Date: Tue, 23 Mar 2010 17:26:52 -0600 From: dnrock@rock.com Subject: Chinook 2 Chinook by: dnrock(dnrock@rock.com) 2: A Boy Has To Do, What A Boy Has To Do, continued Having no food in the house and not having a chance to take inventory at the boy's place, he decided to head for the nearest Mc Donald's, which was on 17th avenue, near 14th Street SW. They could walk those few blocks he thought. As they walked down 17th avenue they passed one of the local galleries that displayed Royce's work. Rom spotted it instantly. "Hay that's one of yours." "Yes it is but how did you know?" "I saw some sketches just like it on the table, next to the sofa." Royce smiled at the lad and though, "this kid is sharper then I imagined for a nine year old." "Do they have more of your work inside," Cliff asked. "Yes, this place has a lot of my work. Now if it would only sell a bit better..." "Oh, don't worry Royce, it will sell and you will be famous, I just know," Rom bubbled. It was then that he realized Rom was holding his hand and probably had been for some distance now. Just like he would hold his parents hands when he was nine. Cliff thought he was to old to do that, he suspected. Royce wondered if they ever get to walk down the street and hold their mom's hand anymore, with her being so sick and all. After breakfast and the inventory, Royce took the boys to visit mom in the hospital. They sure liked riding in his little car, an older model Mustang. Cliff though it was neat to have a shift on the floor. While the boys visited with mom, Royce did his phoning. He called Harvey and a few buddies. He called his dad. "Royce, it is so good to hear from you." "I know, I should call more often but you don't come to Calgary very much either." "Ya, I know but it is hard to get away from a working ranch." Royce asked all the usual son questions about his only living parent, his brother and sister, nieces, the stock and horses. "Royce son, you did not call me just to ask sixty questions." "No dad, I called ... I don't quite know why I called ... I have become a temporary foster parent." He blurted out, following with a quick explanation of the situation. "Two boys aged nine and eleven. Hum, well when you were nine, your brother was 12 and as I recall, between the two of you, your mother and I came close to loosing it more than once. I realize you did not have a lot of time to think this over son, two young boys will be both a hand full and cramp your Bohemian life style." "Ya I didn't, but dad I got to do this, I was only a little older than Cliff and I had you. All these boys have is me." Dad, Harland Evers Sr., wanted to shout with joy, wanted to thank a god he didn't even believe in. His younger son was acting like a man instead of a spoiled, talented maybe, but spoiled overgrown teenager. He had always supported his children in what ever they wanted to do. This was one time when he knew he must and for a change, understood why. "Ok son, how can I help?" He did not want to sound to enthusiastic but he did honestly want to help. His youngest son had never asked for much, not even while a student at the Alberta College of Art. "How about an apartment sized freezer filled with ranch meat and do you still have those bunk beds Junior and I had?" "The meat is here but the beds are long gone and that small a freezer, let me see. Look, I'll come up with something, just leave it to me. See you about noon tomorrow." Just then the boys came into the waiting room. "Mom was tired so we let her sleep," Cliff announced. "I said we would come back tonight, we can, can't we," Rom asked? "Sure we can little man, as long as they let us in," Royce replied. "You sure you are a foster parent, none of them ever let us come as often as we wanted before." Cliff inquired? "I'm sure I am your foster parent but I am not your average," Royce said, in the most reassuring tone he could muster. In reality he was scared as hell by the thought but determined to do his duty as he saw it. He was scared he would not pass long term muster and would loose the boys too. Royce had an idea. "I don't think your are average about anything," Cliff observed. He observed correctly. "Why don't you two go and get a soda?" Digging in his jean pocket, he passed a fist full of coins to Cliff. "I need to make one more phone call." "Junior, it's Royce." ................. It only took four trips to bring all the groceries up to the third floor. Royce had no real idea how to shop for more then two adults. He had no idea how the boys could play on his emotions, to get what ever goodies, candy, ice-cream or snack foods they thought they wanted. He was being hosed by experts and he had no clue. He also had little idea of their likes and dislikes. Several ladies in the line at the CO-OP observed his overloaded shopping carts, laden with cookies and chips. They smiled knowingly to each other, he may not realized he was being taken but they did. Royce was also shocked at the size of the bill, but he "didn't leave home without it". He had no idea about the other duties that would befall him in the coming weeks, most immediate were parent teacher interviews. Once back in the apartment, with the food put away, Royce attacked the mess and clutter with a vengeance, with the same intensity he applies to his work. Cliff took care of all the cupboards above the counter and Rom below. By supper time everything was in order, except for his current project, which occupied the center of his drafting table. They dusted, vacuumed, cleaned and preened. This place was ready for inspection. An inspection he knew it would be getting in the morning, when his dad arrived. If it passed his, Social Services would be a snap. Royce