The maitre de was properlyattentive, as were the waiter and busboy, who kept refilling mywater glass every time I took even the tiniest sip. I decline...a drink, saying I would wait until Helen arrived. She finallydid, about twenty minutes late, in a great rush. "Sorry, I'mlate," she started, and then she noticed what I was wearing."I hope you don't mind that I changed - I might be a littleoverdressed, but after we talked this morning, I just reallyfelt like getting all dolled up and celebrating. I just didn't understand her death. She confided in me when she was hospitalized and knew that she wasn't going to make it. She'd known all along; it was cancer. Breast cancer took my mother away from me. Well maybe it wasn't the disease. Maybe it was her inability to face the disease and the possible changes to her life.Josh sat with me at the funeral and never let go of my hand. I cried on him and ranted to him about how unfair it all was and he listened to every word and came back for more.. The man took in the amused faces around the cook, and the white-striped furry menace to society innocently masticating in front of him. He ripped off his gas mask to reveal the face of Private Charles Boucherville. He tried unsuccessfully to straighten his badly-tousled hair. "Ah, Sir, it wouldn't astonish me in the slightest."As the officers around him chuckled, Whitefeather continued his mild interrogation. "Do you know what the purpose of tonight's exercise was?" Sir, yes, Sir. Stay calm.". I just need to sit down for a minute," I said shaking my head.I knew the headache wasn't going to go away any time soon, but she had been looking forward to our date all week, and I didn't want to disappoint her. I watched her wail away in the cage for a long time. She was really into it and didn't seem to get bored at all. After almost thirty minutes, the pitching machine shut itself off. She looked over at me with an unsaid question.I shrugged and said, "That was it for our allotted time. You.