Happiness

Joseph came alive when he met Jenny, his ex-wife’s friend’s thirty year old daughter at a party. He had not felt like this in decades. She was a free spirit looking to having as many experiences as she could before her time ran out and Joseph knew that this was his window, and if he missed it, he would regret it. He was himself pushing sixty, but age did not matter at that point in his life. Here was someone who got him. 

They met a few times for drinks and discovered many things that they had in common. She was an artist and had an amazing ability to express herself without the regular bullshit. She made it clear to him that she was into him and was not looking for anything serious. He was happy with that and they were soon in a fun relationship. They went out to bars, concerts, galleries, and had a wonderful time with each other. 

He cooked for her and she loved the stories of his youth. She had yet to live some more to have stories of her own. She made him pose for her while she painted him. He was surprised to see that he was really enjoying trying out things that were taking him out of the rut most sixty year olds get into. He was lost in the joy that this relationship was giving him. They took trips together and before they knew it, they had been together for six months. 

His ex would be livid if she ever found out that he was so happy. 

Jenny surprised him on his sixtieth birthday with the news that she was pregnant. He was taken aback as he had never been a father and felt a strange warmth towards Jenny. This was a good thing he thought. 

He asked Jenny to move in with him and soon they were living a happy domestic life. Doctor’s visits, reading up on pregnancy, quitting smoking and alcohol, everything that was needed to get done was getting done. A tenderness crept into their relationship that was unlike what they had been looking for when they first met. Fun and games were good, but this was as real as it could get. 

Happiness became their life and they enjoyed everything that was happening. Months passed and the baby was due soon. They were prepared. And then the day came and they had a beautiful baby boy. Jenny had the longest labour and was out of it for a long time. 

When they got home, Jenny was in a depression. The doctor said that it would pass. Joseph was struggling to cover all the bases, but Jenny was showing no sign of improvement. 

There had to be something that would help her, he thought. He had heard that weed helped depression and got her a bag. Soon they were smoking up and she seemed to be feeling better. 

It was a few weeks later that Jenny showed signs of coming back to her natural state of mind. She sat by the window and would be lost in her thoughts. 

A shift was happening in her mind. She came to Joseph and asked him if he would rather raise the baby on his own or give him up for adoption? Because being a mother was not something she could do. 

Joseph knew this was the end of the road for them. It was time for her too move on and he would do the best he could with raising their child.

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