fixed a cheese and bacon omelet with hash brown potatoes and green beans. "No pop, all the milk you can drink." He was his father! "Wow, I think you cook better then our mom," Cliff blurted out. He did this after wolfing down a portion that would do a truck driver proud. "I told you I was a man of many talents, not only do I draw, paint and photograph but I cook, clean, drive a tractor, combine and heard cattle. That little man, is just for starters." "Are you a cowboy, like that man in the picture," Rom asked? "Yes sir, that's my dad, I grew up on a ranch, I had my own pony from the time I was oh, about nine I guess." "Are you fooling me, I'm nine and I don't have a pony," Rom countered. "No, I would never joke about something as important as a boy's pony, I'm sure I was in grade 4." "Does your dad still live on a ranch," Cliff inquired. "Yes he does and I'll bet, if you ask him, he would just love to have you two visit. Now get ready to go, while I read some e-mail." Dear Brother: I know better then to question if you know what your are doing, as an experienced parent, I know you don't. Dad called but all I would say was, a boy has to do what a boy has to do. I figure that is just what you are doing, enough said. These are the papers you requested. Just get an RN or MD to sign as witness. Do the four copies: one for Mrs. Rundle, one for me, one for Harvey and one for yourself. Send my copy by Purolator and leave the rest to me. Love Junior. "Junior did not mention our sister, Mary-Jo," he thought. "She would not be anywhere near as supportive as Junior. Mary-Jo will want to examine every detail, looking for the numerous flaws, he was sure existed, in his plan. In fact, she would question his sanity, morality and about anything else she could think of. For Mary-Jo, just present her with a done deal and let her play the aunt role." Royce printed out the forms and put them in an envelope. He was sitting at his desk, looking off in the direction of his mother's portrait. The one he painted as a 14 year old. Cliff came up behind him, studied the man for a bit and placed his hand on Royce's shoulder. "Who's the lady?" "She was my mother, I painted that just after she did not come home from the hospital." "One of these times mom is not going to come home, is she?" "Yes, one of these times, but this time I think things will be OK." "Who is Harland Evers Jr. and what's an LL.B.?" "Junior is my older brother, he lives in Edmonton and LL.B. means he is a lawyer." "What's in the envelope?" "Some legal papers I need your mother to sign, they appoint me as your temporary guardian." "Will that mean Social Services can't take us away?" "It means they can't take you away without a fight, and it means that you are now represented by legal council." "Is your brother as good a lawyer as you are an artist?" "Yes, I would say as good or better." "Then he must be the best," Rom interjected. "Are you going to be our dad?" Rom asked the question that Cliff wanted to ask but didn't quite know how. "Do you want me to be your dad? Before you answer, think just a bit, we don't know each other very well and I think that is a question your mother should have some input into. Why don't we say, I will be your unofficial dad for now. How does that sound." Rom answered first. "Ok dad, lets do it." Cliff was struggling with his feelings and emotions of pre adolescence. Royce knew he had to save the boy's face. "You don't need to worry about it, I like being called Royce you know." "Are you going to the parent-teacher interviews next week," Cliff asked. "Absolutely," of course that was the first he heard of it, "you can introduce me as your guardian, if you want and if your mom signs the papers." Cliff was satisfied with this, he obviously was not prepared to make any commitments like Rom. Royce figured the boy will come around in time but for now, being a guardian was sufficient. The early evening Saturday traffic was, almost as thick as week day rush hour. Royce is not usually out in it, since he does not commute and if he needed to go into the city center, it is not that bad a walk or bus ride. It must be all the shoppers heading home he thought. The boys piled out of the car and disappeared into the hospital, while Royce parked the car in the parking ramp. "Lots of visitors here." he though, parking spaces had become rare. As he approached the room he could hear much talking. This was a semi privet space and the other bed had been empty earlier. Cliff and Rom were excitedly telling mom about their new foster parent. "He's an artist and rides a horse and has a real cool car," Cliff was bubbling. "Ya and he cooks real good too and makes us brush our teeth after every meal. I like him, can he be my dad?" Rom was being very grown up and serious. Mrs. Rundle hesitated to answer. Royce gave her a smile and the OK sign from the doorway. He slipped into a chair, to let the boys have their say. "Well dear, don't you think you should ask him if he wants to be you dad first?" "Royce already said Rom can call him dad, he said we could call him anything but late for dinner." Mom smiled. "I don't know if he cooks how he can be late though." Cliff was so serious, both Mrs. Rundle and Royce had to work hard not to laugh. The talk went on for a while. It turned out Harvey had been speaking to Jewely earlier in the day so she was well aware of who was looking after the boys. Royce gave her the papers to read over and took the boys to the snack bar for ice-cream. "Harvey told me you don't do anything by half, I guess he was right but are you sure you realize what your getting into?" The boys realized the conversation was turning toward serious stuff and Cliff was starting to