"Without Mom"

Bob returned from work and reached into his pocket searching for his keys. He realized they were the same keys he has had since a child. As he entered his basement apartment, he thought of all the times he had come home with his mother waiting for him. He lived alone now since she moved to Florida with his sister. He thought it would be a relief to have her gone, but on this night he missed having someone to greet him when he came home.

He unlocked the three locks and walked into his cold and desolate apartment. He flipped on the lights in the kitchen and reached for his answering machine. He hoped his mother had called. One message was left, but it was from a coworker requesting a day off. Bob sat on the paisley-printed couch, the same as when he was a child. He remembered a time when his feet could not reach the floor and how he called for his mother to help him down. As he sat, he looked around and was consumed by nostalgia. He could almost see his mother making soup on the gas stove. The TV was on with the Spanish station and audible above was the low hum of the lights. The house was warm and full of energy. Today, however, there was none, except the low hum of the flourescent lights above. It was the same house and essentially the same furniture, but something was missing. He felt alone, but could not decipher why today he felt it so vividly.

He lumbered over to the refrigerator to get a drink and noticed the calendar hanging from a cat magnet on the door. The date was circled in red and was marked "Mom's birthday." Had all these memories haunted him to remind him? Bob quickly seized the phone and dialed his mother's new number. When he heard "Hel-lo " in his mother's Spanish accent he felt like he was no longer alone, but a child again. The room then seemed warmer as if someone turned the heat up.