While still learning to cope with her husband\u2019s death, Margaret makes a discovery that forces her to rethink her entire life.<\/p>\n
When Margaret Freeman was 18, she made a decision that would affect the rest of her life: she married sweet, funny Daniel Hernandez whom her wealthy father disapproved of.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou marry that low-life and you\u2019ll get nothing from me Margaret!\u201d her father had screamed. \u201cYou\u2019ll see what love really is when you get to live in a one-bedroom rat-hole with roaches crawling up the walls!\u201d<\/p>\n
But Margaret didn\u2019t listen. She was sure she would never regret loving Daniel. Ever.<\/p>\n
At first, it was romantic to go home to that tiny apartment (there were no rats and roaches \u2014 there was no space). Margaret found herself a job as a receptionist in a big hotel, and Daniel started working for the post office.<\/p>\n
\u201cJob security, love,\u201d Daniel had explained when Margaret urged him to find a higher-paying job. \u201cI have to know there\u2019s going to be a pension to keep us when we are old!\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret understood Daniel\u2019s obsession with security. Hadn\u2019t he watched his mother live on the pittance social welfare awarded her after his father died in a work accident at a construction site? He\u2019d been an illegal, no insurance, no pension for his widow and five children.<\/p>\n
Daniel was determined the same thing wouldn\u2019t happen to Margaret or their children. Working for the post office, Daniel believed, would give them that assurance.<\/p>\n
But two modest salaries didn\u2019t go far with two children to raise. Even though they were frugal, every cent Margaret and Daniel earned, they spent. There was precious little leftover for savings.<\/p>\n
Then their two children grew up, left home, and started their own lives \u2014 their son moved to Alaska, and their daughter to Brazil, and Margaret and Daniel were right back where they had started.<\/p>\n
It was around this time that Margaret\u2019s father passed away. Apparently, time and Margaret\u2019s happiness hadn\u2019t softened his heart because he left his entire, very considerable estate to his youngest son, who was untroubled by twinges of conscience.<\/p>\n
Once you give in to doubt, it can destroy your peace of mind.
\nDaniel was devastated. \u201cThis is what loving me cost you, Margaret!\u201d he said bitterly. \u201cThe life you deserved!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo!\u201d Margaret told him firmly. \u201cI wouldn\u2019t trade what we have for all the money in the world!\u201d<\/p>\n
But Daniel grew silent and distant, and for the first time in thirty-eight years of marriage, Margaret started wondering if he still loved her.<\/p>\n
Then Daniel started taking on overtime at work, a lot of overtime. \u201cIt\u2019s this new overnight delivery mail, it has to be sorted 24\/7\u2026\u201d he explained. But Margaret noticed that when Daniel came home at two or three in the morning, he smelled different.<\/p>\n
He smelled of lilies, and Margaret had never liked lily-scented soap. It reminded her of her paternal grandmother, a woman she had never liked. Daniel smelled of lilies, and he didn\u2019t make love to Margaret anymore unless it was the weekend\u2026<\/p>\n
At first, Margaret told herself it was her imagination, but things didn\u2019t change. Two years later, Daniel still came home every night, still smelled of lilies, and worse of all, there was no extra money in their joint account.<\/p>\n
Margaret tried to broach the subject with Daniel once, but he snapped at her. \u201cDo I have to account for what I spend too? It\u2019s my money, I earned it!\u201d<\/p>\n
After that, Margaret didn\u2019t say another word and wept in silence when he came home every night and turned his back on her in the same bed they had conceived their children.<\/p>\n
They never talked about their plans for their retirement anymore, and Daniel\u2019s \u2018overtime\u2019 left them few opportunities to work through what was destroying their marriage. When the weekends came around, he locked himself in the garage fiddling with god-knew-what and only came out for meals.<\/p>\n
From considering herself the happiest woman in the world, Margaret was sure she was the most miserable. All her dreams had evaporated into thin air, and she even started doubting if Daniel had ever loved her.<\/p>\n
Margaret and Daniel had just celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary when Daniel had a heart attack. Margaret knew what the prognosis was even before the doctor spoke. He shook his head slowly.<\/p>\n
\u201cMrs. Hernandez,\u201d he told Margaret, \u201cI think you should prepare yourself for the worse. Your husband\u2019s heart is just plain worn out. The only option would be a heart transplant, and his age places him low on the list\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s sixty-nine,\u201d gasped Margaret. \u201cHe\u2019s only sixty-nine, he promised he was going to retire\u2026\u201d That night Margaret called her children and they flew to New York to say their goodbyes, along with Anna, Margaret\u2019s only grandchild.<\/p>\n
