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The following week Miss Peterson called Jimmy and his friend Bobby to do the gardening and plumbing work at her house. Jimmy was glad since the toy company was now closed for good or whenever those billions of dollars could be paid. Bobby was quite happy even if it were just a gardening and plumbing work for the moment. Both men turned up at nine o’clock since it was a windy Monday morning. The morning felt as though it was spring and not coming to winter anytime soon. The apartment was huge and it had some tenants. There were several families in different apartments and they all seemed to have everything inside for their comfort. Jimmy knocked on the front door which was a solid wooden one. Miss Peterson came out and greeted them. She said, “Good morning, young men, I see you’re quite late for work.”
“It’s just nine o’clock,” replied Jimmy after he said good morning looking at his watch.
“Well, I was thinking you guys would have come like from eight-thirty a.m.” replied Miss Peterson.
“Sorry, we will come earlier next time,” said Bobby with a toolbox in his hand. Bobby felt a bit weird carrying the heavy toolbox in his hand. For the most part, when he worked at Automotive Inc. the most load he carried was a nice suitcase made of genuine leather.
The old woman asked the men if they wanted something to eat or drink. Jimmy wondered at this for some seconds because if they were late why would Miss Peterson stop to prepare breakfast. However, both men insisted they should do some work first since they had eaten before. Jimmy asked Miss Peterson where needed the plumbing. The old woman replied, “This way gentlemen. The four bathrooms upstairs and the kitchen sink need the repairs. You see I bought the stuff you’ll need to fix them.”
Jimmy looked in the kitchen’s direction and he went to check it out. Miss Peterson showed Bobby the upstairs bathrooms where the repairs were needed also. Bobby took a look and he knew the pipes needed to be changed. The bathrooms were very huge. Probably, only a king’s palace had such huge bathrooms Bobby thought. Some pipes were also leaking and dripping water. In truth, it wasn’t as bad as Miss Peterson made it out to be. Miss Peterson went over to see Jimmy’s work area. She said to him, “Let me know if you need additional materials to fix the sink.”
“I’ll let you know, ma’am,” answered Jimmy as he placed the toolbox on some old newspaper on the floor because it was slightly damp from the dripping of the pipes.
The old woman decided to ask Jimmy a few more questions. She proceeded without fear or even hesitation. “Do you have a family Jimmy?”
“Yes, I have a wife and an eleven-year-old daughter, Jessica,” replied Jimmy.
“That’s great! I see you are a family man. There’s nothing better than family.” The old woman continued.
“How about you Miss Peterson?” asked Jimmy. Jimmy knew it wasn’t any of his business, but he thought whenever someone asked such a question he should return it.
“Yes, I had a family once. However, they are all dead. I’m the sixth of six children of my parents.” replied the old woman.
“I’m sorry ma’am,” Jimmy said as he continued with the repairs to the kitchen pipes.
Miss Peterson then said to him, “It’s alright son, it’s nothing. Why don’t you and your family visit over here this Sunday? I’ll fix you guys a nice Sunday evening dinner.”
“Thanks for your offer Miss Peterson, but are you sure that it won’t be a bother to you?” replied Jimmy. Jimmy was always a bit skeptical of some old people who wanted his family to eat with them for dinner. He remembered this one time that the Smiths an elderly married couple invited him and his family for dinner and boy was it a disaster. Mr. Smith was just being half drunk and his wife gradually had to calm him down. From that experience Jimmy only ate with his parents or his wife’s parents who were old, but yet they were normal.
“Oh, it’s no problem at all. I like to be around people especially those who are honest, kind, and good,” answered Miss Peterson in a cheerful voice.
“Thank you! Then, it’s settled.” Jimmy said to her as he continued working in the kitchen. Miss Peterson, then said to him, “Jimmy, I’ll be right back. I’m going into town to do some errands for about an hour. Now, I’ll let you guys finish up here.”
“Okay, Miss Peterson we’ll sure do,” replied Jimmy.
Jimmy didn’t know why he said yes because his heart was saying no, but he just forced and said yes to dinner.
