The Late Mr. Walsh
By Aaron Castrejon

He was born two weeks late. The doctors joked that he was predestined to be late for everything in his life. His parents laughed at the joke.

He was late to his first day of school, but the teacher didn't mind. How could she? He was just a darling angel. But school seemed to be an Achille's heel. He was tardy every day. He missed every quiz and every test. He would arrive to class late after recess. Middle and high school were no exception. In high school, everybody loved him. Somehow, he became class president, even though he was late to every meeting. He became captain of the football team despite arriving late to every practice and game. He even graduated from high school...in the summer. Everyone marveled at the fact that he got to take the most popular girl in school to the prom. It was a complete success, even though they arrived an hour late.

The two would eventually marry, after several reschedulings and his delayed arrival to the altar. Mrs. Walsh loved her husband, but his lateness to everything imaginable got to her many times. She would just bury her emotions, though, for he was a very genuine person. They moved into a beautiful house. They lived there for many years, despite missing payments on their mortgage constantly. His job situation continually changed. He went from job to job all the time. I guess his friends, family and coworkers say it was his inability to arrive on time, regardless of how early he left. Lucky for him, he found a boss who took a liking to him.

He always threw the best neighborhood parties in on the block. Everybody loved and respected him, even though nothing was ready when guests arrived. He was the perfect neighbor. He and his wife eventually had two wonderful children. And no, they were not born late. He

was not there to witness his children's birth, to which his wife really held a grudge for that. He missed every one of the most important stages in his children's lives: their first step, first day of school, the first recital, and graduation. But they didn't mind. They loved their father. He meant well, he just could never be anywhere at the right time.

Into their late years, his wife could no longer take his seemingly selfish inability to arrive to important functions all the time. She wanted a divorce. He wanted desperately to patch things up and scheduled marriage counseling. But he was late for every meeting. The judge saw his late appearance to court as the final straw. The two were finally divorced. He spent the rest of his life living simply, always seeing his children, wanting to see the world despite delaying his departure. He started seeing someone for a while, but it didn't last too long. He was late to every one of their five dates.

He had the best intentions on Earth. He always lent a helping hand, even if you had to wait a while for it. He was a great dad and, a great husband, even though some may disagree with this. He was a great coworker and he was a great friend. This was acknowledged at his eulogy to a church full of acquaintances. As the rain started to fall at the gravesite, his friends and family collectively tapped their watches and began to chuckle, for the body was 15 minutes late for the burial.

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