Hello, My Name is Lisa

HELLO, MY NAME IS LISA

A wrong suitcase at the airport led James on an adventure he never expected, opening a door into another world.

Disgusted and frustrated, James looked at the suitcase. No tag. What a bunch of loser baggage handlers! Just about ready to walk away from the carousel, a young college student approached him, carrying a similar suitcase. “Excuse me sir, but I think we have each other’s luggage.”

Looking at the one he was carrying, James spotted his fine leather and gold trimmed luggage tag hanging from the handle. “That we do young man. Thank you so much for spotting that. But how did you know this one was yours?”

As the young student held up his phone, he showed James the answer to his question. “I have an AirTag inside the suitcase that I can track with my phone. I click on FIND ME, and I am alerted about its location. Satisfied, both exchanged luggage and wished each other a wonderful day. Knowing how important the items in his suitcase were, James made a note to himself to purchase one of those tags for the next business trip.

These business trips were so mundane now. When he joined the company, he quickly became one of the most respected project developers, and with his college background in communication and business, he was the perfect person to send out in the field to present a future concept and lock in the deal with those who were responsible for the approval. This particular project was not one of his favorites. In fact, he wished someone else would have been assigned to the Chicago deal.

The black limo was waiting for him, and he was ushered into the backseat while the driver loaded his luggage. The briefcase, which was made of the finest and softest leather and still had that leathery smell, was next to him and had all his presentation notes, cost estimates, and architectural drawings of the final project. Now it was up to him to seal the deal.

Chicago was always a city he treasured. He had been there many times in his pre-college days. Many times, there were family trips during the Christmas holidays just to enjoy the ambiance of the spectacular decorations, lights, and with any luck, some snow to create that special inner warmth that time of year offered. It also served as an escape to enjoy places to eat, and time alone to enjoy Lake Michigan as a normal person. No frills. Just peaceful thoughts as he revisited familiar places he loved.

But now he had to slip into his professional character and be what the company expected him to be. He most definitely was not a flashy man. In fact, many times he was quite turned off by the fakeness of those in thousand-dollar suits who sported a drink in one hand while checking phones that gave away their price tags, when one recognized the brand. Most of the time, these upscale gentlemen with their shiny shoes hovered around the bar striking up conversations that made them seem more important than they really were. This was not James.

One of the finest hotels in Chicago was chosen for his three-day stay. The lobby presented itself as extremely modern and very upscale. It was indeed a 5-star hotel from top to bottom. Of course, all meals, transportation to and from the hotel to O'Hare via limo, and a penthouse suite had been arranged. The presentation would be there in a conference room the next day, followed by a tour of the area where this monstrous building would be located on the following day. That gave him day three as a free day on his own, yet available to answer questions from the planning commission. Exhausted from his long day, he took his key card and his briefcase and headed to the elevator to unwind in his suite. The bellboy had his luggage and followed, chatting about the weather, and asking questions as to James’s hometown and why he was here. Once he was tipped, and the key card slipped into the slot, the door opened to expose a spectacular room with ceiling to floor windows which hosted panoramic views of the Chicago skyline. It was just bordering on darkness, so the impact of the lights brought back so many memories. Never had he seen this kind of view, which now made him yearn for those simple days of his past. Champagne in a chilled silver bucket was on the table with an array of hors d’oeuvres.

Even though his room had a complete bar, he wanted to visit the one located on the rooftop. That is also where the restaurant was located. Well, one of the five. Walking into the marble bathroom adorned with a teak soaking bathtub, and the huge marble shower with a rainfall shower area, he freshened up and headed down the hall to the exit to the rooftop.

After getting his scotch on the rocks, he headed to corner of the roof to see yet another view of this beautiful cityscape. Thinking that he was so lucky to have chances like this so often, he took another sip and glanced to his right. A young lady about his age was looking out at the same cityscape. She smiled and commented about its beauty, then walked away. With a big and important day ahead tomorrow, James headed back to his suite to get organized and catch some much-desired sleep.

