy beach. They walked together this time, hand in hand, along the water's edge, the girl kicking at the tiny waves that washed past her feet. He squeezed her hand and she looked up at him. She smiled, wrinkling her nose and squinting her eyes against the sun. Although Rick treasured the moment, there was a nagging sadness in his heart that he could not dispel. Somehow in his dream, he knew it was only a dream. Some part of his consciousness knew that this moment was fleetingly short and that it would be taken away without warning. A desperate feeling, a need to express something, began to grow in his heart.

      Rick led Chelsea away from the water and dropped to his knees. He brought the girl around to face him. She smiled at him expectantly, cocking her head to one side.

      “I love you, Chelsea,” he told her.

      “I love you, Daddy,” said the girl.

      Rick embraced her and held her tightly. Her small arms encircled his neck. He held her for what seemed like several minutes and she returned the embrace. When he loosed his hold, she stood back for a moment, and then kissed him quickly and smiled. He looked at her and returned the smile, his eyes wet with tears. As he looked into her face, he caught some movement out of the corner of his eye. He turned his head to look in the direction they had been heading and saw a man walking up the beach toward them. He had a beard and long hair and wore a middle-eastern style robe. Chelsea turned to look also and a broad smile spread across her face when she saw him. The man came closer and Rick could see him smiling warmly. Chelsea left Rick and ran up to Jesus. Rick stood and smiled as Jesus caught the girl up in his arms and hugged her. After the embrace Jesus held her to his side, his left arm supporting her, and walked over to Rick. He put his right arm around Rick and Rick embraced the both of them. They held each other for long moment and Rick felt Chelsea's arm curl around his neck. Then, as they began to part, he felt Chelsea shift her weight so that Rick was holding her when the embrace had ended. Jesus smiled at the father and daughter. Chelsea was looking at Jesus and as Rick studied her profile he saw traces of Cathy's face for the first time. He kissed her cheek and she looked back at him, smiling playfully. He held her tightly for one last time, and then he stepped closer to Jesus. He held his daughter out to the Lord and Jesus reached out to take her. Chelsea shifted her arms over to Jesus' neck and the transfer was complete. Jesus closed his eyes nodded his head gently. Then he opened them and gazed at Rick for a moment. The gaze carried with it such a great love that Rick was totally filled with trust and peace.

      Chelsea leaned back and playfully grabbed at Jesus' beard. Jesus nodded his head back and laughed. He smiled at her, and then took one step backward. They both looked over at Rick and Chelsea waved. Rick waved back and forced himself to smile. Then Jesus turned slowly and began to walk back up the beach. Chelsea looked back once more, waving and smiling. Rick waved and smiled back. Then she turned away once more and didn't look back again.

      Rick sat down on the sand and cried. But his cry was different this time. It was not a cry of torment or anguish. It was just the cry of sadness of saying goodbye. As the crying subsided, he looked out to where the breakers thundered against the reef and felt the breeze on his face. He decided that he would enjoy the moment as he waited for consciousness to return.