Cole

by Autumn Gunn

  “Sounds like a humble guy.”

  “100%. And that’s why people love him.”

  “Wait. You run at night?”

  “Sometimes.”

  “What about Jasmine? You leave her here?”

  “No way. She comes with me?”

  “Your twelve year old daughter goes on runs around 4am?”

  “Sometimes when I can’t sleep or when I’m returning from a mission my body clock is off. She might hear me and come into the living room where I’ll be reading a book. We’ll talk and sometimes she suggests a run. To get the day started off right.”

  “Wow. She really is a mover and shaker.”

  “You can say that again. Her energy knows no limits.”

  “Ok. So Fiesty Fido’s it is. Just not at 4am.”

  We both laughed.

  “Good choice. You can’t go wrong there, but just to let you know you can’t pick your drink.”

  “This gets even weirder. What do you mean?”

  “You just tell him what you want, coffee or tea or whatever, and he brings it to you.”

  “But how does he know what type?”

  “He looks at you for a few seconds. He says he can tell if you have any deficiencies and will base the selection on that. Or if not he picks something that makes sense based on the season or other factors.”

  “So basically what he says goes?”

  “Not basically. That’s how it is.”

  “And if you don’t like it?”

  “You don’t pay, but I think you’d never be welcomed back again.”

  “But you’re not sure?”

  “No, because I’ve never heard of anyone not paying. The guy is spot on with his choices. Sometimes when you’re drinking what he brings you’re not 100% sure, but shortly after you finish your body feels really good.”

  “Does he serve any food?”

  “No. Just edamame.”

  “Beans?”

  “Come one man. Get some culture.”

  “Says the corn fed Midwest boy living in the middle of the Heartland of America.”

  “True, but his corn fed boy has been all over the world. And he paid attention!”

  “Point taken.”

  “And attention to other things than just girls.”

  “OK, OK. I get it.”

  I walked out the back door with my phone and hit reply on the message.

  We can go to Fiesty Fido’s tomorrow at 7pm.

  Send.

  That was easy. It did feel strange to write in civilian time though. Been a few years since I thought in anything other than 24 hour days.

  Beep.

  Wow. She had already replied.

  See you then.

  My heartbeat picked up. It was confirmed. Our first real date, or at least a chance to set things straight. This was going to be interesting to say the least.

  Chapter 8

  I decided to walk into town. It was a beautiful day and the walk would calm me before meeting with Carissa. I couldn’t help but wonder why I hadn’t heard back from Rachel yet. She did say the owner was out of town, but I was expecting to hear back from her at the end of the day at the latest. By her promptness I guessed likely even sooner, but it wasn’t to be.

  I arrived in front of Fiesty Fido’s at 18:30. Early by 30 minutes. Old habits die hard. I decided to walk around the area for 20 minutes first to pass by some time.

  The area around Fiesty Fido’s seemed very quaint. Everything was very cared for and had an old, rustic feel. Nothing modern and definitely not any strip mall or McMansion feel. The shops seemed worn in, but cared for. Decorations were hand chosen to match the theme of each establishment. It reminded me of Corona Del Mar, California. Just up the road about 90 minutes from Coronado. Coronado. Where SEALs are made.

  I looked at my Timex. It was twelve till. I high-tailed it back to Fiesty Fido’s. Always 10 minutes early. If you’re not 10 minutes early, you’re late. Just in time. I entered at exactly 18:50. My eyes immediately found Carissa. She was sitting in a corner facing the door. She had already removed her shoes and was sitting with her legs crossed on the mat on the floor. I gave her a small grin and removed my shoes, placing them in one of the wooden shoeboxes at the entrance. I walked directly to her. She stood and extended her hand.

  “Thanks for meeting with me.”

  “My pleasure. Glad we are doing this.”

  “Me to. I’m sorry for––”

  “Please. Let’s leave the past in the past. You acted on the best information you had. I understand. Let’s let that go and enjoy our drinks.”

  “Deal.”

  Our hands were still together from the handshake. At the same time we both did the oversized handshake kids do when they make a deal with one another. A big sweeping movement upward and then returning our hands to the starting position. We both laughed and then took a seat.

  “I’m surprised you knew about this place.”

  “I have a few tricks up my sleeve.”

  “That and I’m sure you’re trained in reconnaissance. I have a feeling once you see something it sticks.”

  “True, but I have to be honest. Jax recommended this place.”

  “Jax. The guy I though was you?”