pull Rom toward the door. "You can stay. This concerns you and your immediate future. You should know and influence it," Royce told them, they sat, Cliff in a chair and Rom on the bed with Jewely. "My brother told me I probably don't know what I am getting into. You read his note. All I know is Harvey's comment about me needing them in my life as much as them needing me is probably the most accurate analysis going. I have not liked myself very much lately but just being with them for a day has stimulated several highly creative ideas. The guardianship and power of attorney are revokable and only in force if you are incapacitated or stuck in this jail." `Royce I can't afford to hire a lawyer and you shouldn't be paying for this stuff." "Junior has ghosts to chase away too Jewely, you do our mother's memory honor by letting us Evers children do the right thing. That is remuneration enough." She sent the boys to find the nurse. "You want to adopt my boys don't you?" "I honestly don't know, haven't thought things that far yet. All I know is I had an older brother, sister and father to help me when I was in a situation like Cliff and I was two years older. The thought of him and Rom facing this situation alone, when I both know about it and have the power to do something ... you see." "I don't know if I am coming home again or not. I know I don't have all that much longer. The older meds, from the early years, have taken their toll on me my heart and liver are both close to finished. Please don't tell the boys." "I won't, I know the power of hope." "And the comfort of knowing they will not just be left to the system." "All I can say to you is what my dad told my mother, it was over there, on the 6th floor in the Tom Baker Center." He pointed out the window to the adjacent oncology building. "No man can replace a child's mother in that child's heart but this man will see to it they are never alone. He was and is good to his word and if nothing else I am my father's son." Jewely and Royce did not notice the boys had entered the room. Jewely was crying and Royce's back was turned toward the door. Neither boy said anything at first. Cliff just remarked, "ya, mom he even looks like his dad, a younger version of him." 2a: Getting It Together, More or Less Schoosh -woosh - clickity clack - clickity clack - schoosh - woosh - ding, ding, ding. schoosh - woosh -. Royce stretched to reach the phone, this time he had two boys clinging to his upper body. He remembered putting them to bed in the guest room. Oh well. "Good morning son, I guess your up now." "Yes I am and so are the boys. If you hadn't given me this fancy phone I think I would kill the fucking bastard." "Royce, watch your language around the children," "Yes sir." Royce knew he had lots of stuff to learn, he guessed this was one of them. "I am just about to leave Chinook Shopping Center, should be at your building in say 20 minutes, have the coffee ready." He hung up. "That was my dad, he is at Chinook and heading this way. Better get dressed." Cliff and Rom both hugged him and ran into their room. "Wash your face and brush your teeth first." "Awh ..." Royce pulled his pants and a T shirt on and headed into the bathroom. He could see two naked bums before the sink, every once in a bit one hip would gently check the other. He remembered that play with Junior, he also remembered them spitting on each other and brushing your brothers nose with your wet, paste soaked brush. He came up behind them placing one hand on each boy. They looked at him in the mirror and smiled. Finished brushing, they pissed in the pot together, dribbling on the rim and ran out again. Royce took some toilet paper, wiped up the dribbles and flushed. Then he cleaned his own teeth. His thoughts crossed to boy behavior, which was mostly good. He wondered if he should say something about running around naked but since there are no girls around, he figured it is normal. Anyway they looked real cute, those two little bums standing in front of the sink. It was a very Rockewllesque image, one he filed away for future use. Another thing he noticed, the boys, more so Rom than Cliff, were starved for affection, human touch and outward signs. Jewely was too sick and too frail to hold them and tickle them, he thought. Oh well, he liked human touch and liked touching other humans. He liked tackling children who squirm and giggle and laugh. Well he likes tickling big boys and girls too but not because the giggle and laugh. Royce looked out the window as his dad pulled up in front of the building. He could not believe his eyes. The back of the pickup was full of boxes and stuff, including three bicycles. "Dad is here, we better go down and help him." The boys ran to the door throwing it open. "Runners!" Awh ... why do they always say that, Royce thought. He, of course said the same thing at 11, but we soon forget don't we. Like most Canadians and I believe many Europeans, everyone leaves their shoes at the door. Royce likes to be barefoot in the summer too but it is not summer. Warm for spring, but not summer. Harland Evers is a very large man. He is not fat or heavy set, he is tall about 2 meters (six foot three) and built like a football player. He works hard and physical, which is evident in his strength, calloused hands and standard rancher, clothing: boots, plaid shirt and jeans. By the time Royce got outside Rom was sitting on Harland's shoulders and Cliff was in the back of the truck inspecting the bicycles. The two larger bikes were the same ones he and Junior had, the smaller one was new. No sooner had the bikes hit the pavement then both boys were on them, Royce in panic mode about helmets and watching for traffic. "I