Chapter 27
“Welcome to KARE 11 Morning. Today, we have a special treat. We have
with us Julie Peterson who is the DFL endorsed candidate for the 1st
District Congressional seat. Thanks for taking the time to speak to us this
morning.” Linda, the show’s host smiled warmly.
“Thanks for the invitation, Linda.” Julie smiled back.
“You’ve just come off the State convention a couple days ago. What was
that experience like?”
“It was wonderfully dysfunctional.” Julie chuckled. “Our party has a lot of
passion but sometimes we seem to fumble with the organizational part of
this process. That being said, I got to meet a lot of state delegates and
received a fabulous reception from my acceptance speech, so I’m ready
and raring to go.”
“Now I know you came to be the nominee under…unique circumstances.
Are you concerned about facing off against the Republican nominee?”
“I would be making a grave mistake to underestimate Michelle’s abilities.
She’s served one term in the state Senate and appears to be a formidable
opponent by all accounts.” Julie replied.
“That leads me to my next question. How do you think this campaign might
be different from others since both candidates are women?” Linda smiled
again and Julie felt her teeth begin to ache.
“I’m anticipating more substantive debates and campaigning even when
there’s a sporting event on TV.” Julie hedged.
“Do you think that two women will have a more difficult time engaging the
public on serious issues like national security and budget issues?”
“Nooooooo. No, I really don’t, Linda. I think the electorate is very
comfortable seeing women in political roles. The people that I’ve been
talking to about the issues concerning Minnesotans don’t care about the
candidate’s gender. And working for Senator Stackhouse in Washington
gave me an opportunity to work on these issues directly.”
“Well, that’s very good for you isn’t it?” Linda asked and Julie had to freeze
the expression on her face to keep from rolling her eyes.
“It is indeed.” Julie agreed.
“But that’s not the only thing good thing that’s happening, is it? The story of
your engagement to your campaign manager has been all over the news.”
Linda’s eyes were sparkling in anticipation now.
“I never dreamed my engagement announcement would go out over the
local news.” Julie admitted and felt queasy.
“That’s so exciting!” Linda beamed. “So this has been a life changing week
for you in more ways than one, hasn’t it? How long have you been dating?”
“I’m not sure I’d describe our time together as ‘dating’ Linda. But working on
a campaign together gave us plenty of time to get to know one another
very well.”
“That sounds very romantic.”
“Hardly. Dinner’s out consisted of drive thru meals. There wasn’t time for
movies or concerts. The advantages we had were lots of hours traveling
together and endless discussions about issues that are important to us.”
“That’s just fascinating. Have you set a date yet?”
“No, the only date we’re concentrating on right now is November 5th.” Julie
smiled until she noticed the blank expression on Linda’s face. “Election
Day?”
“Election Day, sure. That will be exciting too.”
“I think it will be, Linda. We have a lot of important decisions to make about
where we’re going as a country and what role Minnesota will play in that
dynamic. People want to make sure their health care system will cover them
when they’re sick. They want to make sure their children are getting good
educations so they can compete in a global market. And they want to
continue to enjoy our beautiful lakes, rivers, and campgrounds free from
toxic waste and pollution. We have a lot of important issues to discuss.”
“Yes, I can see how those would be very important.” Linda nodded gravely.
“Now I hear you’ll be at the Great Minnesota Get Together; our State fair?”
“Yes, I certainly will. It’s a family tradition that I never miss. I’ll be near the
DFL booth stuffing Sweet Martha’s Cookies into my mouth. I’d love for
everyone to stop by and talk with me about the election. In the meantime,
they can visit my website: www.PetersonforMinnesota.com
to read more about me and my positions. There’s also a link to leave a
question or concern so I hope people will take advantage of that.”
“Good. I see Fred has your website address on our screen now, and there’
ll be a link to it from our home page as well. Now you come back when you
have that Wedding date set and we’ll talk some more.” Linda smiled once
more and patted Julie’s hand. “Thank you Julie Peterson for joining me this
morning. We’ll have a short break and when we come back…the secret to
the perfect omelet!” As soon as the ‘live’ light went out Julie pulled off her
mic and after a quick thanks to Linda ran like a bat out of hell from the
studio.
“Don’t EVER do that to me again!” Julie rounded on Brian as soon as she
saw him.
