Meltdown

Jade Garden Chinese Restaurant, May 18, 2004: Adrienne said, “Let’s go to dinner!” and so we did. The food was good, and we were noshing on garlic prawn and rice and some peppery-hot thing.

And then the waiter brought our check, and there were two fortune cookies. I picked them up, and then remembered.

Adrienne saw me, and began to cry.

It’s been just two months since Tulip our border collie died in our arms. Now what you didn’t know is that Tulip’s favorite food was fortune cookies. In fact, back in San Anselmo, at Christmas-time before we moved here, I gave Tulip a present which was a huge bag of fortune cookies. It was a big hit.

Tulip loved to go get Chinese food.

Adrienne cried, remembering. I said, “We’ll just have to eat these fortune cookies for her.” Adrienne nodded.

I loved that Tulip, and then she died. It leaves such a hole in our lives, that she doesn’t come stretching to see us, waking late as we drink our coffee. Sometimes in the middle of nowhere, it comes back, and it hurts all over again.