Emily Sets The Past Free

My doorbell rang tonight, late, and my heart picked up a bit. At that hour I knew it would be Emily. I love the fact that she can walk through walls, but she always rings the bell when she comes. I asked her about that once, and she just gave me a demure smile, batted her eyelashes and said, "Well Jim, you know I'm just an old fashioned girl!"

Tonight she had the serious look on her face, the look that says there's something important on her mind. I pulled her close and hugged her, it's a reflex when I see that look. "What is it, Em?"

She reached into the collar of her blouse and pulled out a thin gold chain that was around her neck. There was a diamond ring on it, plain gold, one small stone, an engagement ring. She opened the clasp on the chain, slid the ring off and put it in my hand. "Jim, do you think you can destroy this for me?"

"Whose is it, Em?"

"It's mine, Jim."

"Yours? I take it there's something you've never told me, honey...." I turned it over in my hand, so fine and small, just like her fingers. I thought of some man I never knew working up the nerve to ask her The Question, then scrimping and saving to buy her this ring. Some man I never knew, dreaming of spending the rest of his life with her....

"Tell me, Em."

Her voice grew small and far away. "I was engaged when I died, Jim. He lived down the block from me on Bennett Avenue, and he worked as a waiter in one of the restaurants on Dyckman Street. He worked so hard to buy this for me....He was a sweet guy, Jim. I think you would have liked him."

"I'm sure I would have, honey. But why do you want to destroy it? Sounds like it holds some wonderful memories for you." "It does," she answered, "but I need to do it to set him free. It's something I should have done years ago, but I just couldn't bring myself to do it, until I met you."

I love that she trusts me like that....

"You see, Jim, after I died I went to him, the same way I went to you. I loved him so much, I just couldn't walk away. But, it was horrible, Jim! He freaked out, he thought he was going crazy!" Tears were welling up in her eyes and her shoulders were shaking, I held her close and tight.

Finally she calmed down enough to go on. "In the end he cursed me and told me to never come to him again. He never believed it was really me, he was sure it was his own grief making him crazy. Everything I tried just hurt him more, til I felt half crazy myself. I knew I had to do what he asked, and just leave him alone."

"Eventually he moved on, married someone else, but whenever I look at this ring I can feel it pulling on him, burning a hole in his heart. It's time for me to let him go and be happy....I want him to be just as happy as I am, honey. And Jim, I'm happier now than I ever was before! Will you help me destroy it?"

How can you turn down a request like that?

I sat her down on the foot of my bed, facing the buddha on my altar. I took out a square of red tissue paper and handed her a red pen. In red ink she wrote across the paper, "Never And Always." Then she smoothed her skirt over her knees, and laid the paper in her lap. I gave her the ring and told her to wrap it up in the paper, then I took a length of red thread and tied the package closed. I placed it in the incense burner, lit a red candle and handed it to her, and told her to light the paper.

It burned with a white hot light, we had to look away. It was like looking straight into the sun. But in a moment it was over, there was nothing left but a little pile of ash. The ring left no trace of itself behind.

We picked up the burner and carried it outside, scattered the ashes in the midnight breeze. Emily heaved a painful sigh, wiped a tear from her eyes. "It worked, Jim! I could feel his heart unlock! How did you know what do do?"

Darned if I know, honey. Like all the good things that have happened since you came into my life, I just don't question it.