Pivotals: A Story of Small Town America

by C L Miller

  Brian Millins

  I was working at the diner the Friday evening Charlie Wheeler got out of the hospital after his heart attack. Joe made a heart-shaped cake with the date on it. Fred Baker was the hero of the day and Charlie Wheeler made a great speech about how much he loved his best friend. Everyone was hugging and crying. I was in the back room with Sarah, washing dishes, when I suddenly realized she was crying too. I worked with her but we didn’t know much about each other outside of the job. I thought she was kind of stuck-up, and I know she thought I was a “dumb jock”. But my mother taught me to be polite, so I asked her if she was okay. She just gestured over her shoulder at the dining room and said, “I can’t imagine the kind of friendship that lasts that long.”

  To tell you the truth, I had been kind of choked up about the whole thing myself. Everyone had heard the story by now of Mr Wheeler going into the drug store to get medicine for his sick son, and how Mr Baker knew he was having a heart attack and called an ambulance. Even us dumb jocks are sensitive to that.

  Sarah Smith Millins

  There I was, trying to wash dishes and wipe my eyes at the same time. I knew Brian thought I was too into myself to care but I am just one of those people that don’t show emotion. Then Brian asked me if I was okay and the tears just started to roll. He came over and took my hands out of the water and dried them with a towel. He got a box of tissues and we sat on the floor of the kitchen and started crying together.

  I had never seen a boy cry over something like that and it was really kind of beautiful. Brian wasn’t ashamed of it at all. He said he thought that Mr Wheeler and Mr Baker being such good friends was the greatest thing he could imagine. He said that he wished he had a friend like that, the kind that is always there when you need them.

  Joe

  I walked back to the kitchen to check on my helpers and found them sitting on the floor, holding one another and crying to beat all. I backed up a couple steps around a corner and had to take a moment to control my own voice. I had been doing all right out in the dining room, but the sight of those two kids nearly did me in. Up till now they had been co-workers, cooperative and all, but that was about it. I knew something big had changed for them. After a minute I rattled a couple of plates and called out “Hey, can I get some help out here?” I heard Brian say quietly, “I’ll go. You stay here.” Sarah said something I couldn’t hear, but Brian said, “No, it’s okay. You get some air, Sweetheart, and come out when you’re ready.”

  Brian

  My family moved here when my dad was hired by the local Sheriff as a deputy. My parents had wanted to keep close to Vernetta and her mother, so it was great when my dad was offered the job. I’d learned how to make friends easily, even when my dad is a cop.

  After high school Sarah and I went to State College. Every few months we’d take an afternoon to write to Joe about school, friends, and our lives. It gave us some fun time together and we knew Joe liked us to keep in touch.

  Sarah

  Napoleon Smith was my daddy’s oldest brother and we’ve all lived here for generations. I met Brian at Steve and Vernetta’s wedding, but we were still in grade school and I didn’t think much of him at the time. I spent the day mooning over his brother Tom, but he was a lot older than me -- he was in high school! We all laugh about that now.

  Tom was at the same college, a year ahead of Brian and me. Dina was my roommate and soon became a best friend. Before long the four of us were doing everything together. We knew we'd found something that would last a lifetime. After graduation we all moved back here.

  The day we got married was very special. It was a double wedding because that just seemed the way to go. It’s so funny looking back to see that a near-tragedy gave me one of the most important relationships in my life. Joe was a special guest at our wedding. It was wonderful for us to share the day with our closest friends.

  I don’t know what I would do without Brian. He is always there for me. I will never forget the afternoon I went into premature labor when my husband was out of town. I called Brian and he dropped everything and came to sit with me until Tom got back. He is my Fred.

  Brian

  Sarah is the second most important woman in my life and still one of my best friends after all these years. The night my wife was in a car accident, Sarah came and got our kids to camp in with hers, then spent the entire weekend with me until Dina was out of the ICU. She is my Charlie.

  Joe

  Sarah and Brian are still a big part of my life. I'm happy to have been the instrument that started an enduring friendship. Fred and Charlie would be proud.

  My sign says I am closed on Sunday, but sometimes I open up after church and give the families a nice breakfast. I figure that God has been good to me, and the people of the town have been good to me. That puts me in the middle of a gratitude arc and I want to show God I appreciate what He’s done.

  Part 2

  Harvey Weston

  The first time I saw Vernetta I nearly passed out. She was so the spitting image of my dearest Mary Anne that I actually thought for a minute she had come back to me. But then I remembered how many years had gone by since I lost her and I knew....

  I followed Vernetta to David Baker's office that day, but it took me a couple weeks to get the courage to speak to her.

  Vernetta

  I met Harvey the day he came into the office. I told him David Baker was out but he said it was me he wanted to talk to. That happens sometimes, when people just want to run something by me before they meet with David Baker.

  But this was different, and when he told me the story of his Mary Anne I could barely keep from crying, even though Harvey was doing just fine himself.