The old woman then went upstairs and shortly afterward she came downstairs dressed for the streets. She also had a long umbrella which she carried in one hand. Her handbag was also on the other. Before she left she fed her cats with what seemed to be the last few tins of cat food she had in the house. There were quite a few cats and kittens. Jimmy saw the cats with the kittens and wondered why she had so many pets. ‘Was this the Catwoman?’ He wondered to himself. As a kid, he often read comic books and one that he read well was Catwoman. She was a villain who later turned into a superhero who had a lot of cats. She protected cats. In her villain days, she stole a lot as well. If Jimmy had learned anything from reading those comics it would be never to trust a Catwoman because you may never know when she’ll switch sides from good to bad or vice versa. He also wondered if Miss Peterson went out to buy cat food since the tins were finished. It seemed that Miss Peterson was the type of old person who liked to go out. Go out in the sense of running errands and not idling. He knew this was quite a lovely house she had. It wasn’t like the apartment which he had rented, but it was lively, brightly painted, and looked filled with life. It wasn’t just a house, but it felt as though it was a happy home. Bobby admired the house too, it slightly reminded him of the mansion he had before everything went south. Both men worked quickly because they didn’t know what idling meant. Then, as Jimmy was tightening some pipes someone knocked on the door. He wondered who it might be because it couldn’t have been Miss Peterson. He got up from under the kitchen sink and went towards the front door. He opened the front door and he saw that it was the postman. The postman said to him with a smile on his face, “Good afternoon sir, I have some mail here for this address.”
Jimmy replied to him, “I’m just doing some plumbing work here I don’t live here.”
“Do you know a Miss Anna Peterson?” asked the postman.
“Yes, I’m doing some work for her,” replied Jimmy. Jimmy wondered what it may be. He knew it had to either be mail or a small package. He wasn’t very fond of mailmen because it seemed that the only time they smiled was when they knew he got high bills. This was just Jimmy’s thinking though because he knew they just did their jobs.
“Then, these letters belong to her.” said the postman as he handed the letters to Jimmy.
Jimmy accepted them on her behalf from the postman. He got five envelopes in all. Two brown ones and the other white. He placed them on what seemed to be a table in the living room. He went back to work. He had accomplished a lot because that meeting with the postman took roughly thirty seconds. Jimmy thanked his father who had taught him a little plumbing when he was younger. Well, he watched what his dad did, but it was free lessons anyway. The gardening he had to do wasn’t going to be easy either because someone had to be skilled not to cut down the entire flowers and trees. An hour had passed and Miss Peterson returned with two large paper bags. One seemed to have cat food inside and the other groceries. She went to the kitchen to see how far Jimmy had reached with the plumbing. She said to him as she stood by the door, “I see you have done quite a lot of work since I’ve been on the road.”
Jimmy looked around and said, “Yes, ma’am I have. By the way, the postman brought your mail. I collected and placed them on that table in the living room. I hope that’s ok with you.” Jimmy said this because he knew some old people were a bit skeptical of workers or people who they didn’t know well-accepting mail on behalf of them. He even counted himself lucky to be at the house without Miss Peterson there to observe. He knew perfectly well that if it were some of those young men in town that Miss Peterson had hired she would have returned to find the house empty. Some people on the streets in truth couldn’t be trusted with people’s stuff or belongings. The valuables in Miss Peterson’s house such as the wonderful artwork and sculptures seemed to have cost a fortune. The paintings and the sculptures alone could feed any man on the streets for years if they had gotten access to it.
“Thanks, Jimmy.” replied the old woman as she went to see them. She picked up the mail from the table in the living room and scanned through them. It was just some bills as usual, then she saw one from Christy who lived up North in a suburban neighborhood called Nightingale Avenue. Christy was a former childhood friend of hers, however, as things and time changed Christy moved away to pursue other things. She opened the envelope and she read, ‘Dear Ann, I know we haven’t been on good terms for years. However, I’m sad to say I think I’m dying from cancer. The doctors told me I don’t have much time. As you read this I only have about two months to live. I’m all alone.’ She put the letter down because she couldn’t read it anymore. Miss Peterson wondered why Christy didn’t send her an e-mail or call her using the mobile phone. Christy and Miss Peterson used to enjoy sending letters to each other when they were younger, but now was the year 2005 and these things were fading out. Miss Peterson wondered a bit if she was living in 2005 or 1945.
Miss Peterson felt shocked and sad at the same time. She remembered that Christy was a good friend to her growing up, however, they didn’t correspond for quite a few decades. She knew that she had forgiven Christy long ago, but she had to visit her to ensure that her long lost friend knew that before she died. She decided to visit Christy the next day taking the bus that drove to North, particularly Nightingale Avenue. She didn’t say a word to Jimmy since she was quite shocked. However, she fixed some lunch for herself and the workmen. Jimmy finished the kitchen sink and also repaired the water pipes under the cupboard. It took four and a half hours in all to do the kitchen sink and pipes. Miss Peterson, then told the men to come for lunch. Jimmy and Bobby hurried downstairs where the old woman brought some sandwiches made of bread, chicken, lettuce, tomato, and mayonnaise on a server along with a jug of lemonade. The time wasn’t that hot, but the traditional drink that many people liked was lemonade. For some strange reason Jimmy didn’t like lemonade that much, but rather he preferred soft drinks although it wasn’t healthy, it was addictive. Both men said thanks as they were somewhat hungry due to the level of work done. Jimmy noticed that Miss Peterson looked a bit sad, so he asked, “Is everything okay Miss Peterson?” Jimmy wasn’t the type of man to just ask random questions, but he saw the look on the old woman’s face and decided to ask. He knew he should have just kept his mouth shut and ate, but he couldn’t.