“It was Billy’s idea!” He pointed to the man in question. When Billy shot him
an exasperated look, Brian shrugged as if to say ‘better you than me’.
“Billy….” Julie growled.
“Highest rated morning show in Minnesota.” Billy replied, taking the heat for
now.
“Of course it is. Where else can you discover the secret to the perfect
omelet?” Julie said sarcastically.
“It’s the highest rated morning show in Minnesota.” Billy repeated.
“So now the greatest number of people watching morning shows in
Minnesota know that I’m getting married and I have a booth at the State
Fair.”
“Hey, you got some issues in there too. I distinctly heard you bring up
women’s rights when you talked about the electorate being ready to accept
women who talk about national security and budgets.” Billy replied.
“What Billy is saying is what I said to you before you left for this thing. It was
a morning show; they just want to get to know you. You don’t have to hit
anyone over the head at this hour of the morning.” Brian added; to which
Julie responded by hitting him on the shoulder.
“Hey!” he objected.
“You also talked about health care, education and the environment, as well
as a shameless plug for your website.” Billy tried to distract her. “Very well
done, don’t you think so Brian?”
“She was fabulous.” Brian agreed quickly.
“I want Holly. There’s too much testosterone around me. Where did Holly
go?”
“She was going to hang around the set a minute to find out the secret to a
perfect omelet.” Brian answered and got hit again for his trouble.
“It’s going to look like our candidate has anger issues. Can’t you get her to
stop that?” Billy complained.
“I think so.” Brian replied and turned quickly to back Julie against the
nearest wall and kissed her until she couldn’t speak anymore.
“Now that’s what I’m talking about.” Billy quipped as he continued walking
past them laughing. New love was so great, he thought.
******************************************************
“Josh, I was surprised to get your message.” Stanley said as a greeting.
“I didn’t leave you a message. Donna did.” Josh corrected.
“Ah. That doesn’t surprise me nearly as much.” Stanley noted. “So why did
Donna leave me a message under your name?”
“She thinks I need to talk to you.” Josh said shortly.
“It’s been my experience that Donna is usually right about these things.
Why does she think you need to talk to me?”
“SHE thinks I need to talk to you because I’ve been diagnosed with
hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.” Josh told him.
“Wow. That’s a conversation starter.” Stanley replied. “What’s the
prognosis?”
“They changed medications for now, but they want to do some kind of
pacemaker soon...they also said..they said maybe a heart transplant down
the road depending on how I do with the pacemaker.”
“What did they attribute the hypertrophic cardiomyopathy to?” Stanley
asked, already knowing the answer.
“They thought it might be from the surgery after Rosslyn.”
“They thought it might be?” Stanley repeated.
“It probably is.” Josh admitted.
“It probably is.” Stanley repeated again. “So I imagine you’ve got specialists
lined up and you’ve got Donna with you. What do you need me for?”
“Good question.” Josh grumbled.
“Josh, if you’re okay with this, you don’t need to make a call to me just to
satisfy Donna.”
“Yeah, only I kind of do. It’s kind of like restitution.”
Stanley laughed. “Restitution for what, exactly?”
“I didn’t tell Donna about the diagnosis and when she found out on her own
she was supremely pissed. So now I’m talking to you, sleeping on an
adjustable bed, by myself by the way, and adhering to whatever ridiculous
dietary program she puts me on. Apparently this week is all about
macrobiotics.”
“Okay.” Stanley laughed again. “Sounds like things are going great. Give
me a call yourself in the future if you think you need me.”
“Wait!” Josh called out before Stanley could hang up.
“What?” Stanley asked.
“I can’t get off the phone after a couple minutes! She’ll know I bagged on
the whole conversation with you and then I’ll be in trouble again.”
“So I’m supposed to stay on the line and pretend to discuss issues until
your restitution is fulfilled?”
“Well it sounds bad when you say it like that. Can’t we just talk for awhile?”
“Sure, I’m billing you for the hour anyway. What would you like to talk
about?”
“I don’t know. Aren’t you supposed to guide this conversation?”
“I can, sure. Why didn’t you tell Donna about the diagnosis?”
“I didn’t want to worry her.”
“Ah, very noble.” Stanley replied.
“It is.” Josh argued.
“I know.” Stanley shot back.
“You had a tone or something.” Josh accused.