  It started a friendship that soon became one of the most important in my life. In some basic way I missed having a father to talk to and Harvey stepped right up. He even started spending a lot of time with my mother and the three of us made an odd but comfortable family.

  Harvey

  I was in the Navy all those years ago. I'd been out for a few months and when the boat docked I called Mary Anne and told her I was catching a ride out to our place. She asked me to stay put, said she'd drive to the yard and pick me up, said she'd made reservations for dinner at the hotel and we would have a night on the town to celebrate my return.

  It had been raining and I should have insisted she wait for me but I didn't want to spend any more time away from her than I already had, so I agreed. An hour later I got the call. A drunk driver had run a stoplight and t-boned her car. The doctor met me at the emergency room and gave me that little speech about "I'm sorry, we did our best, but ...." Then she gave me a box with all the personal effects from the car. On top was an envelope addressed to "Daddy". I hadn't known she was pregnant, so I lost my wife and my daughter that night.

  I finished my tour then went to college. I got my teaching credential and taught history for twenty years. When I retired I remembered a friend from the Navy who had family in the area and had always talked about how friendly the locals were. I was ready for a change of scene so I came out to look around. The library was hiring part time and the local high school always had use for substitute teachers so I settled in.

  And then I saw Vernetta.

  Loretta

  When I moved here to be with my daughter, I found her in very capable hands. Harvey was soon a blessing to us both. We could call him for every little chore around the house and he only asked that we include him in an occasional family gathering. Before long it wouldn't have been "family" if he wasn't there. Sometimes he and I would take off together for an evening out -- Vernetta called it "Grownups Night" -- but early on we agreed that we would never be more than good friends and the subject was never discussed again.

  Dolores

  I met Joe at a tavern near the Navy base. I'd gone there to meet a client of mine who wanted a friend to share an evening out. Mary Anne was a tall Southern girl, blond and slender, exactly the opposite of me. But I never fel
t plain or awkward around her. She was just nice to everyone. She'd been coming into the salon where I worked for nearly a year and our friendship grew. We had never done any socializing before that day, but when she got her hair done in the afternoon and was my last appointment it all kind of happened.

  We were standing in a corner, I was sipping on a soda, when some guy started talking about funny statistics. He told his buddies that if there were only twenty-five people in a group, two of them would share a birthday. The other guys scoffed, so he said "Let's try it." He got the whole room quiet and started asking birthdays, and when he got to me, I said "August 17". Joe yelped, and the guy said "I believe we have a match!" And so we did. Joe came over to talk to me and we hit it off right away. Another fella, in a Navy uniform, started talking to Mary Anne and the next thing I knew they took off together. I didn't see her at the salon for a few months, and the next time I did she told me she was marrying the man she met at the tavern and he was being transferred to another base. We talked for a while that day, then hugged and wished each other well. I never saw her again.

  Joe

  One day at lunch in my diner, Charlie was talking to some of the guys from his garage about funny statistics. He said that if there were twenty-five people in a group, at least two of them would have the same birth date. Harvey chuckled and said he knew that because the day he met his wife, someone was claiming the same thing and there were two people in that group that shared a birthday. I said that I had met my wife because some guy threw that out at a tavern and we both had the same birthday. Then Harvey looked at me and said "Dolores, of course! Why didn't I get that before now!" Then he jumped up and paid his bill and left.

  Harvey

  Dolores soon became a good friend. I probably shocked her the day I burst into the Glamour Stop and grabbed her. "You knew Mary Anne, my Mary Anne?" I was barely coherent, but I finally calmed down enough for us to talk and it turned out they had been together the day I met my beautiful wife. I tried to explain why I hadn't really noticed Dolores that day, but she just grinned and reminded me that she had no reason to feel slighted. Then we had the first of a long series of talks about Mary Anne. I was so happy to find someone else that had known her about the same time I did, it felt like I was bringing her back into my life. There had never been anyone else for me in all the years since, and it was good for me to talk and even cry a bit. I hadn't done much of that but had buried myself in my work. It felt good to let it go.

  ***

  Steve

  I talked to Loretta about my love for Vernetta and how I planned to ask her to marry me. She agreed and gave me her blessing. I started thinking of all the romantic ways I could propose, but it turned out to be anything but what I had in mind. The following Friday evening we were sitting at Joe's eating supper and I was nervous as a cat. I planned to propose that evening when we were alone, over a glass of champagne. I kept glancing at Loretta sitting at a nearby table trying to get my courage up, when I suddenly realized I hadn't taken the matter up with Harvey. He may not have been Vernetta's father but he had become her Dad, and he deserved the chance to offer an opinion. Now what should I do? He was there with Loretta, but I could hardly go talk to him now.

  Harvey

  I could read Steve like a neon sign that night and I was having a tough time keeping a straight face. Loretta had clued me in on the talk they'd had earlier in the week and it was pretty clear tonight was the night. I think everyone was picking up on what was going on, given the chuckles that were growing louder by the minute. Steve and Vernetta seemed oblivious but I knew my girl wasn't as clueless as she was trying to appear.