“Don’t worry about me, Jimmy. I’m just stricken in age.” replied the old woman in a soft voice. Jimmy knew that Miss Peterson’s countenance changed after she read that letter, so he persisted and said, “Does that look on your face earlier signify the reading of that letter?”
Miss Peterson was kind of surprised that Jimmy noticed that she was reading the letter with such vivid emotions and she replied, “It’s just that I haven’t seen my good friend for decades, but after that many years she wrote me a letter. It’s just the work of fate. I don’t know why she didn’t call instead of writing a letter.”
“Probably, you should visit her then,” said Jimmy as he ate lunch. Jimmy knew he should have just eaten lunch and minded his own business, but he couldn’t.
The old woman looked at him as he ate and replied, “That’s the problem. How do you react to your long lost friend who is about to die.”
“How can we react, but just cherish the good times we had. I know I would visit,” said Jimmy as he finished the second sandwich. Jimmy knew he was a young man compared to Miss Peterson’s age and that he didn’t have all the answers in this world, but the reply just came to him which he was thankful for. The old woman knew that Jimmy was right in his judgments. And she looked at him and said, “I’m afraid you’re right Son. I will have to visit her tomorrow. After all, I’m sure she’d be happy to see me.”
“So that means we can’t come to work tomorrow?” asked Jimmy.
“No. You come to work, I’ll let you do the flower garden outside,” said Miss Peterson.
After Jimmy and Bobby had finished eating they told the old woman thanks again and turned on the pipes outside to see if they were working properly since forty-five minutes had passed and they were dry. When both men went outside they noticed that the evening wasn’t that cold, but it was slightly warm. Although it was still autumn and Christmas would appear the next month, the evergreen trees had on leaves and they looked quite composed. Jimmy observed the neighborhood some more which was nicer than his own. There wasn’t any rain today and even the cat played with her kittens on the lawn grass in front of the lovely flower garden. Jimmy looked at his watch and the time was now four o'clock in the afternoon. It was time to leave work for the day and head for home. Jimmy told Miss Peterson that he would come earlier the next day to finish up. Bobby said goodbye to Miss Peterson as well. Both men left the compound as they waited for the bus to take them to their respective locations. Bobby went back to the shelter and Jimmy went to his family. When Jimmy reached home his wife and daughter were excited to see him. They questioned him about his new job which he said was just to make extra money. After all, he had received a check from the former toy company he worked for. However, he didn’t want to waste it on anything his family didn’t need, so he and his wife decided the best place to put the money was in the bank. Kathrine lodged the money with him to an account for an emergency. The emergency was only for what the name suggests. Jimmy felt good within himself because he was working again even if it wasn’t in the toy industry it still brought a feeling of good, but he was also helping along in the only way he knew how. Kathrine asked him what was the name of the old woman he and Bobby did the plumbing work for, and Jimmy replied, “Her name is Miss Anna Peterson.” When his wife heard this she was shocked and asked, “Is she an old African American woman who owns a huge apartment over by the next street?”
“Yes, dear. Do you know her?” replied Jimmy.
“Oh well, I met her the day I went for my job interview. She sat on a bus beside me,” answered Kathrine.
“I met her the same way on a bus after I was seeking work to do,” said Jimmy as he sat in the living room.
“I guess it’s a small world dear,” replied Kathrine.
“Yes, it is. And I just remembered that she has invited us for Sunday evening dinner. I told her we’ll be there this Sunday.” said Jimmy.
“That’s fine with me dear. I can tell she is a kind and compassionate woman,” replied Kathrine from the kitchen.
Kathrine prepared dinner and Jessica colored pictures from her coloring book. Jimmy sat on the sofa and looked at his childhood journal he had kept all these years. He browsed through it and reflected a bit. He saw on page one a little picture he drew of himself as an army soldier when he was in grade one. Page two he saw himself as a sailor. Page three he saw himself as a CEO for a huge company. Page four he saw himself owning a lot of businesses and a big house and a happy family. As he was about to turn the fifth page his wife called him for dinner. He closed the small journal that had survived the worst of times and placed it on the bookshelf in the living room. The bookshelf had quite a few books, however, none was more precious to him than the childhood journal. The childhood journal was like the Bible that he reflected on to help himself, others, and his family. Jimmy, then went to eat his dinner with his family.
