Harry on the Couch (new material from old - flashback!)

He had been exploring a newly acquired fear of seabirds with Teamsters appointed psychiatrist Dr. Bemay, consequently had endured many weeks dredging up painful memories of various exploits in his past. Indeed, through the horrors of hypnosis and the revulsion of regression therapy, he had been wallowing in old adventures best forgotten.

Then, one fateful day…he squirmed on the luxurious leather couch. The doctor, lounging out of sight, in the matching recliner behind him, nodded his head silently.

“There really isn’t any life like sailing, really, oh yes, trucking comes close on a decent highway…but you can’t beat the wind and waves, wet cold rain gear, eating beans for months on end, rope burns, sunburns, pirates. Pirates?”, Harry felt a vague chill of fear as he repeated the word and paused. He could hear the rhythmic breathing behind him, and wondered if the doctor had ever been sailing.

He considered asking but did not, recognizing that this was his dime and his time and with that recognition, Harry, once again, felt safe and warm, he breathed in the sensuous aroma of the leather, stretched, and sank deeper into the soft cushions.
His eyes closed and his mouth opened.

“One evening I watched the rigging snatch the last rays of sun like a giant spider web and hold them against the darkening sky, a few drops of rain began to fall…I stripped down and let nature’s shower wash the salt and sweat from my body.” A small tear passed unnoticed across Harry’s cheek. “It was… uh… truly …” His voice trailed off and for a moment the only sound was the distant caw of a gull sailing in on a breeze through the open window.











To be continued...