  Joe

  I wasn't sure how much more the crowd could take of this. I was about ready to ask Vernetta if she would like to marry Steve, just to get the poor guy off the hook. Then he did something that I will never forget.

  Steve

  I took a deep breath and reached for Vernetta's hand across the table, raised it in mine and looked at Harvey. I hoped he could read my question from across the room.

  Joe

  Suddenly you could hear a pin drop in the diner. People froze, forks halfway to their mouths, coffee cups suspended in mid-air.

  Harvey

  I nearly choked. He was asking ME if it was okay for him to marry my girl. I glanced at Loretta, who was wiping a tear from her eye. She smiled a tiny smile at me as if to say "This one's for you". I looked back at Steve, then lifted my coffee cup and nodded.

  Joe

  All eyes swung back to Steve at Harvey's nod. Steve was looking at Vernetta, who was now looking at her mama. We all went back to Loretta. She smiled at her daughter and raised her own coffee cup. We all returned to the center stage event.

  Steve

  I was watching Vernetta and now she looked at me and smiled. I probably just blinked at her, I was thunderstruck. Then she nodded and squeezed my hand.

  Joe

  The entire audience burst into applause. I went into the kitchen and brought out the small bottle of champagne that Steve had asked me to have on hand for the special late-evening moment we had been planning for a week or so. I broke out a case of ginger ale that I kept on hand for such events, and the rest of us shared a toast to the new couple.

  ***

  Dolores

  Joe and I never had children of our own. We've long since resigned ourselves to that, but I'd be lying if I said there has not been disappointment and regret. There were no miscarriages or stillbirths, for which we are both grateful to God. I can't imagine the pain that would bring on a couple. The doctors just said it was one of those things that happen for no reason; said there was nothing that should be stopping us from having a houseful of babies.

  So Joe has his kids at the diner and I can mother them some. Maybe it's better this way. Maybe we couldn't have been that close to others if we had a flock of our own. Most of the kids have been like Brian and Sarah, from strong families, good kids. We keep in touch, see them at holidays, suchlike.

  Occasionally Joe reaches out to the other kind. He won't tell you about it because he thinks it's no big deal but I know better. He makes a difference. Sometimes its night to day, darkness to light.

  One boy, Joey Thomas, was having a rough time. Harvey subbed in his class at the high school for a few weeks one spring and Joey was a mess. Folks splitting up, older brother in jail, older sister pregnant by some guy who bailed on her, and who knows what all else. Harvey and Joe talked it over and thought maybe working the diner on Friday nights might help the boy find some focus.

  Joe

  Yeah, Joey was a challenge, although I think Dolores made too much of it. He had some bad stuff going on but he was a good boy at heart, just needed some stability. He dug right into working, was never late, did any and every chore I set in front of him without complaint. I must have thrown out my back or something that summer, kind of slowed me down, so I asked him to work for me full time. He'd stay late, off the clock, to make sure I got locked up okay. Sometimes he'd even walk me home and I'd invite him in for a cool drink. I know he was just trying to put off going to his house, but I really enjoyed our talks -- he was bright, quick, had good sense of humor.

  Then the feathers hit the fan. His dad got arrested for drunk driving after a fight with Joey's mother. His mom lost it, packed up and went to live with her sister in New York. It was the beginning of Joey's senior year and she just left him to deal with his dad and sister. The poor kid came unglued. He literally camped on our front porch for a few nights until his dad got out of jail. He practically begged us to take him in.

  Dolores

  It took Joe and me about five seconds to agree to take Joey in "until things settled down". His daddy was okay with it, had more than enough on his plate, and wanted Joey out of the drama, as he called it. We fixed up a spare room and he moved in.

  Joe

  Joey stayed a year with us. He finished school, near the top of his class. Applied and was accepted at the State University.
Did a two year stint with the Reserves. Got his engineering degree and went to work for the Army. Like I said, a bright boy.

  Dolores

  I'm betting Joe didn't tell you this part. He pulled some strings at the University, got most of the tuition billed to us. Joey thought he was there on a grant.

  Joey Thomas

  I have so much to thank Joe and Dolores for. They took me in during a real rough time. They probably saved me from dropping out of school, and who knows what all else. I found out part way through my first year at the University that they had picked up the tab for my education. I also knew they'd be unhappy that I found out, so I only told one other person until today. Thanks, Joe. Thanks, Dolores.

  Olivia Wheeler Thomas

  I met Joey at college. I knew of him because Uncle Joe hired him to work full time one summer. Uncle Joe hardly ever had full time help; he had the Friday night crew and a few part time waitresses over the holidays, but he was usually able to handle the diner by himself. That summer he said he'd hurt his back, but every time the subject came up at home, my parents would laugh like it was a joke. I was at that age where I thought they were being pretty rude to laugh, and I told my Mama so. She just patted me on the head and said she didn't mean to be rude, then smiled and walked off. After that my parents stopped laughing about Uncle Joe, but Daddy would ask how his back was every Sunday at church, then grin and slap him on the shoulder.