At 9:00, on the dot, he straightened his tie, and entered into the formal conference room. The group of ladies and gentlemen who were on the planning commission were a very pleasant group of people. The warmth and friendliness they put forth made the presentation a much easier assignment. Slides were commented on, and questions were asked. This felt a whole lot more personal in nature, and for once James felt quite at home. By 2pm, they were ready to leave armed with all kinds of handouts and materials to discuss later that day. No decisions would be made, or recommendations or tweaks. They would instead talk among themselves and gather more information the next day on their field trip to the location of this new building. James would be joining them to point out possibilities and suggestions. By the time he was ready to catch his return flight home, he would have an answer.

The exact location was in a place that James had never visited. They drove past the casino, and past some of the parks and found a quite lovely little area close to the lake in what was called Old Town and Near North Side. Homes here were quite modest and probably 60 years old or older. Well established trees lined sidewalks. As they parked in an area closer to the lake, some of the houses were a little weather-beaten, but well kept. Years of November Gales and icy cold winters plus very hot summers took a toll on the wood-sided homes. This was to be the spot of a ten-floor high-rise building. It would be a concrete structure with a multitude of windows. The building would have various angles, much like some of those found in his company’s buildings in Sarasota Florida. As the commissioners chatted, James partially listened as he looked at those classic old homes and looked back toward the homes with the established trees that would lose any view of the waterfront. This was almost sickening, but this is what his job was all about. Modernization with their architectural designs. Big money would be spent by Chicago, and big money would be raked in by his firm.

Finally, back at the hotel, eating his evening meal, he finished the day at the rooftop bar. There, once again was that lady who had stood a few feet from him before. He sat down next to her and her smile greeted him. “Hello, my name is Lisa,” she offered, then turned away and took a sip of her drink. Returning the greeting, he commented, “Nice to meet you. I am James.” Light conversations followed, before he excused himself, explaining that he had the day tomorrow to visit a little of Chicago before heading back to Denver. Lisa turned toward him. “If you would like, I can show you a very special area you may never have seen.” James stood up, set his drink on the bar, and said, “That would be great. Let’s meet in the lobby in the late morning. I will let you know then what my schedule for the day will be. At this point I am not sure."

What truly had become a long day, caught up with James. It was a struggle to organize things for the next day, but he managed to do so, before slipping into that luxurious king bed, and treating his exhausted body to the Egyptian sheets. Closing his eyes, he made himself a promise to purchase those when he returned home. A deep sleep cradled him into a bizarre series of snapshot dreams.

The morning sunlight streamed through those massive windows, as James devoured the breakfast he had gotten from room service. He may never eat this way again, so he took advantage of choices he had only looked at but grinned at the prices and opted for fried eggs and toast instead. This time his company picked up the tab. Hurrying down to the lobby, Lisa was there waiting. Stepping outside, they hailed a cab for the tour. This felt like a step back into all the times his family visited this wonderful city. It was a very comfortable feeling.

Lisa gave the cabby the address and they bolted away from the hotel. For some reason the cab driver was acting strange. What was to be a regular tour turned into a journey through time travel. She didn’t seem to be concerned about this goofy-crazy ride through downtown Chicago. Finally, they stopped at the same location James had just visited the day before. Why? Lisa smiled and told the cab driver to wait for them. Once out of the cab, the scene became almost surreal. The wind blowing in from the lake was strong and almost biting. The sky turned grey with heavy dark clouds moving low and slow. They walked down the sidewalk he had walked down yesterday, but further and into a small area where mom and pop storefronts lined the street. James lagged behind. Lisa turned and said quietly, “This is where I once lived." They moved ahead then paused in front of a door that she didn’t recognize. She lifted the latch and they entered.

This was like a huge room with no real walls. In fact, it was like being in a painting that came to life. Blue skies above, houses that looked almost new, and children playing in the yards, while the adults visited over picket fences. They walked, unnoticed and stopped in front of a quaint and modest little house. It felt happy for some reason. There in that yard was Lisa and her friends playing with dolls under a big oak tree that shaded the front porch. Her mom and dad were sitting on the front porch, and a cute little cocker spaniel trotted over to the girls and became a pest, stealing things from the tea party.

