I Started Out Roasting a Pig

Thanks for being the man you are, and the friend I needed

Ben"

Of course the bulk of his estate, the farm, the investments, went to Angie.

He left the dirt track he loved so much money to install new, safer bleachers and an announcer booth, along with a better public address system. They renamed the track in his honor.

Angie struggled for a year to find normalcy, but finally gave up.

"I'm moving back to Philly for awhile. I can't be here. Everywhere I look I see his ghost."

Even though he was ten, Billy cried for two days.

I shed my tears in private. She had been my anchor for eight years. I never felt more lost and alone.

She gave us keys, and asked us to keep an eye on the farm. I would go every two or three weeks, crank her little tractor and drive it a little to keep in good mechanical shape, and walk the house to check on fixtures, and plumbing. She left the power on and installed a state of the art security system.

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I went on with my life, concentrating on Billy. He was at the age where he wanted to hang with friends, and I knew he would soon be leaving me behind. Our house became boy central. There were always at least three of his best buds around the house. I made sure I knew them and their parents well, and had them over several times, and talked to them when they picked their children up. Several of the mothers were divorced, and I dated one or two, but nothing serious.

They wanted more, especially one.

I was still in good shape, owned everything free and clear, and had two successful businesses going.

I had franchised the restaurant and now had four scattered across this end of the state. Every one had a minimum of three trucks to service the smaller towns. I was making a lot of money.

I found another small town that had a need for equipment, and opened another store. Myra's husband became the manager, and her husband finally got to stop screwing his boss, unless they both wanted to.

Sherry lost the business, she didn't get the sweetheart equipment rental deal she had before. Her master chef quit to go into business for himself, and she lost business until she had to fold.

She became an office manager for a large insurance company and married a lawyer. It lasted eighteen months and he caught her cheating She still has the job, and is now engaged. I hope it lasts. She still sees Billy, mostly on holidays and birthdays.

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I was tired. I had been working out of town, getting a new restaurant up and running, my sixth.

Sara stayed with Billy while I traveled, and they both stood there grinning.

"What?"

I looked down to see if my fly was open.

"We have a visitor. Go on in."

It was Angie. She flew into my arms, hugging and crying. She had called us or we called her at least once a month. I could hear the sadness in her voice. I always ended the conversation by telling her to come home, we missed her. She kept saying she'd think about it.

I asked her how long she was going to stay.

"Thirty or forty more years, I hope. I'm home Will, and I'm not leaving. I'm tired of having to walk to a park to see grass. And I'm tired of living beside people I really don't know, who have no interest in being neighbors. I want to see the stars instead of smog when I look up at night."

She held my hand.

"And I want to see you every day. And Billy, I can't believe how big he is. I'll bet he's taller than you when he stops growing. I wanna see Myra,the guys at the dirt track, all my real friends."

She was crying on my shoulder by then. I just held her and felt happy for the first time in almost two years.

We got her house back in shape. She looked older and out of shape, but as the weeks went by she slimmed down, riding her beloved tractor and tending her garden. Her youthful appearance reemerged.

Sara moved into a retirement community, taking a one bedroom apartment. It was in driving distance. She was surprised one day when they moved her out of her apartment and into a larger two bedroom unit. She was even more surprised when I had all her bill sent to me. She protested but I stopped her. I also made regular deposits into her checking account.

"There were times Billy and I needed you pretty bad and you stepped up. This is payback. You have to have a bigger place so Billy can spend weekends with you, and a happy grandmother is what he needs, End of discussion."

We ate together every night that he didn't spend with his buddies, either at my house or hers.

Three months went by, and we started dating. Movies, concerts, even a little dancing. She visited Ben's old firm and left in tears. They made sure to invite us to all their functions.

She denied they were dates, saying that we were just old friends.

It all came into focus as we sat on the front porch swing and watched Billy and his friends tear up the field on there four wheelers.

It was a little cool and we had a light blanket over us.

I stopped rocking and looked her in eye.

"Marry me."

"What?"

"Marry me. I've loved you for years. You love me but you won't admit it. Let's quit playing musical houses and settle down."

Tears were leaking down her cheeks.

"But our ages..."

"Listen, I know you're fifty. You know I'm forty three. Listen to me. I don't care, I don't care, I don't care. I love you, and I will to my dying day."

She was rocking, snuffling.

"This is an ultimatum. Marry me, or I swear on Ben's memory I'll never set foot on this property again. Yes or no. Right now."

She didn't speak. I was crying now, thinking about what I'd lost. I was halfway across the porch when she tackled me.

We rolled down the steps and Billy rushed over.

He helped the crying Angie up.

"Are you all right?"

"Yes honey I am. I just got some good news. In a few days or weeks, I'm going to officially be your mother. I hope it makes you happy."

I learned that day what an extraordinary child I raised.

"You've pretty much always been my mom. Now I can say it out loud. I love you, mom."

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The wedding and the party afterwards was talked about for years.

Myra pulled out all the stops. We married in the spring, outdoors, in a meadow on the farm.

The castle tent was was our reception room. Most of Ben's old friends from his firm were there. Sophie was visiting her parents and came along.

She kissed Angie and told her how lucky she was. I could tell from her eyes I was going to have some explaining to do.

The guys from the track restored her car and gave it to her as a wedding present

The years flowed by in happiness and harmony. Billy graduated college, married, and he and his wife took over the businesses. We gave them my old house as a wedding present, after having it completely redone. They gave us three grandkids. He named his son Bennett.

I saw her get melancholy sometimes, and knew she was thinking of him. On what would have been their fiftieth anniversary, I gave her an oil portrait of him I had a well known artist do. She went to bed and cried for two hours.

We hung the portrait over the fireplace. He looks solemn, and I know my eyes aren't as good as they used to be, but at night, when the fire is lit, and Angie is on the floor playing with our smallest granddaughter, I swear he's smiling.

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As always, thanks for reading.