RIP Story: November 25th, 2024
This time had come, Edward needed to rip out the bush that split the yard in two. The storm had been too strong for a bush that lived a good life. If it hadn’t been partially ripped out of the ground, the roots were waterlogged and unlikely to bring the bush back to health. The old will welcome in the new Edward thought as he gathered his tools from the shed.
Had this been ten years earlier, his kids would have been out here helping. As they had all moved out, he was left with their bucket of outdoor toys that lived in the shed. Maybe I will find something under this bush that I can put away for them, he thought. He knew his kids well, for as soon as he pulled the portion laying on the ground, a baseball and a flat football revealed themselves. The football had some sort of moss growing on it and would not be going back in the bin. The baseball on the other hand, This could be cleaned up and used again. Edward still played catch with the guy across the street. The became friends many seasons ago when their teams played each other in the playoffs. They set up a TV outside while the kids watched, and the two dads played catch in the yard. It turned into a street event what would be repeated for another seven seasons.
The next toy Edward found was a plastic wand what belonged to his daughter. He recalled the day he had to yell at his boys for hiding the wand. He felt guilty today as the evidence suggested that one of the family dogs had taken the wand or his daughter left it outside. The boys never hid things outside. Anything founds after the event was found indoors. Edward also felt bad for yelling, he hated doing that in his early days of parenting.
The afternoon passed and more toys revealed themselves. What started as a mournful event for a bush that played a regular role in his families’ history, turned into the trip down memory lane. When he was done for the evening, he took a picture and posted it to the family chat. “Boy’s, I’m sorry I yelled at you, Liza, apologize to your brothers.”
<Sis getting flamed by Dad years after the fact. Text of the year Dad>
<How am I catching strays rn?>
<WAITING FOR THAT APOLOGY LIZ!!!>
<Gonna be a long wait>
Edward read along as his children harassed each other for the next 15 minutes. Bringing up decade old grievances that would never have a solution.
Edward walked to the front yard with the yard waste bin. The guy across the street happened to be doing the same. “Hey Sean, game of catch tomorrow?”
Thanks for reading, see you tomorrow.
EPILOGUE: This was fun. I got to hang out in the backyard of my old house while I was writing this. Not really, but conceptually. We didn’t have a large bush, but we had a neighborhood that felt like you would have these sorts of interactions. I also wanted to get away from making young kids as the main characters.