Two weeks later it was all over. Daniel was gone, and even though he had spoken lovingly to his children and grandchild about the past, he had only held Margaret\u2019s hand in silence.<\/p>\n
\u201cMargaret,\u201d he\u2019d whispered on his last day on earth. \u201cI love you, only you, I always have\u2026\u201d Those were his last words, and a meager comfort after so many years of doubts and unhappiness.<\/p>\n
Margaret\u2019s son and daughter wept for their father, but they had their own lives to live, so they left soon after the funeral. It was Anna who stayed behind to help Margaret come to terms with her empty house, her blasted life.<\/p>\n
The day after her children left, Margaret got up and decided she was going to make a clean sweep of the past. With Anna\u2019s help, she packed every one of Daniel\u2019s personal belongings into cardboard boxes for Goodwill.<\/p>\n
She was closing the last box when a whiff of lilies assaulted her senses. She found herself screaming hoarsely, kicking the box over, spilling all the carefully folded contents.<\/p>\n
Anna was there to hold her and soothe her, and somehow the whole story poured out. \u201cHe\u2019s been cheating on me for the last 12 years, coming to my bed every night smelling of another woman;\u201d Margaret sobbed. \u201cAnd his last words to me were a lie!\u201d<\/p>\n
The tears and confiding her pain helped, and Anna suggested they tackle Daniel\u2019s garage, clean the last bits of Margaret\u2019s pain out. The two women walked into the garage and started sorting through the accumulated junk of a lifetime.<\/p>\n
Then in one corner, Anna found an old suitcase with rusty locks. She was about to throw it out, but it felt quite heavy, so she decided to open it first. There was no key, but the use of an old spanner and a hammer soon had the suitcase open.<\/p>\n
\u201cGrandma\u2026\u201d Anna gasped. \u201cPlease come here\u2026\u201d Margaret dropped the tin full of nails she\u2019d been sorting through and came to her granddaughter\u2019s side. The suitcase was open, and inside were neatly wrapped packs of $20 bills and an old journal.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere did this come from?\u201d gasped Margaret. \u201cThis is a lot of money!\u201d<\/p>\n
Anna opened the journal. \u201cGrandma,\u201d she said softly. \u201cYou need to read this\u2026I think he started saving every penny he could when you got married\u2026Oh! This is from 12 years ago! Listen: \u2018Today I started working at the NYC sanitation department, the sewer cleaning night shift.<\/p>\n
\u201c\u2018It\u2019s not an easy job, but it pays a lot better than my day job, and I have to make sure of Margaret\u2019s future. Her father was right. I am a loser. I cost her everything, but I am determined to give at least a small part of it back.<\/p>\n
\u201c\u2018I don\u2019t want Margaret to know, so I told her I\u2019m doing sorting of the overnight mail, and take a shower before coming home every night. I\u2019m not bringing that stench into our home.’\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret was weeping silently as Anna read out Daniel\u2019s account of his double life. \u201cLook, gran, he writes in what he is packing into the suitcase every month\u2026 There is a total of nearly $300,000!\u201d<\/p>\n
Margaret looked into that battered old suitcase at the living proof of her husband\u2019s unconditional love, and his willingness to sacrifice anything for her. \u201cOh Daniel,\u201d she whispered. \u201cAnd I wasted so much time in bitterness\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
While still learning to cope with her husband\u2019s death, Margaret makes a discovery that forces her to rethink her entire life. When Margaret Freeman was 18, she made a decision … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":45294,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-45293","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-top-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/readupdatemystory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45293","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/readupdatemystory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/readupdatemystory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readupdatemystory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readupdatemystory.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=45293"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/readupdatemystory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45293\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":45335,"href":"https:\/\/readupdatemystory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45293\/revisions\/45335"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readupdatemystory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/45294"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/readupdatemystory.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=45293"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readupdatemystory.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=45293"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readupdatemystory.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=45293"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}