Howie arrived at his doorstep, wearing his sunglasses and suffering the consequences from the end of the tour party the previous night.  He got his key, and let himself in.  “Anyone home?” “Hi baby, welcome home!”  His mother greeted him with open arms.  He gave her son a big hug.  “How was the tour?” “Good, real good.”  Howie closed the door behind him.  “How are you doing?” “I’ve had better days.  Jenna was a great woman.  She fought right to her dying day.” Howie sat on his couch, and his mother followed him.  “How long was she sick?” “For about 2 years.  The breast cancer spread to her brain.  She tried every kind of treatment known to man, but nothing worked.” “I’m glad she held on as long as she did.” “I know.”  She patted Howie’s knee.  “Why don’t you go get freshened up, and tell me about the tour.” “Alright, I’ll be down in a little while.”  He grabbed his bags and went up to his bedroom.  Howie put his suitcases on the bed and started to unpack.  He took out the souvenirs for his family, put them on his bed and sorted out all of his laundry.  Once he was unpacked, he put his suitcases away, and lay on his bed.  Jenna Holston… I haven’t heard that name since… since I left for New York about 7 years ago… She sent me on my way with a batch of cookies to take with me.  Howie sat up, and feeling nostalgic, got out a small photo album that had been slightly worn.  He flipped past his brother and sisters as kids, then got to the picture he was looking for. A little boy and girl were sitting on a porch; their faces were covered in chocolate.  The little boy gave a big chocolate grin, and the little girl had a cookie stuffed in her mouth.  Their clothes looked like they had been playing in the dirt all day long.  A woman was sitting between them, her arms around the two kids.  Howie gave a silent laugh.  “So long ago.”  He took out the picture, and lay back down on the bed.  He gave the picture another long look.  “7 years… 7 years.” Chapter 3 Contents Chapter 1