“Maybe the tone was a result of the fact that while I know that you didn’t
want to worry Donna, I think your main reason for keeping her in the dark
was that if you told Donna, then you’d have to deal with it. By not telling
Donna you could avoid having to make decisions and maybe even lifestyle
changes.”
“You suck, you know that?”
“I do, in fact, know that. Are you going to quit your job?”
“Man, you go right for the jugular, don’t you?” Josh noted.
“Well...that’s why I get the big bucks...Are you?”
“I haven’t decided yet.” Josh said defensively.
“What does Donna think?”
“We haven’t discussed it yet.”
“Ah, healthy communication; good.” Stanley deadpanned.
“Will you stop with the ‘ah’ comments?” Josh requested. “I just told her
about it yesterday. We haven’t had a chance to talk about it much.”
“Which takes us back to why you didn’t want to tell Donna.”
“You already told me why I didn’t want to tell Donna.” Josh replied.
“I did. You didn’t. Have you told your mother? The kids? Your colleagues?”
“If I didn’t tell Donna I sure as hell didn’t tell my mother or the kids. Toby
knows, and Liz figured things out, but otherwise nobody at the office knows.”
“How are you going to explain things to the kids?” Stanley asked.
“I’m not sure. Donna and I-“
“Haven’t discussed it yet, yeah.” Stanley finished for him. “You and Donna
don’t seem to have discussed much at all. That doesn’t sound like you two.”
“We’ve talked a ton. We made plans with Toby about how to take work off
my plate, talked about medical appointments and different surgical options,
we talk constantly about what I’m eating and we talk about work.” Josh
expounded.
“And yet, you tell me, you haven’t discussed the most personal, critical
issues, and you’re sleeping apart.” Stanley noted.
“It wasn’t my idea.” Josh muttered. “She SAYS she doesn’t want to disturb
me. She says it’s very important to get rest.”
“That’s true, it is, but I recall after Rosslyn you told me you rested better
when Donna was with you.”
“Yeah.” Josh replied softly remembering those days and how much he
depended on Donna for his sanity and peace of mind.
“You could ask her to sleep with you.” Stanley suggested.
“I’m not supposed to engage in that particular activity right now, Stanley.”
Josh joked.
“You’re not nearly as funny as you think you are.” Stanley replied.
“You just haven’t developed an appreciation for my humor, that’s all.”
“Has ANYONE developed that sort of appreciation?” Stanley asked.
“Donna.” Josh answered without even thinking. “My kids most days.”
“And yet you chose to keep all of them in the dark about your illness.”
“I…I don’t really have the best track record with hanging on to people who
are close to me, Stanley.”
“So, you kept them in the dark because you were afraid they’d lose you or
that you’d lose them.”
“What’s the difference?”
“The difference is in who does the leaving, Josh. Were you afraid they’d
leave you when you needed them most?”
“They wouldn’t do that.” Josh said quietly.
“No, they wouldn’t, but weren’t you just a little afraid that they would? Or
that Donna would? Isn’t that why you were isolating yourself at work and
taking on clients by yourself?”
“You cheated, Stanley. You already spoke to Donna.” Josh accused.
“You’re not talking to the paper boy, Josh.” Stanley reminded him. “Donna
left you before. Maybe she’ll leave you again.”
“That was different.” Josh shot back angrily. “We weren’t together then.
She left the job, not me.”
“Did that matter? You’d been passed over for COS, the President was
having a severe MS episode and she left you.”
“Why are you doing this? Why bring this up now?”
“Old wounds, Josh; just like Rosslyn. They keep popping up in our psyche.
It sounds to me like you’re dealing with a whole slew of them. But what do I
know?” Stanley explained.
There was silence on the other end of the phone but Stanley let it just hang
there, knowing silence was as valuable a tool as words in his profession.
“I don’t want to deal with this right now. I don’t want to think about another
heart surgery or, God, a heart transplant. If you had any idea what it was
like last time…and I’m a hell of a lot older now than the first time around.”
“I don’t blame you. None of this is going to enjoyable, but there is a great
advantage in dealing with it and dealing with it now.”
“Which is what exactly?”
“You get to live.”
“What if I don’t?” Josh’s question was so quiet Stanley could hardly make
out the words.
Again, Stanley let the silence play out.
“Nobody can guarantee any of us another day on this planet. I’m not going
to ply you with statistics about success rates or percentages with these
types of surgery because your fear isn’t logical, it’s emotional.”
