EXTENDED EPILOGUE
Maple
Fourteen Years Later
“Guten Morgen.”
“Guten Morgen,” I say.
The mailman hands me the mail across the counter and I leave the post office ready to grab my supplies and head back up into the mountains.
But this is a different kind of mountain. This is the Swiss Alps in the region where they speak German.
After leaving my hometown we traveled for five months until we arrived here in Switzerland. We fell in love with the place immediately and even had our wedding here.
The air and water are clean. Everything runs on time and works and we’re free to do as we please up here.
I guess you can take the girl out of the mountains but you can’t take the mountain out of the girl. And that’s what brought me back.
I go out to the truck and look through the stack of mail. It’s mostly bills so I throw the stack on the passenger seat.
I turn to start the car, but then realize something's off. I look back at the stack of mail and see a pink letter with an address that’s been handwritten.
That’s odd.
I reach for it bringing it closer to my face. The letters are cursive, carefully done, and certainly look to be a woman’s handwriting. The postmark is from my home state, but not my hometown.
And it’s addressed to me. What in the world?
I open it and start reading.
Dear Mrs. Daniels,
My name is Erica Johnson.
I am glad to be able to write you this letter today. Without your husband I wouldn’t be able to. As a matter of fact without him I wouldn’t be able to do much, because I wouldn’t be alive.
I doubt he would ever tell you this, as I’ve learned he’s a very humble man, but he saved my life shortly before you left our state.
I’m sorry to track you down, and it took a considerable amount of work, but I just needed to thank you for what he did.
When my mother was pregnant with me she was under your husband’s care, like many women in our community. He was a very noble man. He worked around the clock with so many expectant mothers. My mom said it was literally like he was personally invested in the birth and life of each child, like me.
Unfortunately in the ninth month of my mother’s pregnancy and the day she was due to have me, she discovered my father had been cheating on her. She confronted him and one thing led to another. He beat her and kicked her and basically tried to do everything in his power to kill me that day.
The trauma sent my mother into labor and your husband rushed from his home at 3:30 a.m. to bring me into this world.
He spoke with my mother after the delivery and she told him what happened, and also that she didn’t want to press charges. At the time in our state it was the woman’s decision whether or not to press charges so she decided not to as she was scared and just wanted what was best for me at this point, well then my father wasn’t going to get into any trouble.
But there was a whole other kind of trouble waiting for him that morning. Your husband.
Apparently this wasn’t the first woman he’d done this to, unbeknownst to my mother, but apparently your husband did some quick research and figured this out.
He confronted my father and delivered a different kind of justice that neither my mother nor I were able to deliver ourselves. He fought for us and risked everything, including his medical license.
He was immediately suspended from the hospital, but over the next few weeks the nurses snuck him in and he did everything he could to save my life. It wasn’t looking good at first, but your husband literally is a miracle worker.
And today I start high school. I made the cross-country team and I hope to make the softball team in the spring. My mother and I are doing great now and I am so happy to be alive.
My first assignment in high school was from my English teacher who told us to write a letter to someone we need to thank, but haven’t.
For me there was only one choice.
So I just want to say thank you, to both him and to you. I wish you a wonderful life in Switzerland. I looked it up and it looks very beautiful there.
And my life is beautiful now too, thanks to “Doctor Delivery.” I will never forget what he did for me and for so many others.
Thank you and all the best,
Erica Johnson
Class of 2022
I moved the paper away just in time before my tears could smear the ink.
I’d always loved my husband so much and this letter was just a reminder as to why, not that I ever needed one.
I pulled out of the parking lot bawling my head off, but still able to drive.
Now I know why he must have pulled over at that police station all those years ago before we skipped town. And now I know why those U.S. Marshals came looking for him.
I drove home as fast as I could and as soon as I pulled up to the house I saw him there in the front yard using the two spruce trees in the front yard as imaginary goal posts as our five children took turns trying to kick soccer balls past him.
I was out of the car almost before I had it fully parked.
I ran straight to him and as soon as he saw me crying he stopped and turned toward me.
I jumped into his arms and hugged him so tight.
“Is everything okay?” he says.
“Always thinking of others first,” I say as I sniff. “Everything’s perfect, just like my love for you. I love you so, so much.”
“I love you too, beautiful.”
“Mom, why are you crying?”
I turn to face my kids.
“Because I’m so happy to be here with you all and to be married to your father.”
“But you’re crying. Aren’t you sad?”
“Sometimes tears can be tears of joy. It’s rare, but it’s rare moments like these that we live for.”
“Okay. Can we kick the ball again?”
“But with you every moment is a rare moment,” I whisper into his ear.
“And every moment with you and our beautiful family that you’ve blessed me with is absolutely priceless.”
“I love you.”
“I love you too. Forever.”