by Sharon Ruth Hill

Created on: May 24, 2007   Last Updated: December 16, 2010

"I want to see you so bad, but if we never again meet in this world I want us all to meet in the next."  were the greivous words written in a letter to Andy from his older sister, Sarah. An abundance of love in every letter from family helped make the bitter truth of hard times back home seem almost palatable.

An effervescent blue sky, deep as the color of Texas grass sage- growing wild on the endless prairie- guides Andy as he walks the remaining street blocks to the Danceland Coliseum on the Connecticut coast.  Tonight will be Andy's first social event of any kind since joining the navy as a sailor six months ago in Dallas. It hadn't been a difficult decision to enlist, quite frankly, no decision at all when every other option ceased to exist with no work available for itinerant farm boys without prospects and a tenth grade rural education attained in a small, one room schoolhouse in the Rock Creek Community.

Time seemed to stand still during basic training, allowing Andy to catch up with his peers in manners and social custom. He'd worked hard to lose the west Texas twang in his speech. Looking back, he felt a hot rush of embarrassment for that ignorant boy whose existence seemed like a surreal dream. Someone he had heard about but had never met and who seemed now a separate being from himself.

The concentration of these memories aided the impetus of a vigorous stride when suddenly the salt air in a cool, Atlantic breeze jolted Andy back to the reality of his purpose this evening. He could see the impressive Coliseum in the distance and was approaching the boardwalk. The shops on the boardwalk are closed now but there is a little time to look through some of the windows, lighted by a full moon.

Faded, thick, southern pine wood planks bordered by glorious white crystal sand , flavored the strength of the experience for Andy. He felt a powerful connection to the moment by means of the surroundings. The kind of connection one is lucky to feel maybe twice in a lifetime. Was this some ancient pentameter exacted by an ancestral primaeval force? A unity of purpose and motive with a supernatural drive? If so, Andy welcomed it.

Stopping to check his reflection in one of the shop windows, Andy didn't immediately recognize himself. Startled by this, he reviewed the features of the figure standing before him. The benefit of three square meals each day along with the physical training created a lean yet substantial appearance that now defined his

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