I Met Death on the Avenue Road Bus
Monday, October 3, 2022
Yesterday, my son Jonah and I attended the posthumous book launch for Samantha Albert's memoir, I Met Death on the Avenue Road Bus...
On the left is theatrical designer Stephen Degenstein with his wife, singer-songwriter, Pam Gerrand. Centre is Daniel Shoag, husband of the the late author.
Samantha Albert was a patient at the same dialysis clinic as my late wife, Nicole. They had shared shifts a few times, but Nicole hadn't seen her for some time.
A few months back I ran into Daniel while jogging and he told me that Samantha had passed away on April 16, 2021, before her book was published. Nicole had already been making plans to discontinue dialysis treatment and took this as yet another omen that her time had come (personally, I would have taken it as a sign to write a memoir before you die).
Daniel ended up giving me an advanced copy of I Met Death on the Avenue Road Bus. The title immediately won me over. It refers to a chapter in the memoir where Samantha was taking Toronto public transit to Princess Margaret Hospital to begin stem-cell transplant therapy:
The bus wheezed as it braked to a stop. More passengers mounted the stairs and paid their fares, putting wallets back into purses and pockets. Then there was a hush on the bus as the last figure rose up the stairs and paid a fare. Death looked around at the small group of travellers already seated and headed toward the back. His long black robe made a "Swish-swash" polyester sound as he approached. He lowered his scythe to avoid damaging the ceilng which set him off balance as the bus started up again. He quickly righted himself trying to maintain his dignified stance.
This was no hallucination. As it turned out, it was Halloween Day.
The rest of the book continues with the same witty story of a woman striving to live life to the fullest, while avoiding the constant shadow of the grim reaper pursuing her since she was first diagnosed with a rare, life-threatening illness.
I have continued reading the book to my son Jonah. And, I'm sure, Nicole is still listening. I highly recommend purchasing a copy. You can visit SamathaAlbert.com for more information or to order a copy.
—John C. A. Manley
PS For more on my wife's passing, please read: My Sunflower has blown away
PPS My wife's obituary is now available online, which notes how "ninety minutes before her passing, she specifically requested that she change into her 'COVID-1984: Make Orwell Fiction Again' T-shirt."
John C. A. Manley is the author of Much Ado About Corona: A Dystopian Love Story, the forthcoming All The Humans Are Sleeping and other works of speculative fiction. Get free samples of his stories by becoming a Blazing Pine Cone email subscriber at: https://blazingpinecone.com/subscribe/
