He set the picture back down and pulled open the top right drawer. He shuffled through it looking for the Christmas card. All he found were old planners and business cards scattered about. He wondered why his dad would have a Christmas card in there anyway. Thinking he was looking in the wrong place and getting ready to give up, he came across a picture card and pulled it out. In the picture was the whole Alexandrov family. The caption on the top of the card was in Russian, the bottom in English saying, “Happy Holidays from The Alexandrov Family.” He focused on Anya. Wow, she sure is beautiful!
Peter studied the card which had all four Alexandrovs along with Dmitri’s wife and two kids, on some farm with snow on the ground. Anya was sitting on a short wooden fence wearing jeans, cowboy boots and black leather coat. Anya looked pretty damn hot in those tight jeans and boots. Peter figured she would probably look good no matter what she wore. He turned the card over and read a note to his dad from Viktor.
Tom,
Thank you for nice flowers. Maria would love. I miss her. This picture took last year before die. It hard be in house alone. I wish your family happy. Dmitri and Anya do good and help me.
Peter felt for Viktor after reading the card. His dad used to say how much he liked hanging around Viktor because the jovial Russian always made him laugh. Peter remembered Maria as such a sweet lady who made the best tea cakes. He called them Russian cookies.
He turned the card over to look one last time at the family. What a nice family. He focused on Anya’s smile, the curve of her dark hair against her cheek. And what a hot daughter.
ANNE ELECTED to have Tom’s funeral at a small church they attended. She wanted to keep the service small and private for fear of hoax proponents disrupting it. She invited family, friends and select coworkers from NASA as well as other companies where Tom had worked. Peter and his mother sat in the front row of the church with Aunt Virginia. A few friends had come up prior to the start of the service and offered their condolences. Since Peter was seated before many arrived, he was not sure exactly who was in attendance. His mom held his hand throughout the service, occasionally squeezing it. One of the last eulogies was by an old NASA buddy of his dad’s, David Grant. Peter was to be the last speaker and was scheduled to go up after David. He could tell David was getting ready to wrap and his pulse rate rose as he prepared himself mentally to give the best tribute he could to his father.
David finished with a story. “Many of the early astronauts loved to play practical jokes on each other, and Tom was no exception. I remember the time Tom took his family on vacation. I decided to put a for sale sign on his front lawn. Us being one of their neighbors, some of the folks interested would come over to our house asking for information on the home. I said all kinds of things, like ‘the folks who lived there got a large inheritance and didn’t care what they sold it for,’ or ‘someone died there and they were desperate to sell.’ Right before the Novaks returned home I removed the sign. Tom told me for weeks he couldn’t understand why he was getting bombarded with calls from folks wanting to buy his house, some even talking about people dying in his home. Finally I couldn’t hold it in any more and started busting up. Right then Tom knew it was me, but never said a thing.
“About a week later on a nice leisurely Saturday morning I was lying in bed watching cartoons with my youngest daughter, Ashley. I asked her to go get Daddy the newspaper. A few minutes later Ashley came back empty handed with a dumbfounded look on her face, and I asked, ‘Where’s Daddy’s paper?’ She said, ‘Daddy, you know the Road Runner cartoon we just saw that had the wall the coyote built?’ I had no idea what she was talking about, but said ‘Yeah, why?’ She said, ‘There is the same wall at the front door.’ I was like, ‘What?’ and ran downstairs. I opened the door and to my shock, there was a brick wall covering the whole front entrance, and in front of the wall was a sign that read ‘Sold.’ I just cracked up. Tom got me.”
Everyone in the church laughed. David finished with, “Tom was a true friend. Not only was he one of the best astronauts NASA ever had and a national hero, he was just a damn good guy.”
David looked at Peter, giving him the signal he was done, and backed away from the podium. The church stayed quiet as David walked back to his seat. As Peter got ready, his mom turned toward him and smiled, giving him an encouraging look. Peter leaned over and gave her a quick kiss on the forehead, and turned and squeezed Aunt Virginia’s hand before he started toward the altar. As he passed David, he smiled to show he appreciated the tribute to his father. How odd that no one claps after eulogies. He felt David deserved applause. There was always that awkward silence as one speaker finished and the next went up.
Peter worked his way through the cold silence that hung in the air as he climbed the few stairs. He smiled at the minister before turning toward the podium. He got his first look at the crowd. The church was packed, which did not surprise him. He took a moment to look around, noticing all who had gathered, silently acknowledging people he knew. He took a deep breath before beginning. “It’s always difficult to talk about someone you love so much who has left you suddenly. I wasn’t sure exactly what I was going to say today, until I visited my father’s office. For those of you who have never been in it, it’s where he has all the pictures and awards of his life and career. I slowly walked around looking at it all, and though I had seen most of it before, I was still amazed at the life he lived. No matter how famous my dad became, he never felt he was better than anyone else. I believe that was one of his greatest attributes. He was a humble man and always said the successes in his life were due to the support and efforts of many around him. He always said he was a lucky man both in his career, and in finding the right woman. In his later years whenever we spoke, Dad would always tell me how lucky he was to find Mom, his soul mate.” Peter took a moment to look at his mom, who was now crying. Trying to keep his composure he continued, “He always hoped I too, would be so fortunate and find that right mate.” Now talking to just his mom and dad he said, “I still have time, and I hope I do, but Dad, I’m glad you found yours.” His mom smiled as she dabbed the tears from her eyes with a crumpled tissue.
Peter looked back at the audience, composing himself he went on. “My dad was a wonderful father. He was my hero, my friend, my teacher. He was everything I would have ever wanted in a father. Right before Dad passed away, he asked if I thought he was a good father. I thank God I was there to tell him how wonderful he was. How lucky I was to be his son, which brought a smile to his face.”
Peter was getting choked up, and stepped back for a moment to wipe the tears from his eyes. The church stayed quiet, waiting for him to continue. This gave him a few seconds to think of those last moments with his dad and how upset his dad was with those false claims. Peter wasn’t sure if he should address China’s lies. No one had done it to this point. He knew some of his dad’s NASA colleagues felt they shouldn’t even acknowledge such bullshit. But the whole situation pissed Peter off, and he knew he had already signed up for a one way mission to prove the lies wrong.
Cementing a stern look on his face, Peter stepped back up and spoke confidently. “Everyone in this room knows my father walked on the moon. Some of you even helped him achieve that goal. Walking on the moon was very important to Dad—it was a dream come true. I will not let anyone or any country take that away from him.” Peter looked up toward the ceiling as if talking directly to heaven. “Dad, I will do whatever I can to prove those Chinese bastards wrong!”