Total pages in book: 53
Estimated words: 49348 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 247(@200wpm)___ 197(@250wpm)___ 164(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 49348 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 247(@200wpm)___ 197(@250wpm)___ 164(@300wpm)
“It’d be a vacation to be surrounded by so much beauty. Speaking of, get your butt inside. We’ve got some talking to do.” Here we go again. He’s been angling to talk to me about something or other. Usually, his last will and testament, whether he wants to be resuscitated or not, what to do with his house and belongings. Last but not least and for what seems like the eighteenth time a day, he’ll want to chat about Carsynn. Damn it all to hell, I’ve heard enough and done enough. Now I’m going to get wrangled into another conversation when all I’d like to do is eat a real meal that’s not of the fast food or restaurant variety, see how Grandpa is doing, and then head the fuck home.
“Don’t I even get a hug before the lecture? It’s been weeks, old man,” I tell him after I take the two steps leading up to where he’s standing. Grandpa Bernie is in a thin white cotton shirt and plaid pajamas, not even socks on his feet as he stands on the concrete porch.
“I suppose.” My hand takes his place, propping the screen door while I give him a one-armed hug. It lasts longer than our usual, probably because I’ve been gone for so long and it didn’t matter that we talked on the phone daily, sometimes more than a few times. I missed him and he missed me. Our bond goes deeper than most grandfathers have with their grandsons. A product of being the only grandchild from his only child. We both lost a lot, him more than me. I can’t miss what I never had, a father who never showed up. My grandparents and Mom never missed a single thing along the way. At any baseball games, I had a cheering squad behind the plate. When I graduated from high school, they were the loudest section on the football field when I walked across the stage. Anything big or small, they were there. It wasn’t until Grams died and my mom only a year later, both to cancer, two different types. Grams had bone cancer. We had no idea she was riddled with the nasty disease until she fell and broke her arm. Gramps rushed her to the hospital, pissed at himself that she was trying to ride a bike without him around, only to find out once the doctor came in to set the bones she was riddled with cancer. One scan and a somber look from the doctor later, and we were all at a loss for words. She passed away two months later, only for my mom to be diagnosed with a different type of cancer six months later. Our family was rocked to its core when we heard that vile fucking word again, this time pancreatic cancer. Let’s just say our family had a rough couple of years, and I wasn’t sure how Grandpa Bernie would be able to recover from it. That was ten years ago. Now, while we miss them, the heaviness isn’t surrounding us.
“Missed you, Gabe,” Bernie tells me in a hushed tone.
“Missed you. I’m home for a good long time now.” We pull apart, I nod, and he gets the clue, finally going inside. “If you’re going to meet me at the door, at least put on a pair of socks or your slippers.”
“I’ll do what I want. I’ve been an adult a lot damn longer than you’ve been alive.” He shakes his head as he walks inside, and I already know where he’s headed, straight to his recliner. “Dinner is in the microwave. You’ll have to heat it up. Grab me a glass of milk and my cookies on your way into the living room.” He veers left, and I go to the right. Every night, it’s like clockwork. He turns on the television, eats his evening snack, and watches professional basketball if there’s a game, or he’ll watch an old western. How he manages to stay up past midnight most nights and get up to be at the diner by eight the next morning, I’ve got no idea, except maybe the cat naps he takes in his recliner in the afternoon might be part of the reason.
“Thanks. What have you been up to, old man?” Usually, when we get on the phone, it’s a few-minute conversation here or there. Gramps told me how busy the shop is when he drives by, the latest stats on his team, and to check in on me.
“You know, same shit, different day. The highlight of my day is The Sunshine Diner and when Carsynn comes over once a week. Which reminds me, I’m going to need more firewood. She’s been bringing it off the back porch for me. The woman reminds me of your grandma and mom all wrapped in one.” I hit the button on the microwave, watching as it lights up and shows me I’m in for a damn good meal. Beef stew on top of a bed of rice. I’ll bet its Gram's recipe, too, big chunks of seared meat before adding the potatoes, carrots, and the rest of the fixings, along with her secret ingredient—rosemary.