  “That’s the one.”

  We both laughed.

  “There are worse guys to be mistaken for.”

  “I’m sure. I don’t know him that well, obviously not by sight, but I loved his home. It was the perfect place for Emily and Ethan’s reception.”

  “Beautiful, isn’t it? His grandfather built that place. I’m sure it will be Jasmine’s one day, and then her kids, and so on. That’s the kind of place you keep in the family forever.”

  “And your family. You said you were staying in the guestroom. Do you have a home somewhere?”

  “Jumping right into the serious questions, aren’t we? And we haven’t even started drinking.”

  “You know they don’t have alcohol here.”

  “Not even a little Baileys for my coffee?”

  “Not even a little Baileys for your coffee. Takumi is all about health. I think he’s in his 80s, but there’s no way you can guess. He looks so young and fit. There’s definitely a spring in his step.”

  “That’s good. I’m also really interested in this kind of lifestyle. I want to bring something like that here to this community.”

  “Something? Like what?”

  “A martial arts gym. Targeted mostly to kids. It’s easier to establish good habits when they’re younger. Plus there’s a lot of interest in MMA right now so bringing in the boys should be easy.”

  “And the girls will be interested in it for a workout and self defense.”

  “Exactly, but I never think of it as a workout. I know it’s a common term, but I always think in terms of training. You’re training your body and your mind for what may or may not, ever come. But you are prepared. You are trained.”

  “Sounds a bit formal.”

  “It is, but that’s the truth. I can understand the value of lifting heavy weights for certain things, but for a large majority of the population martial arts, meditation, and healthy eating would be a huge step in the right direction. For some people that’s really all they’d need.”

  “You sound really passionate about it.”

  “I am. If we can just get them in the door, I can do the rest. Once they see the changes it will be too difficult to stop.”

  “They teach us that if we can build a habit in our kids for three weeks it’s more likely to stay.”

  “That makes sense, but I know of an even simpler way.”

  “Do tell.”

  “Take a piece of paper. Draw a calendar. A full year. Don’t print one. Draw one. Each day a box. The number of the day in the middle. For each day you accomplish your goal you put an X in that box. The entire box. Crossed out.”

  “That’s it. It sounds too simple.”

  “It’s psychological. Once you get that chain of Xs going
the last thing in the world you will want to do is break that change. No way you want to start over. Plus people are resistant to change. The ironic part is they’re actually changing their behavior on their own, and they’re so motivated because they don’t want that chain of Xs to break.”

  “I never though of that. That’s really interesting. Did you learn that in the SEALs?”

  “No. Jerry Seinfeld actually.”

  “Jerry Seinfeld? You know Jerry Seinfeld?”

  “No, but I watched an interview of his. It was genius. It also reminded me how some SEALs will draw a calendar in the desert and then cross off the days until they get to go home and see their family. It keeps you going and also helps with time. Since those days are so long, hot, monotonous, and repetitive you can literally almost lose track of time. So if you ask a SEAL team member how many days he has left he’ll say something like 147 and a wake-up. The wake-up just makes it feel like one day closer.”

  “Sounds really simple. Simple, but effective.”

  “Hello. My name is Takumi. Welcome to my shop. Can I get you a tea or coffee?” Takumi had arrived at our table and I hadn’t even noticed. It was almost impossible for anyone to sneak up on me, but I was so engulfed in the conversation I didn’t even notice.

  “Hello Takumi. I’m Cole and this is Carissa. Nice to meet you.”

  “Nice to meet you, Cole.”

  “Can we get two coffees?”

  “Yes, but I think maybe you will want to try the tea. It is very good today.”

  “OK, let’s give it a shot.”

  And with that Takumi was gone.

  “Why didn’t he speak to you? Because you’re a woman?”

  “No. You said nice to meet you. I’ve already met him before so he didn’t acknowledge that in my regard. I think he would be embarrassed if he acknowledged that because it would mean he forgot who I am. And he never forgets.”

  “What’s his secret? Ginseng?”

  We both laughed.

  “I think he has a bunch of them, but he’s not going to tell.”

  We laughed again.

  “Actually, now that I think about it it makes sense. It’s like your Jerry Seinfeld calendar. He may not have the calendar, but he’s crossing off every day. Every day he exercises, eats right, meditates, interacts with people and the community…it all makes sense.”

  “Exactly. A lot of things in life are simple, not easy. We know what we should do. It’s the everyday grind of the execution that makes it hard.”

