My crying has stopped. We have a plan, and Peter is in good hands.
I manage to say in a clear voice, “I’ll leave here early in hopes of making it there around noon. Thank you for your help.”
Winnie ends the call, “No. Thank YOU for saving my boy. I look forward to seeing you again. Bye.”
The following morning, I was off early. I’ll be there for lunch, and I bet I’ll be expected.
Chapter 15 — Greetings
Peter’s point of view:
After a fantastic dinner with their chef, we talked a bunch and swam in their pool. They have one of those fantasy pools with lights, plants, rock formations, and music to make it seem like we’re not in Nebraska. My fears and sadness melt away. It’s not gone. Oh no, two days from now marks the worst day of my life. It brings back the images of my wife, dead on my operating table, and the tattoo of my name on her arm.
That day will forever cause me pain. Having my good friends helps. Helen saw through my attempts to sign over ownership of my training course to them. She verbally beat me up for considering it and then for how I had been behaving. Those two things did me a world of good. Then she taught me how to face my demons and hard decisions.
She taught Jim and me how she had to make hard decisions or turn around bad relationships. She has a fantastic way of describing the situation and then the solution. She explained how she got to the solution. There is a lot of self-insight and assertiveness involved. She figured out when she was wrong and then, right or wrong, and she was relentless in fixing the issue.
Jim and I both came away as better people because of his wife. That doesn’t happen often. I recognized it for what it was, a monumental shift in my life. I will forever be more aggressive and look at things in ways I never would have before. Looking back now, I can see how everything is my fault in many ways. Obviously, not the death of my family, but nearly everything else. This is what my parents were trying to teach me. They suck at teaching.
Helen asks, “Why are you grinning? That’s such an interesting, almost evil grin on your face.”
Happily, which surprises Helen, I say, “I just thought that I’ve learned more about myself and how to deal with others in the last few hours, than I did in the last 20 years. I think this is what my parents were trying to do in our argument that started my worst day ever. I didn’t handle it well, and they are the world’s worst teachers. It amused me to think how bad they are at teaching and that they will help us revolutionize teaching nurses.”
Jim corrects me, “Um, Peter. Do you remember how I said I bought into a university?”
Cautiously, I answer, “Yesssssss.”
Jim continues with a vast smile, “They love what you did. They’re swapping most of their courses to your style. They did some focus groups, and the reaction was off the charts. Nobody wants to read walls of text that are Sarah dessert dry written by people older than the dessert. The use of videos, links, movies, pictures and 3D images was astoundingly preferred.
“This year’s Freshmen will get a heavy dose of your style. Some teachers would not adapt. They’re gone, with only some being replaced. They rely on technology more and humans less. Profits will soar.
“I now have your site in eight locations, the student data in three, and we use four internet providers to increase redundancy. Using virtual services from the largest four server hosting companies, we have enough capacity potential to host every student in the country at every grade level.”
That boggles the mind. I never had a chance on my own. I have seen what he’s done. The site and courses are fantastic now. The professionalism and consistency are unbelievable. The site is snappy and full of features to help students study, including note-taking and test preparation. There is testing for comprehension at the end of each video and section. Each mistake leads to more training to help improve, and if that fails, they’re directed to a live person to discuss the issue.
It’s the live discussions that seem to pull it together. You can’t get away from having teachers. You can augment them and allow them to provide a more impactful effect when needed. None of this is my doing. Their experts have suggested some of the changes, while students like Kate and Pearls suggested others. I had no idea Kate and Pearls were that involved in the development.
Jim tells me that he rewarded the two with brand new, fully loaded Mustangs. Each car is painted in its owner’s favorite color. Then Jim is upgrading the stereo and electronics, tinting, and a few other cool things. They will be ready in a week. Pearls ordered a hot pink. She wanted something to get noticed before her breasts. Mission accomplished. Kate went with sunflower yellow. She loves sunflowers.
Jim’s also going to repaint the ER waiting room with a mural and a field of sunflowers. That should be cool.
After the swim, I’m taken to a guest room.
The next day, after a lovely breakfast, I am taken out shopping. Helen will NOT spend any more time with me in the same clothes. I purchased several days of clothes under her watchful eye. I would never have selected things so trendy. She has a good eye for fashion, and the big city has many more options than Ness City. We ate at their favorite restaurant and caught two movies at Omaha Zoo’s Lozier Giant Screen Theater.
The theatre dwarfs an IMAX, and the films were terrific. We get back by dinner time. They had work to do, so I helped their chef make dessert. We crafted a chocolate house and blew sugar candy used to decorate the home. With her help, I made all kinds of cool things. Together, we created a small log cabin that was a fantastic piece of artwork. Jim and Helen came back, grabbed a plate, and they each broke off a section of the house before I could complain.
The cook saw my distress and turned me towards her. She kisses me on the lips, completely distracting me.
In a soft, sexy voice, she says, “It’s the part of the job I hate the most. They don’t know, so don’t say anything. I had fun cooking with you. I make creations weekly; this was the best one. It wasn’t the best looking, or the best tasting; but I enjoyed making it far more than any of the others. Thank you. She kisses me again and then walks away.
Jim and Helen look at me with their jaws on the floor. My reaction is to smile and break off part of the house. The chocolate was rich, the filling of the house was a light chocolate mousse, and the candy decorations looked and tasted terrific.
We talk more about the University and how they’re using our software before going to bed. I was not expecting to sleep well. Sure enough, I had a hard time falling asleep, and I didn’t sleep well. I woke up several times due to reliving the day in my nightmares.
At 2:00 AM or so, I’ve just woken up from another nightmare. My breathing and heart rate and running at top speed. After several deep breaths, I’m calming down. Again. This time is different. My door opens. It’s dark, but I hear someone walking into my room. The person walks to the edge of the bed and then feels for my location.