A few days had passed and it was now Sunday evening. Jimmy’s car had broken down for some weeks, however, with the money he received from Miss Peterson he was able to fix it. It was good to see that the little automobile was up and driving again. The black smoke from the muffler that seemed to pollute the environment wasn’t there anymore. His car also started upon the first click of the ignition. Jimmy’s family got ready fast and they were all neatly dressed. Jessica had on a pretty pink dress that was suitable for her age. Jimmy had on a blue jacket suit. Kathrine had on a nice dressing skirt and blouse. They all looked as though they were from a rich mansion and not just a poor neighborhood. The other neighbors saw them and were amazed at the way they looked. They looked gorgeous and they wondered where they were off to. It was just two-thirty p.m. and some neighbors peeped through their windows and some said hello. ‘Probably, they are going to church’ some wondered. The problem though was that it wasn’t early in the morning and church would probably be over by now. The neighbors knew it wasn’t their business to ask them where they were going anyway, but some just wished it was. Jimmy and his family entered their car. Kathrine at the front beside her husband and Jessica at the back. The Sunday afternoon was good and there wasn’t any rain, but a burst of bright sunshine with happy looking clouds. Jimmy drove moderately until he reached Miss Peterson’s house. He parked in the driveway and the family came out of the car and stood at the front door. Jimmy knocked on the door and out came Miss Peterson in her nice dress. She looked delighted to see the family. “Oh, hello and welcome to my house Jimmy’s family.” said the old woman in a cheerful voice wearing her eyeglasses.
“Please, Miss Peterson, we should be thanking you. By the way, this is my wife Kathrine and my eleven-year-old daughter Jessica,” replied Jimmy as he smiled.
“Nice to meet you again Miss Peterson,” said Kathrine as she smiled. Miss Peterson was shocked to see Kathrine again as she never thought that she was Jimmy’s wife. After all, she couldn’t have known unless someone had told her.
“Nice to meet you, ma’am,” said Jessica who looked delighted.
“Please, do come in. And make yourself at home,” replied Miss Peterson.
When the old woman said this, Jimmy’s family entered the huge house and they noticed that tenants lived on the floors above. In all, it was three floors. The inside of Miss Peterson’s house even looked better to Jimmy Sunday than it was the other days. The turkey smelt good as it was roasted in the oven. Jimmy and his family sat in the living room, however, Kathrine asked if she could help with sharing dinner. Miss Peterson said no since they were the guests. Jessica looked at the paintings inside the huge living room. This painting was that of a young girl staring at a rainbow in the sky. She felt relaxed because she liked art and craft especially paintings and drawings. It was several minutes later that Miss Peterson called them for dinner. They assembled around the dining table where a feast was prepared for them. The turkey was there, the secret sauce that Miss Peterson boasted about, and the roast corn with bread, rice, and pasta. It seemed as if this were the Thanksgiving that Jimmy and his family didn’t have. However, before they ate Miss Peterson said grace as she wouldn’t eat without saying it. Jimmy tasted the food and it was delicious. Kathrine and Jessica thought the same. And the family even showed gratitude to Miss Peterson by telling her how delicious her cooking was. The old woman who was quite humble said they were welcome. She also said to Kathrine that she would gladly give to her the secret recipe of the sauce seeing that she had no daughter or children. Jessica wondered why such a woman as Miss Peterson lived alone. So she asked her while around the table.
“Miss Peterson. said, Jessica.”
The old woman looked cheerfully at her and said, “Yes, my dear child.”
“How come your house is so huge yet you have no children staying here? Don’t you love children?” asked Jessica.
When Jessica said this Jimmy replied, “Jessica, please don’t bother Miss Peterson with so many questions.”
However, Miss Peterson replied, “Oh, Jimmy it’s okay. I’ll answer her.”
Miss Peterson, then said to Jessica looking at her, “Of course, I love children especially those who behave themselves. I don’t have any children of my own, but I took care of many children in the past. You see you don’t have to be a biological mother to take care of children.”
Jessica then finished eating her dinner around the table. After dinner, Miss Peterson served a dessert of ice and cream and chocolate cake. They all ate and were happy. Kathrine helped with the washing of the dishes. It was now five o'clock in the evening and after a great session, Jimmy and his family told Miss Peterson thanks for a great evening. The old woman seemed to be quite happy that she had visitors over for dinner. It didn’t seem like she had visitors in a long time. She also invited Jimmy’s family to come again soon for more dinner. Jimmy and his family accepted the offer and said next time they’ll come again. They went in the car and drove to their home on the other side of town feeling happy in their hearts.
