Just like every day over the past three years, Maggy went to the park to sit on her favorite bench. She was deep in her seventies, but it was a kind of ritual that she followed every day.
She loved to sit in the shade to watch the birds and she always brought some birdseed with her to feed the birds.
Everyone called her the bird lady, but she didn’t really care. It made her happy and that was all that counted. She didn’t bother anyone, and she hardly ever spoke to anyone. She just loved to sit there and listen to the birds and the wind whispering in the trees.
This park is where she met her husband. They came to this bench every Sunday to eat ice cream, and she felt so close to him here. It was their little place.
When they found out that they couldn’t have children, she came to sit on this very same bench to cry her heart out.
When her husband had to go away to war, she came to sit here and cry, and when her husband passed away three years ago, she found her sanity again here on this very bench. She always felt close to him here.
If this bench could talk, it would tell her whole life story.
Today she sat a little longer than usual. It was a bit chilly, and she could see the rain coming. She was glad she brought her jersey with her.
She sighed and was just about to get up when she heard a voice next to her. When she turned, she saw Paul sitting there holding out his hand. Suddenly she didn't feel the cold anymore.
“I came to fetch you.”
She smiled back and held out her hand. She felt the rush of that familiar feeling going down her spine.
"Come, it's time for us to go home together."
It started to rain, but no one saw them running across the park into the light. They were as happy as the day they met.
The next morning the caretaker found her body right there on the bench. She still had a handful of birdseed in her hand, but she had the biggest smile on her face.
