Voices in the bar dimmed to a low murmur as a man slowly drained his drink. A lone beam of sunlight penetrated the smoke, passing through the bar’s smoke and refracting into a rainbow on the wood in front of him. He looked down at the mini-rainbow on the worn bar and thought how life was a much like the bourbon filled prism in his hand. What seemed so apparent, his life as a whole, was made up of so much more than what apparent at first glance. Then he looked over at the darkness of nearby shadows. That’s where his soul was –and he just wanted to forget it all. Another sip of bourbon and the rainbow disappeared and so did part of his pain — at least temporarily. The warmth of the alcohol burned as it hit the bottom of his stomach. The relief he was searching for wasn’t at the bottom of this glass, but he’d keep searching one sip at a time. But so far that search had been fruitless. His pain was defying the cure. And once again, he had failed.
A stranger sat down next to him and started to strike up a conversation. He looked familiar to the man but he couldn’t quite place the face. “It’s hot out today, isn’t it?” The inquiry was met with awkward silence. The first man felt the smoothness of the glass as it touched his lips. Another drink, another wave of warmth. He had no time for cheery strangers. He just wanted to wallow in his misery alone.
“But you’re not alone,” the stranger replied to the answer that was never said aloud. “You are loved. And the answer you are searching for requires you to love back.”
“Great, this guy is trying to pick me up,” the first man thought.
The stranger laughed, “No, I’m not trying to pick you up. I just wanted you to know that you’re loved.” The stranger smiled and motioned to the bartender, “May I have a bottle of water?”
The bartender smirked and handed over the bottle. “Mucho gracias senior,” the stranger responded in the man’s native language.
“Love isn’t a noun, it’s a verb. The only way to put out the fire in your soul is to forgive those who trespassed against you. And it is done with this.” The stranger thumped his chest where his heart was.
The sunbeam illuminated first his heart and then his face.
The first man looked over at the stranger’s glowing face and as the light bathed it with warmth, he saw his wife, who had cheated on him and then his boss who had fired him. He then saw the bully in 6th grade and the football coach who tried to make him quit the team. He saw his mother with a paddle raised over her head. Pain shot through him. He wanted to forget so badly and quickly raised his glass to his lips but looked down in horror was he saw blood in the glass. Shocked, he pulled the glass away from his lips. And then just as quickly, it was back to bourbon.
“I love you,” the stranger’s voice repeated.” And as I have loved you, so you must love one another.”
He motioned to the bartender, “I’ll pick up his tab,” as he motioned to the first man.
The stranger smiled as he paid the man’s debt.
As the man’s pain eased, he looked over at the stranger’s bottle of water.
It was now wine.