t is a rainy Saturday morning. The watcher sits in the back corner of the coffee shop. This coffee shop could be any coffee shop in any city across the Great Northwest. The watcher is in this particular coffee shop to observe three unlikely friends.
The watcher looks across the dining area to the clock on the distant wall. He notes the clock’s short black hand pointing to the nine, while the long black hand points straight up. In walks three elderly men. Each one is carrying an identical coffee cup.
Each cup is your typical black cup that holds a little more than a measured cup. Each cup has a gold etched Roman number for four on it.
The first one to order coffee stands a good six feet tall. He wears a dark blue business suit. The next one in line looks taller because of his cowboy hat. Short and round is the third. He sports a leather jacket with the colors of his motorcycle club.
In turn the cups get filled with the house brand of coffee. Seats get taken around a table where a fourth cup sits next to an empty chair. Conversation between the three reflect current news headlines.
Conversation is paused. All three take a long look at the lone cup and empty chair. Their conversation continues as if no pause took place.
Now the wall clock’s long black hand has moved three hundred and sixty-one degrees. All three elderly men drain their cups. Push their chairs back and stand up. They walk toward the door. Once outside each says their good-byes.
One of the local coffee shop staff picks up the fourth cup. She carries it to the back office. She places in a shelf below a framed picture of four young men.
An elderly woman is seen walking up to the register. She asks the one standing next to the register, “Who were those three elderly men?”
The one behind the register takes a deep breath and starts to repeat what she repeated a hundred times before. “Originally there were four who started this coffee shop. One died shortly after opening. The other three sold it for some unknown reasons. On the first Saturday of each month those three come in here to pay respect to their friend.”
The watcher writes in his little notebook about the events was observed. Taking the last sip from his coffee cup. He deposits his cup in the dirty dish tray on the way out the door.
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