The man looked up because he felt the weight of someone’s eyes looking upon him. The older woman looked so familiar but he could not place her. He didn’t recognize her until their eyes met and recognition finally hit because her eyes were identical to his eyes. It was his mother whom he hadn’t seen in about 20 years. He nearly dropped the packages he was holding due to the shock of seeing her.

“Hi, Mom,” he said.

His mother could barely believe her eyes. She hadn’t seen her son since he was a young man and now he was a grown man. He even had some gray in his hair. She wanted to hug him but the packages she was holding wouldn’t allow to her to. This was not the way either of them imagined seeing each other again after so many years. They had both imagined something other than just bumping into each other in a crowded post office downtown.

"How have you been, son? How are the wife and kids?" she asked. Her voice broke on the word kids because she regretted not having met them yet.

"I've been okay. I'd love to ask how you are doing but I really need to get going," he said.

He began to walk away when he heard her call out to him, "Why didn't you ever call or stop by?"

Just like that all the thoughts and feelings from twenty years ago came flooding back to him. He felt the same sadness and anger he had felt on that day all those years ago. He walked out of the post office and soon heard his mother following behind. 

"You can't stay mad at me forever. I have the right to be in your life and to know my grandchildren," she said.
"You know what you did, Mom. Not even a month after dad died you started dating again!" he argued.
"We knew your father was dying and his final wish for me was to not live the rest of my life alone. He asked me to find happiness with someone else and I did," she pleaded.

"I didn't know that but you didn't even let his body get cold before you were out on the town looking for someone else," he said angrily with tears in his eyes.

"You know nothing about it. I was lonely and I missed your father. I was just trying to fulfill his last wish. When you found out you acted like a child and left and you're still acting like a child. You're in your forties now it's time to stop acting like you're a little boy. I want to be in your life and in your kids lives but you need to forgive me first,” she said. “Do you think you’ll ever be able to forgive me?”

“I’ll have to think about it, Mom.” he said. He turned away from his mother and began to walk away. As he walked away tears cascaded down his face. Anyone who was walking by could see the regret, the sadness, and the anger that was all over his face. He had a big decision to make. Will I forgive her or will I keep the distance I’ve been keeping for the past 20 years? he thought. He turned to her and she knew him well enough from his childhood to recognize the look on his face and what he was about to say.

The End.