The wind picked up again, and the scene changed a little. The house looked older, and so did her parents who were sitting on the front porch as a young college girl raced up the porch steps and gave each of them a hug and a kiss. The cocker spaniel’s face had greyed a little, and he now walked with an arthritic limp. Lisa turned toward James. “I came home a lot when I was in college. This time would be my last since I was graduating and heading to my new job in Colorado. I would try to come home for the holidays if my job allowed me to do so.”

Just as suddenly as before, and a little stronger, the wind became angrier and the feeling was no longer as joyful. The house was now in need of fresh paint, one of the porch steps needed repair, and mom was sitting alone on the porch. No cocker spaniel, no dad. Lisa was stepping onto the porch holding the hand of a little girl around three, as a boy around seven bounced up the steps in front of her. “Hi grandma!" A hug and a grandma kiss were given and a short conversation between Lisa and her mother was had, knowing that it would be continued once inside.

Knowing that it was still raw and painful, mom asked, “How are you doing Lisa? Are things any better?” She got up and all three went inside. Lisa turned to James with the explanation. I married a Marine. We had two children. We had lived on base while he served. I got the dreaded letter delivered by the Marines with the news he had been killed in the line of duty. I was alone but my Marine family kept me safe and loved. I had endured.

Once more the scene changed, and they were back in that sunny room with no walls. As they went back out to the street, the wind blew and it became misty. The cab driver was waiting and took them both back to the hotel. Once paid, he drove off. “I wanted you to see where I lived a long time ago. So glad you came with me.” That was it! Off she went to the elevator. The door closed but not before she looked at him with a sorrowful smile.

Morning came but not without remembering that horrible night of sleep. Tossing and turning, visions came back of what they saw. But an added vision was at the tale end of the dream, or nightmare. Lisa was not with him. He saw no homes on those little streets, no clothes on the clotheslines, no children playing, no parents visiting over the picket fences, no laughter. Instead, he saw only a few houses left, with a few trees. And, as he turned toward the lake, he could not see it. Instead, there was this gargantuan and ugly concrete building which claimed that once peaceful area where families grew up. After meeting Lisa and seeing what it was like at different stages of her life and knowing that it had survived all these years, he saw what the stone-cold indifferent building would look like…stealing happiness and replacing that with sadness.

Before he started packing things and getting ready to check out, he called his CEO and told him that the location was not conducive for the projected building. He would make sure that the planning commission got his decision and suggest they find another place.

He began packing his clothes and putting all notes back into the briefcase. Before he closed the suitcase, he found a random note. It was from Lisa, thanking him for changing his mind. How did she know? In fact, he had never mentioned what his mission was in Chicago. Grabbing everything and heading down to the lobby, he decided to wait until he boarded the plane to think about this whole trip.

The attendant at the gate called his group to board. Putting his suitcase in the compartment above, he sat down in his assigned seat next to the window. He tucked his briefcase under the seat ahead of him, dropped the tray table and jotted down a few notes to present to the team once back at work. Looking out at the skyline during the day he was glad to be leaving. So much had changed and now he was viewing the need for buildings like his as something he no longer wanted to be part of. What was the purpose of it all? Was it just to make more money for the company while taking away the beauty of the landscape? How many other places would be just like the one he turned down? Did he really want to do this anymore?

“Excuse me,” she said. “Could you help me store my bag above? It is a little heavy. I think I bought too many things for my kiddos.” She turned away and bent down to make sure the zipper was closed all the way. James was jarred out of his deep thoughts and only heard the last part of her conversation. As he secured the tray table back to its position, she picked up the bag and turned to face him. “Thank you so much.” The bag was stowed and both sat down in the seats next to each other. She extended her hand to shake his. “Hello, my name is Lisa.”