“No kidding.” Josh said sarcastically.
“I can tell you that emotional fear is ALWAYS reduced when it’s spoken
about and shared with people we love and trust. I’d even bet that Donna
has plenty of these same fears. Your children, when you tell them, will also
be afraid for their Dad and what this will mean for their family. You have to
establish a climate of trust and openness in your home so everyone can
talk about their fears and you can be sources of strength for one another.”
“Geez, Stanley, I think that is the longest speech I’ve ever heard you
make.” Josh teased.
“Again with the misdirection.” Stanley sighed.
“I heard you.” Josh sobered again. “I need to talk to my family.”
“Yes, you do. The sooner the better.” Stanley advised.
**********************************************************
“You’re home again?” Tori asked when she got home from school to find
her dad and her brother building something with Lego’s.
“Yes, I’m home again.” Josh confirmed. “How was school?”
“We had a mixed up day. It sucked.” Tori announced. “What are you
making?”
“I don’t know. What are we making Jake?” Josh asked his son who
shrugged in response.
“You need to pick what you’re making first.” Tori directed.
“We like deciding as we go along. Why was your day mixed up?” Josh
asked trying to distract her from her Lego rules.
“Stupid Dr. Seuss Birthday party.” Tori grumbled and she sounded so much
like him when he was annoyed that he had to pull her into a hug and just
hold her, which surprisingly, she allowed. “We changed our whole day for
the party at the end and everybody weared hats except me cause I don’t
like those stupid things on my head and then I got teased cause I wasn’t
wearing mine.” Tori held up a paper version of the hat worn in The Cat in
the Hat books.
“That does sound like a bad day.” Josh acknowledged.
“I want the hat!” Jake spoke up grabbing for the object.
“Ask nice.” Tori instructed him.
“Please, can I have the hat, Towee? Jake practically begged and Josh
chuckled watching Tori consider the merits of giving the hat she hated to
Jake.
“Okay, but be careful cause it rips.” Tori handed it over regally like a
Queen bestowing a favor upon a peasant.
“That’s very nice to share your special hat, Tori.” Josh encouraged her.
“It’s a stupid hat anyway.” Tori shrugged. “It’s time for snack.”
“Yes, it is.” Josh got up and walked with her to the kitchen. Josh decided to
make microwave popcorn and started the timer.
“How come you’re home again today? All week you’re home. Are you sick?”
No time like the present, Josh figured. “You know what, Tori? I am a little
sick.”
“You should lay down and I’ll bring you your snack on a tray.” She offered.
“Thanks kiddo, but it’s not that kind of sick. My heart is feeling sick so I
need to stay home and rest for awhile. Then I might need to-“
“Hi guys.” Donna interrupted brightly sending a warning look to Josh.
“I had a sucky Dr. Seuss day, Mommy.” Tori announced as she ran to
Donna for a hug and kiss.
“I’m sorry to hear that sweetie.” Donna frowned to show her sadness. “What’
s for snack today?”
“Popcorn!” Tori reported happily. “Daddy’s making it, then I’m going to
bring it to him on a tray cause his heart is feeling sick.”
“Uh-huh.” Donna sent another look to Josh. “Go get Jake and tell him it’s
time for snack.” Once Tori had left the room, Donna rounded on Josh. “Are
you kidding me? What are you thinking telling her that stuff? She, of all our
kids, will flip out the most. Don’t you think that’s something we should
discuss with them together?”
“Sure, but since we’re not doing anything together, I figured I’d go out on a
limb with this one.” Josh shot back in his frustration. First, she was angry
that he wasn’t telling everybody, now she was angry because he was.
“No.” Donna countered and got the popcorn into a bowl before busying
herself getting juice poured for the kids.
“No?” Josh repeated. “That’s it? Just ‘no’?”
“I don’t see why we should get the kids all worked up before we know what’s
going to happen.” Donna replied without looking at Josh.
“We do know what’s going to happen, Donna. We’re not sure when yet, but
we do know the what. Stanley said we should talk to the kids about it and at
first I wasn’t sure he was right, but I’ve been thinking about it for a few days
now and I think we should.”
“So you just get to decide that by yourself too?” Donna replied angrily.
“Donna…” Josh came up behind her and held her even when she struggled
to shake him off. “Donna, you’re right. We’ll talk to them together, but we
need to do it soon.” He kissed the top of her head.
