The Two Toms

This story is from Janice Cutbush, a retired teacher and friend in Ballspa, New York. Her husband, Tom Cutbush, died about ten years ago. Her son, also named Tom Cutbush, lives in Haddenfield, New Jersey. About a year ago, Janice’s son was in a bad accident – thus the reference in her story to visits made to a hospital.
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When Tom and his wife Sara became godparents to their niece,they went to Sara’s family’s Methodist Church in Haddenfield NJ. They had to meet the Reverend and sign some papers, etc. before the christening. When Tom wrote his name on the paper, the Reverend looked up and said, “I graduated from high school with a Tom Cutbush.”

Tom said, “That was my dad.”

Rev. George Morris was stunned. He told Tom that he had a great deal of respect for his dad and even though they didn’t hang out in the same crowd, he and his dad always maintained a mutual friendship outside of school.

Rev. Morris went on to baptize Tom’s little girl Elizabeth two years later and when Tom’s accident happened, he came to the hospital every week and said prayers at his bedside. When I met him at the christening we talked about the coincidence of it all and he said he preferred to think of coincidences as “spiritual appointments.”
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An added note to this story. When Tom senior was alive, he and Janice were avid runners. One morning, halfway through their run, Janice said she was going to stop, she was tired. Tom turned to her and said, “That’s fine. I’ll go the last mile alone.” He started out, then pitched forward and died of a massive heart attack.

I’ve always found that last statement of his eerily prescient.