A cold breeze swept past the garden as Tomiwa was inspecting some of his tomatoes that were close to harvesting, and the scent of ripening tomatoes filled the garden immediately. He took a deep breath and let out a big smile as he thought about how happy his wife would be to see the results of his hard work.
The garden happens to be a sanctuary for Tomiwa, and it was thriving with life and color at that time of the year. Despite the his tight schedule, he created time for gardening a few meters away from home.
Tomiwa took a quick glance at his twins at the other end of the garden and felt relieved to see them playing happily.
"Oh, not today. The weather forecast must have gotten it wrong again," Tomiwa muttered as his eyes were fixed on the sky.
The once bright sky was gradually becoming cloudy, and a gentle wind kept sweeping through the garden. Tomiwa wasn't happy because he had plans to do some work on the garden, but preventing nature was impossible.
"Hey girls, it seems we have to leave now. Let's go home before the weather gets really messy."
Tomiwa watched the girls still running around, and they paid no attention to him. He slowly walked in their direction, and in the blink of an eye, darkness fell upon the surface of the earth. It was so thick that Tomiwa could barely see anything ahead, and he became really worried.
"Sandra! Susan!" He screamed at the top of his voice as he staggered around, trying to find the twins.
"What's happening? Why did you scream that much?" Janet, Tomiwa's wife, asked as she watched her husband panting heavily and struggling on the bed.
Tomiwa was shocked to hear her voice and immediately turned around. Surprisingly, he saw himself lying on the bed and could hear his twins voice from their bedroom.
"Oh God! It was dream," Tomiwa replied as he got out of bed.
"I was just in the garden and how did I get here?" He muttered
He checked the time, and it was 6 p.m.
"How long have I been asleep?" Tomiwa asked Janet as he dragged himself to the bathroom.
"Probably 6 hours. I felt you got really exhausted from caring for the kids while I was away and just left you to rest as much as you could. Remember, I will be gone for a while again," Janet replied.
"Again? For how long? Why can't you just stay here permanently? We need you and always miss you the moment you walk out of the house. This building don't feel like home without you," Tomiwa replied, just staring at Janet while standing at the entrance of the bathroom.
"I am here for now and really wish to stay, but that's not possible," Janet replied as tears welled up in her eyes.
"Should we just go with you? We can relocate and start life afresh instead of us living separately, or have you forgotten the promise we made to each other?" Tomiwa stuttered and returned to sit beside Janet.
She was crying already, and Tomiwa just couldn't stand it.
"You know, I hate to see you cry," Tomiwa whispered as he drew Janet closer and hugged her.
"Think about our girls; they really need you. I don't find caring for them stressful, but we can do a lot better raising them together," Tomiwa added as he tried consoling his wife.
He was really emotional too, but breaking down in front of his wife was the last thing he would do. Tomiwa closed his eyes briefly, and upon opening them, he realized he was hugging a pillow.
"Janet! You can't just leave like that again." He screamed and knelt on the tiles.
"You should at least say goodbye," Tomiwa muttered, breaking down into tears. He wept uncontrollably, calling his wife's name several times.
A loud thunder accompanied by lighting struck while Tomiwa was sobbing, and he quickly rushed out of the bedroom to check on the twins.
Upon stepping into the girl's room, Tomiwa found him in the garden again and was confused for a second.
"How? What's happening to me?" Tomiwa stuttered as he looked back and couldn't see the room he stepped out of.
The darkness had cleared a bit, and he struggled to reach the twins, who were scared and crying already.
"It's okay; dad is here now. Sorry, I got carried away while talking to your mom. Let's hide in the barn for now," Tomiwa said to the girl as they made their way out of the garden.
"Dad, you spoke to mom?" Sandra asked curiously immediately they arrived in the barn.
"Yes, she was at home, and..." Tomiwa stuttered and paused as the pendants on the twins necklace emptied his mind.
"But we have been here," Susan whispered to Sandra.
"Isn't that your mom on the pendant?" Tomiwa asked Sandra.
"Yes, daddy, have you forgotten it was mom's last gift to us before she passed away?" Sandra replied.
"Is everything alright, dad?" Susan asked, and Tomiwa broke down into tears again.
In reality the twin watched their dad talk while sleeping and it's has been happening since their mother died 12 years ago but that particular day was different because Tomiwa didn't just talk as usual, tears were gently pouring from his eyes.
"Dad! Dad! It's okay; we are here. Please wake up," Sandra tapped her father severally.
"He must be having a dream about mom again," Susan muttered.
Tomiwa finally woke up and didn't stop sobbing as he narrated how he had a series of confusing dreams.
"My wife was here; your mother came home. Did you see her?" Tomiwa asked the twins, and his mouth reeks of alcohol.
"Dad, mom is gone. It's been over a decade now," Sandra replied.
"We miss her just like you do, but she won't be happy seeing you like this," Susan added.
"It might be over a decade, but the wound remains fresh in my heart. I miss her every second of my life," Tomiwa replied, and the girls hugged their dad while consoling him.
He managed to get out of bed even though the twins persuaded him to rest a little and went straight to his drawer.
Tomiwa took his diary and settled on the single sofa in his bedroom to write down his dream about Janet, which has become a routine for him for the past 12 years.
Tomiwa gently opened the pages of the diary while the girls watched him, and a gentle breeze swept through the room. Everyone was surprised as the breeze turned the pages of the diary quickly to the end, and Tomiwa was dumbfounded by what he saw.
The twins moved closer to see what made their father speechless, and they were shocked as well.
"You are not alone, and I will always be by your side till we reunite again in spirit," Tomiwa read slowly.
"This is Janet's handwriting; she was here. I felt her strong presence." Tomiwa stuttered and broke into tears again as he looked around the bedroom.
The twins couldn't hold back tears as well since it became clear that their father's claims about their deceased mother's spirit hanging around them weren't influenced by alcohol or depression.
It's a poignant story that surprised us a few times. I'm pleased it ended with a mystical event. Nice writing! By the way, I also love growing tomatoes.
Wow, you must have lot of tomatoes in your garden. I have a small garden but haven't planted tomatoes yet.
The story is quite emotional and losing someone dear to us can leave us with hard feeling that can live with us for a long time.
Thanks for reading my story, I really appreciate it.
I do hope Tomiwa finds happiness once more and I wish the same for his daughters. Hopefully they'll get over the terrible pain.
Getting over such pain can be quite challenging but holding on to it wouldn't help. Tomiwa held onto the pain for over a decade and life has never been the same after the death of his wife.
It's time for a change.
A great story! I shed some tears too.
Sorry I made you feel that way, I believe you enjoyed the story as well. Thanks for your time.