“Snack time!” Jake screeched as he careened into the kitchen with a Lego
in each hand, his sister right behind him.
Tori attacked the popcorn like she hadn’t eaten in weeks.
“Didn’t you have snack at school, Tori?” Donna asked.
“They made Green Eggs and Ham for snack.” She responded with her
mouth full of popcorn. Jake found this hilariously funny and laughed so
hard Josh had to pat his back to keep him from choking.
“Let me guess, you wouldn’t eat green eggs or green ham?” Josh
hypothesized.
“They were GREEN Daddy. Eggs and ham should NEVER be green.”
“I’m with you on that one.” Donna muttered.
***************************************************
“Grandma!” Ally shouted with glee when she opened the front door. The
young girl was enveloped in a tight hug before she was released and
replaced by her older brother.
“I swear the two of you have grown in these last few weeks.” Ruth exclaimed.
“Grandma’s here!” Ben shouted into the house. Tori and Jake came
running.
“Where’s Jenny?” Ruth asked.
“She went to Wisconsin for a visit.” Ben explained.
“Then who’s here with you kids? Your mom?” Ruth guessed.
“Mom isn’t home from work yet. Dad’s here.” Ally told her.
“Your dad is here at 3 in the afternoon?”
“All day. All week. On account of his heart being sick.” Tori added and Ruth
felt dizzy with concern.
“His heart is sick, baby?” Ruth leaned closer to her granddaughter.
“Mom! Hi…” Josh hurried into the room but realized he was already too late.
“Mom, it’s fine…or it’s going to be fine. I’m okay.”
“I see.” When his mother did this closed lip routine it was never good.
“Ben, Ally, get Grandma’s bags and bring them to the guest room, okay?
Mom, come in and sit down.”
“This is why I was invited here? So you could tell me about your heart
problems in person?”
“Mom…Hold on a minute.” Josh suggested.
“The doctor is going to make his heart better.” Tori added. “But he has to
go to the hospital first.”
“Tori! Please stop talking. I want to talk to Grandma alone for a minute.
Why don’t you go up and find a book you can read to Grandma when we’re
done talking.” Tori reluctantly did as she was asked, Jake trailing behind
her.
“What is going on Joshua?”
“When I was in the hospital, they did some tests and diagnosed me with a
heart condition that can lead to heart failure. They think the condition was
caused from the scarring of my first heart surgery. They’re going to have to
do another surgery to put in a kind of pacemaker.”
“You knew this when I was in Minnesota? And you two just kept that from
me?”
“I did. Donna didn’t know either.”
“You didn’t tell Donna? Oh, Joshua.” His mother lamented. “When will this
surgery happen?”
“We haven’t scheduled it yet, Mom. We still have another appointment to
get through before they decide which kind of pacemaker would work best
for me.”
“Okay. Your uncle Frank had a pacemaker put in. He was home the next
day.” Ruth told her son and he smiled. Typically, Ruth Lyman moved from
angry to consoling in the blink of an eye.
“Yeah?” Josh replied.
“How is Donna with all this?”
“She’s fine, except for the part where she’s pissed at me. You know Donna.
She’s taken charge of everything and keeping all the information and
appointments organized… insurance papers filed.” Josh grumbled and
Ruth figured her son would like more attention paid to him and less to the
papers but stuck with the main point.
“I do know Donna and she couldn’t possibly be fine with all this.”
“Maybe not ‘fine’ but she’s handling it all with her usual efficiency.”
Ruth took her sons chin in her hand and turned it to face her; their noses
inches apart. “Then you aren’t looking carefully enough.”
“She’s taken over at work and moved into the girl’s room so she doesn’t
bother me at night.” Josh caught the disbelieving look his mother gave him.
“You haven’t seen or spoken to her, Mom.” Josh argued.
“I saw her at GW. After those bastards shot you? I watched her for hours.
She was beside herself with grief thinking she was going to lose you. This,
before you two ever even acknowledged what you were to each other…
Now, you’re married, have four beautiful children together, and built a
company together. Now, you think she could possibly be fine with all this!
Idiot.” Ruth rebuked her son but softened the blow with a kiss to his cheek.
“I’ll cop to the idiot part, but Donna acting like she has everything together
on this.”
“An act is exactly what it is. You’ll see.” Ruth predicted.