Today's Reading
"That's because you're a good and decent man, Fritz."
Warmth tingled his face, as it always did when she endeared him with encouragement and the pet name she had given him as a baby because he "looked his heritage from hour one." She never failed to leave him with a measure of maternal tenderness, a precious thing for a son without a mother on this side of heaven.
"Wish there was more I could do," he said.
"Me too. It was so much simpler to get through to you boys when you were little. Grown men are impossibly hard to convince the sky is blue. Present company excluded, of course."
"Of course."
"Hope you get ready, though. Chris may be mad enough to call you back this time."
"Standing guard."
"Good." She let out a singsong sigh. "Tell me something pleasant before I get all kinds of gray here. How's the new house? I'm still waiting on those pictures you promised to text me."
"I know. I'm behind on that. Been busy moving in."
"You said your new house is near the machine shed?"
"Sort of in between the machine shed and the old farmhouse. From my living room window, I can see the old place and the pasture across the road, which lets me keep an eye on my herd."
"Rowdy bunch, no doubt. Figure out your plans for the farmhouse? Last time we talked, you were thinking a respite getaway for veterans."
"Maybe. Or a furnished rental. Affordable housing—and everything else—is hard to come by around here anymore. Especially this year. Have a board meeting at the electric co-op tomorrow, and I suspect we'll learn that even more members have fallen behind on payments."
"Bless them. Times have never been easy on rural folks. I'm sure you'll figure out what's best, for the co-op and the farmhouse."
"Regardless, the farmhouse needs a face-lift," Wes said. "Some paint at least. Maybe new flooring in the bathroom and kitchen. Nothing drastic. Want to keep the character."
"I couldn't bear it if you didn't," she replied. "I'll always have a soft spot for that little house too. That's usually the case with your childhood home, though. It served us both well as youngsters, didn't it?"
"One of many reasons I came back after the service."
"It's why your mom came back too, and brought your father with her. There is something powerful about that slice of earth. I like to think in her final days, my sister's mind still convinced her she was in that kitchen. She kept it so warm and full of coffee cake for any company that came to her door. Wouldn't it be something if she greeted us at the gates with her smile and a warm cinnamony slice? It's not scriptural, but it's a comforting thought."
The mere mention of his mother's baking made him long for the scents and sounds of her at work. Had it really been almost fifteen years since he'd had any food produced by her seemingly tireless hands?
Another singsong sigh. "Well, I best be getting. It's almost four."
"Bocce ball practice?"
"Yep. The Lutheran Ladies of the Lawn have a tournament we intend to dominate this weekend. The boys are quaking in their orthopedics—I can feel it. Our team T-shirts arrive tomorrow."
He laughed. "Text me a picture."
"You first."
"Right. Me first. Have fun at practice with the LLLs."
"Love you a bushel, Wes."
"And a peck."
* * *
Before Nikki had a chance to take one sip of her coffee, all the pent-up emotion tumbled out of her in a mess of exhausted tears.
Her mom wore the same knitted-brow expression that had welcomed a thousand confidences over the years. It seemed unfair to load down a woman who already had so much to carry. The hollows of her cheeks were more pronounced. The curve of her back more noticeable. More white streaked through her light-brown locks, which she wore in an unraveling ponytail.
Still, her mom took it. She reached across the table and wove her fingers into Nikki's. "I know it's been hard these last several months—at school and at home. Summer break is coming at the best time, isn't it?"
Nikki wiped her cheeks and nodded.
"And Isaac gets back from his work trip tomorrow?"
"Right."
She squeezed Nikki's hand. "That's something to look forward to. I wish I could make things easier for you in the meantime."
...
