Imperfection

Imperfection(Joseph Logsdon) Imperfection
By Joseph Logsdon
John Goodman was a kind man. He loved people, especially if they were kind and friendly. John had never offended anyone. However, John’s good luck was about to come to a swift end.
Margaret Lockwood loved her husband, but she resented the fact that he got more attention than she did. She wanted to be liked, but was often ignored by John’s friends and family. However, she had a plan to finally rid herself of John and his smug personality. The sun was rising as John walked into his kitchen. Once there, Margaret gently kissed him on the cheek.
“How have you been?” John asked.
“Can I ask you a question, John?”
“What is it?” John asked.
“Why are you so nice?”
“Unlike most people, I love life. Most people go through life worried and troubled, but not me. I’m an optimist, not a pessimist. Why spend your life worrying about things that don’t matter? I would love to have a nice house, but that isn’t my main goal. People need to wake up and realize that there is more to life than misery and hopelessness. You know what I mean, don’t you?” John asked.
“I know what you mean, at least I think I do. However, we can’t be happy all the time. God gave people tears for a reason,” she stated.
“Margaret, I know that all too well. As a boy, my father abused me. I wanted to tell the police, but I was only a child. As time passed, I suppressed my rage. Anger will do you no good, especially when you’re young. The youth of this world is angry, so very angry. The concept of the traditional family is broken, broken beyond repair. Kids are being raised to hate the world, to hate themselves. Despite the obvious pain in the world, people can still enjoy life. If I can do it, so can the rest of society.”
“I know you mean well, John. You’ve always been kind and generous. I love you so very much, but I don’t think our marriage can continue.”
“What are you saying?” John asked.
“I’m jealous, terribly jealous. Everyone loves you, but they hate me! You think that you’re the nicest person in the world, but that is far from the truth. You’re a fake, materialistic person. You say that you don’t want a nice house, that worldly things don’t matter. However, you’ve been pursuing worldly things your entire life! Why do you think I married you? I didn’t want your personality, I wanted your money!” Margaret shouted.
“Margaret, I never knew that you felt this way. I’m grateful for being blessed with money, I really am. Despite my good luck, I refuse to become greedy,” he stated.
“What are you saying?”
“You married the wrong man,” John answered.
“Are you going to leave me?” Margaret asked.
“Honey, you’re forcing me to leave you. Unlike me, you’re cruel and vengeful. Somehow, I knew it would come to this. You’ve always been rotten, even as a child. Do you remember what you told me when we first met?” John asked.
“I can’t recall,” she answered.
“You said that your father had left you all of his money. What happened to that money?” John asked.
“I spent it,” she answered.
“You can’t be trusted with money, Margaret. In the end, you’re nothing but a whore, a whore with no morals or values. I thought I could change you, but I was an idealistic fool for thinking so.”
In that moment, Margaret felt worthless. Anxiety, regret, and sadness rushed through her. To John’s surprise, Margaret started to show signs of anger.
“Honey, calm down!”
“Don’t you tell me to calm down, understand? All my life, people have been telling me to calm down. Well, I’m not going to take shit anymore!” Margaret shouted.
“Honey, try to be reasonable.”
“You want me to be reasonable? I’ll show you reasonable!”
Suddenly and without warning, Margaret pulled out a knife.
“Honey, put that thing away!”
“I will, but only if you promise to be a little nicer to me!”
“Darling, I promise. From now on, there will be no more insults.”
“Good,” the angry woman replied as she put the knife on the table.
John and Margaret reconciled. Sadly, that was not the end of the story. As time passed, the couple grew increasingly miserable. One afternoon, Margaret decided to give John a cup of hot coffee.
“John, I’m sorry for not appreciating you, for not being there for you. I hope this cup of coffee will make you feel better,” she said.
“Thank you,” John replied as he held the cup in his hand.
Within days, John Goodman was dead. At first, Margaret was relieved that her husband was finally out of her life. However, her perspective changed when a mysterious man appeared on her doorstep one gloomy afternoon.
“Mrs. Goodman, I need to talk to you,” the man requested.
“Who are you?”
“I’m an insurance man, Mrs. Goodman. Did you know that your husband had a life insurance policy with our company?”
“I knew that he had life insurance,” she answered.
“You might want to sit down, Mrs. Goodman?”
“Why?”
“This might be difficult to hear,” he answered.
“Sir, what do you have to say?”
“Your husband wasn’t married to you,” he stated.
“What are you talking about?” Margaret asked in a hysterical voice.
“You were not his legal wife, Mrs. Goodman.”
“That can’t possibly be true!” Margaret shouted.
“When did you marry your husband?”
“About 10 years ago,” Margaret answered.
“In 1998, John Goodman married a woman named Sharon Bratcher. I’m sorry, I really am. Your husband lied to you, Mrs. Goodman.”
“It can’t be true!”
“You were his secret family, a refuge for him to escape to. Because of that, you will not get the life insurance,” he stated.
“I can’t believe it!”
“It seems that your boyfriend fooled everyone, including his own wife.”
“Get out of here!” Margaret shouted.
Margaret shut the door and wallowed in self-pity. She had no money, no future, and no hope. She had killed a man, but that man was not her husband. In the end, she remained a whore, a whore with no values or morals. John thought he could change her, but he was an idealistic fool for thinking so.