Signs of Hope

By Kate Knowles
Collegian Staff
September 27, 2006

Fiore entered the apartment and a sudden feeling of sadness overwhelmed her. She knew it was going to be hard, but she was not fully prepared for the wave of nostalgia that overcame her. The stairs were two-dimensional because of the sun shining through the stained glass window, and Fiore climbed the stairs slowly, perhaps to delay the pain she would endure once stepping foot inside the living quarters. Reaching the top, she put her luggage down and calmly let the tears come.

John had died from a mysterious disease that they had not been able to diagnose until the very end. They had just gotten married and had been delighted about the idea of spending their first week as husband and wife in the Virgin Islands. Before they had a chance to make concrete plans, John had gotten sick and had been ordered to bed rest for what they knew were his final days. So, instead of vacationing in the beautiful tropic of St.Thomas, Fiore was back here, in wet, dreary England.

Fiore reluctantly went to pick up her luggage when something caught her eye. It was gold and shiny and she knew it to be her wedding ring that she had lost misplaced the week before. She started to cry because she suddenly felt calm and peaceful. Fiore then knew that John was watching over her and as she placed a hand over the movement in her belly, she turned toward the window and smiled.

Dedicated to William Knowles (Aug. 12, 1921 - May 5, 2006).

knowlesk1@lasalle.edu