EVERYBODY KNOWS EVERYBODY
by Lea |
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Today was a special day, the type of day which restores a
faith of sorts. And in that faith I found a lesson, taught to me
by my 6-year-old son, Brandon.
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I watched him at the kitchen table carefully packing his
lunch-bag. I was going to take him along with me to work.
As he put it, "I'm going to be a worker-man."
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Carefully laid out before him was a arrangement of
everything he required to get him through the day -- a small
coloring book, crayons, small box of smarties, blueberry
muffin, egg-salad "samich" (as he called it) and 3 small
Easter eggs.
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To know Brandon is to understand that time has no
meaning. I was running late and implored Brandon to,
"Hurry up!" (I'm sure he feels the watch is a confidence trick,
invented by the Swiss.)
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Hurry he did. In fact, he forgot his well-packed lunch, a
mistake I was painfully aware of on the forty-minute drive to
town. He admonished me several times saying, "Dad, you
made me rush now I have no lunch." He changed the
words over the duration of the scolding but the meaning
remained the same, "I need a lunch because you made me
forget mine."
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I purchased a sandwich and another muffin at a restaurant
in town. Satisfied, he carried the bag to the van and soon
his mutinous thoughts of "no lunch, no work," vanished.
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We arrived at a small bungalow in the suburbs of Kingston.
Our job: to install indoor-outdoor carpet on the porch and
steps.
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I rang the doorbell. I could hear the deadbolt being
released, then the handle-lock and security chain. The door
swung slowly open revealing an old, thin, man. He looked
ill. His white hair covered his head in patches. The powder-
blue shirt hung from his shoulders as though on a hanger -
- his belt, several sizes too big.
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I smiled asking if he was Mr. Burch.
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"Yes. Are you here to do the porch and steps?"
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"Yes, Sir."
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"OK. I will leave this door open."
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"OK, I will get to work."
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"Do you have a 'flidge?'" blurted Brandon. The old man
looked down at Brandon who extended his lunch.
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"Yes I do. Do you know where to find a fridge?"
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"Yes I do," said Brandon walking past the man. "It's in the
kitchen."
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I was about to suggest to Brandon that he was being bold
by walking in but before I could, the old man held his finger
to his lips gesturing it was OK.
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"He'll be OK. He can't get into anything at all. Does he really
help you?"
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I nodded yes. Brandon returned asking, in his most elf-like
voice, "Do you have a coloring book?"
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Again, I was about to suggest to Brandon that he was
perhaps being bold. I extended my hand beckoning him
outside. The old man grasped my hand feebly. He looked
at Brandon.
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"Your father tells me you help him."
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"Yes. I'm a worker-man," Brandon replied with pride.
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I looked down adding, "Apparently his job today is to keep
the customer busy."
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The old man looked at Brandon releasing my hand, a faint
smile appearing.
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"Maybe you could do some work and show me how to
color?"
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With a most serious look, Brandon asked, "Dad, will you be
OK?"
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"Will Mr. Burch be OK?" I answered.
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"We will be fine. We will be right here at the table. Come
help me get out the book, worker-man."
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I walked to the truck returning with material and my notepad
in time to hear Brandon comment, "You have colored in this
book. You are a good colorer."
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"No, I didn't color these pictures. My grandchildren did."
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"What are grandchildren?" Brandon asked curiously.
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"They are my children's children. I am a grandfather."
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"What's a grandfather?"
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"Well, when you grow up and get married, then have
children of your own, your dad will be a grandpa. Then, your
mother will be a grandma. They will be grandparents. Do
you understand?"
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Brandon paused. "Yes, grandpa."
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"Oh, I don't think I'm your grandpa," the old man suggested.
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Brandon rubbed his hair from his eyes. Studying the
crayons, he selected one and continued to color.
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Brandon said, "Everybody knows everybody you know?"
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"Well, I'm not sure they do. Why do you say that?" The old
man looked curiously at Brandon who was diligently
coloring.
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"We all comed from God. He made us all. We are fambily."
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"Yes, God made everything," the old man confirmed.
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"I know," said Brandon in a lighthearted voice. "He told me."
