I Remember You

He thanked everyone for coming, a small touch of civility when sitting in the dark, in the dirt, buck-naked. While getting dressed, his friend turned and said, “Thanks, that was a great sweat! But his name is Earl.”

”It is? Shit, man, I’m sorry!”

A third man spoke up. “I called him Eric when I first met him, too.”

Earl said, ”It’s okay. Everybody does. That was my name during the Civil War.”

Nobody guffawed, this being that kind of place, and Earl went on. “I fought in the Civil War, but I don’t know if I died in it. I asked a psychic, who told me that I was a warrior in 23 of my past 25 lives. When I met my girlfriend the first time, we saw each other in Civil War-period clothing.”

”So it’s okay if you call me Eric.”