  “You’re right. I wish I got get that through to my students.”

  “Don’t they listen to you?”

  “They do, but they’re kids you know. They’re interested in their phones, sports, Taylor Swift…that kind of stuff.”

  I didn’t reply.

  “You’re awfully quiet. What are you thinking?”

  “Maybe there’s a huge opportunity here.”

  “How so?”

  “I can come speak to your students. I wouldn’t wear my uniform, but I could tell some stories and show some photos. Storytelling and pictures are two great ways to inspire action.”

  “That could work. Actually that’s a great idea.”

  “And I’m a big guy, so people seem to always pay a bit more attention.”

  “You’ve got me thinking.”

  “About what?”

  “At school we just recently started a program called CardioKids. It’s a 20-minute cardio program that the kids can do at recess. We’re having a really tough time with sign-ups. Most kids would rather play on their phones during recess.”

  “Elementary school kids have phones?”

  “Yeah. It starts out good. As a way to keep in touch with parents or in case of emergences, but once they break through any parental controls and start downloading apps they’re playing games and chatting all day long. It’s like a leash.”

  “Sounds terrible.”

  “Horrible. It really is. Many are missing out on building face-to-face social skills that they’re going to need later.”

  “We’ve got to do something about that.”

  I saw a hand reach over my shoulder and place a teapot on the table followed by two teacups. Thankfully I didn’t have a flashback and flip out. I don’t like people coming up from behind and Takumi had done it twice already in less than 10 minutes.

  “Arigato.”

  “Arigato.”

  Takumi was gone as quickly as he had appeared.

  “Presentation is definitely nice. Shall we give it a try?”

  “Let’s. I can’t remember the last time I had tea. I’m a coffee guy.”

  “But you know how to say thank you in Japanese.”

  “Always a good word to know. In any language.”

  We poured each other’s tea and raised our glasses for a quick cheers. We took a sip.

  The minute it hit my lips I knew this was something special. It had a woodsy taste, but very crisp. It reminded me of Paraguayan mate, but sharper. Sharper, but somehow pleasing. It was just the right temperature. Warm and soothing in my mouth and throat. I felt like I didn’t even need to swallow. It just found it’s way to all the right places.

  “Amazing. Simply amazing.” Carissa said as she lowered her glass.

  “I don’t know much about tea, but I do know this is out-of-this-world good.”

  “No question. Takumi is truly a master at tea.”

  “Now I can’t wait to try this guy’s coffees.”

  “You mean coffee.”

  “What?”

  “Coffees would imply more than one. It’s coffee, because you get whatever he gives you.”

  We both laughed.

  “Well, when your tea service is this strong you’re allowed to do whatever you want.”

  “I like it actually. It removes all the choice. You just show up and are served. Of course it wouldn’t work if he didn’t know what he’s doing, but that’s never the case.”

  “And just imagine if we could get kids to try this. I’m sure he’s got something for post workout. Something a million times healthier than those sugar water choices they have to choose from.”

  “I like where this is going.”

  “And those drinks are cold, which are a shock to the system. He surely has something warm which is easier on the body and absorbs and gets to work much quicker.”

  “I thought you don’t know a lot about tea.”

  “I don’t but I know what the body needs to function. When you’re sitting in the same spot for hours and hours on end you learn a lot about yourself. And the human body.”

  “Can you share an example?”

  “Let’s say you’re observing someone or something in the desert. Mid-day sun overhead. No cover. You’re trying to blend into the ground or the side of a mountain. The human eye tracks for movement so you obviously can’t move. If you’re lucky you have a Camelback where you can periodically get some hydration. You might also have to take photos or other things.”

  “Dare I ask? What about the bathroom.”

  “I’m sure you can guess.”

  “Sounds terrible.”

  “It is.”

  “Don’t they have drones for that kind of reconnaissance work?”

  “They do, but in some cases they don’t make the most sense or they just can’t reach tight areas without upsetting the natural flow of things.”

  “So that’s when they send you in?”

  “That’s one of many things a SEAL might be required to do. Many, many, many things.”

  “And did you always know you wanted to live this kind of life?”

  “A SEAL?”

  “Not specifically, but that lifestyle.”

  “I knew I wanted to be my own man. Do my own thing. Not rely on my family or anyone else to make my way in this world. I was always fit and enjoyed the outdoors and helping others so it was a natural fit.”

  “I enjoy those things too, but I never considered swimming in piranha filled swamps to blow-
dart bad guys.”