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I had never heard Brandon talk of such things before, other
than one time we had gone to church to watch a Christmas
play. While waiting for the play to start, Brandon had asked
which door God would be coming through and if he would
be sitting with us.
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"He told you?" The old man was clearly curious.
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"Yes he did. He lives up there." Brandon pointed to the
ceiling looking up with reverence. "I b-member being there
and talking to him."
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"What did he say to you?" The old man placed his crayon
on the table focusing on Brandon.
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"He said we are all fambily." Brandon paused then added
logically, "So you're my grandpa."
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The old man looked to me through the screen door. He
smiled. I was embarrassed he saw me watching them. He
told Brandon to keep coloring, he was going to check on
the job.
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The old man made his way slowly to the door. Opening it,
he stepped onto the porch.
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"How's it going?" he asked.
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"It's going OK," I said. "I won't be long." The old man smiled
slightly.
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"Does the boy have a grandfather?"
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I paused. "No, he doesn't. They were gone when he was
born. He has a nanny, you know, a grandmother, but she is
frail and not well."
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"I understand what you are saying. I have cancer. I'm not
long for this earth either."
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"I'm sorry to hear that Mr. Burch. I lost my mother to cancer."
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He looked at me with tired, smiling, eyes. "Every boy needs
a grandfather," he said softly.
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I agreed, adding, "It's just not in the cards for Brandon."
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The old man looked back to Brandon who was coloring
vigorously. "How often do you come to town, son?"
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"Me?" I asked.
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"Yes."
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"I come in almost every day."
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The old man looked back to me. "Perhaps you could bring
Brandon by from time to time, when you're in the area that
is, for 30 minutes or so. What do you think?"
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I looked in at Brandon. He had stopped coloring and was
listening to us. "Could we, dad? We are fliends. We can
have lunch together."
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"Well, if it's OK with Mr. Burch."
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The old man opened the door returning to the table.
Brandon slid from his chair and walked to the fridge. "It's
lunch time grandpa. I got enough for both of us." Brandon
returned to the table. He removed the contents from the
paper bag. "Do you have a knife?" asked Brandon.
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The old man started to get up.
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"I can find it. Tell me where to look," instructed Brandon.
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"The butter knives are next to the corner of the counter, in
the drawer."
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"Found it!"
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Brandon returned to the table. He unwrapped his muffin.
With the care of a diamond-cutter, he cleaved two perfect
portions. Brandon placed one portion on the plastic the
muffin was wrapped in. He pushed it toward Mr. Burch.
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"This is yours." He carefully unwrapped the sandwich next.
"This is yours too. We have to eat the samich first. Mom
says."
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"OK," replied Mr Burch.
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"Do you like juice, Brandon?"
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"Yep, apple juice."
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Mr. Burch walked slowly to the fridge. He removed a can of
apple juice and poured two small glasses. He placed one
in front of Brandon. "This is yours."
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"Thank you grandpa." Brandon punctuated his eating with
questions to Mr. Burch, and fits of coloring.
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"Do you play hockey, Brandon?"
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"Yep," said Brandon, studying the end of his sandwich
before biting into it. "Dad took me, Tyler and Adam, in the
wintertime."
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"Years ago," Mr. Burch started, "I used to play for a Senior-
A-team. I was almost ready to play for the NHL, but I was
never called up. I did play once, with a man that was called
up though. He was a fine player. Bill Moore. That was his
name."
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My heart leapt to my throat. "Tutter Moore?" I asked through
the screen.
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The old man was startled. He looked at me. "Yes, that's
him... was called up to Boston a few times. You've heard of
him?"
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"Yes," I said, my voice cracking, "You're eating lunch with
his grandson."
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The old man looked back to Brandon. He stared for a few
moments. Brandon looked innocently at Mr. Burch.
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"Yes... I see now. He looks very much like Tutter. And the
nanny is Lillian?"
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"Yes," I replied.
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The old man clasped Brandon's hand.
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"Brandon, I owe you an apology. You were right, and I was
wrong. Everybody 'does' know everybody."
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Lea MacDonald
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