have become my father," he stated to the old man. "No Royce, you have become a father and we teach the way we were taught," he replied, handing Royce his helmet. "I don't wear these things." "You do now son, set the example dad." Calgary has a bylaw requiring helmets on all bike riders under 18. After a brief turn around the block they parked the bikes and began to tackle the remainder: a bike rack for the Mustang, new bunk beds, freezer, boxes of meat. It took a few hours to get everything put away and in service. "This must have cost dad a bundle, Royce thought, I guess I better sell more stuff soon or I won't be able to repay him," he thought. "Mr. Evers, Rom and I want to thank you for bikes and beds and well everything for us to use, sir." "Cliff, this stuff is not for you to use, it is yours. Every boy needs three possessions in his life, his own bed, his own bicycle and his own horse. Two out of three for starters." Rom was sitting on Royce's lap just observing. "Dad, we can't keep a horse in Calgary." "My grand sons can have a horse if they want one, hell boy, I got a whole ranch full of them. You and your brother had your own horses at their age." "But Junior and I didn't live in a city either." "True, so I guess you will just have to bring them to the ranch once a week to ride them." "A ranch full of horses?" Cliff asked. "Didn't your dad tell you, my ranch, well his ranch too, raises horses as a business, other animals like rabbits, chickens, elk, deer and bison are for us to eat." "Do you have dogs on the ranch?" Rom asked. "Why yes we do, cats too, one of the bitches just had a litter of puppies least week, you can pick one of them for your own it you want Rom." With that Rom was on dad's lap to learn as much about the ranch and its furry residents as he could. Cliff and Royce made ready for the trip to the hospital. Cliff seemed a bit sad to Royce. He feels guilty that mom is in the hospital and he is enjoying or has the prospect of enjoying everything he ever thought he might want but it will be without her. Royce knew this emotion, the guilt trip he was putting himself on. Been there, done that, bought the tee shirt. "Cliff buddy I need some help" Cliff followed him into the boy's room. Royce sat on the bottom bunk patting it as an indication for him to sit. "Cliff, you must not feel guilty, you have nothing to be guilty for. You and Rom have been handed the dirty end of life's stick, just like Jewely has. Now if some good parts come along you must allow yourself to accept them, just as you accepted the unpleasant parts." "But a few days ago I could only dream about having a dad and ... and everything, now I have you and a whole family and a whole new life but I don't deserve it." "Do you deserve to have your only parent in the hospital, did you do something to cause that?" "Well no." "One of these times you know she won't be coming home again, do you deserve that." "Well no." "So you don't deserve to be an orphan." "No" "Then why don't you deserve a new family?" "I ... I ..." he broke down crying in Royce's arms. "Are you going to adopt Rom and me?" "Yes son if that is what you boys want, I promised your mother I would always be there for you, someone to love, protect, support, grow and discover the world with." "She is not coming home this time is she?" "That I don't know, I don't think anyone knows for sure. You know I will always be straight up with you. Not being a medical person myself, I just don't know. I think we need to function on the assumption that she will be home again. Nothing makes a parents heart happier then seeing their children growing, learning, interested in the world around them. Just always be honest with yourself, be yourself, if nothing else that will give her comfort. Cliff there is a poem in the bible that talks about time. It says to everything there is a time ... Do you know it." "Yes, it is printed on a plaque that hangs in the kitchen of our apartment." "You know it is an expandable poem. To it you can add those things that are important for you. A time to be eleven, a time to be a dutiful son ..." "I don't know how you do it Royce but no matter how down I fell you somehow get me to feel better." .............. "But Harland, you and Royce are spoiling them." "No Jewely, lack of standards, boundaries, direction and guidance spoils the child. Possessions earned or that come with obligations like pets, teach responsibility, duty and unconditional love." "But if you give them everything they ask for ..." "They will soon learn to only ask for that which is most important. You also tie things to performance such as sports to academic achievement." "I'm just a bit concerned that Royce lacks experience." "So is he and so am I but I didn't have any when I started, neither did you and not to blow my own horn, I think three for three isn't a bad track record. I had help sure, Royce will have lots, perhaps to much, help. Role models are not in short supply in this family. Those boys are the best thing to happen to Royce in years and I think for me too. We are a lot alike, we need a purpose, a reason to focus, otherwise we tend to drift." ................... Author's note: I see I have used the term soda to mean soda pop or pop or carbonated drink, i.e. 7up or Coke, etc.. I hesitated and wanted to change it. I didn't, opting for this note instead. If you are acquainted with regional slang you now know something about where your author grew up. Hint, they call drinking fountains, bubblers in that place. I would guess most large cities or regions have little slang terms. Soda, as used here is not one recognized in Calgary or English speaking Canada. Hoser or hosed on the other hand is.