She stood in the middle of the yard holding the blue plastic bucket and gave a little speech.
“Gerald,” she said. “Thank you for catching all the rain. You were very brave. You can retire now.”
Then she filled him up with dirt and planted a rose bush in him.
It’s still there. By the back fence. Right next to Hank’s old tomato garden. It bloomed in May. Pink.
I bought Ellie new sneakers.
Three pairs. Pink ones and purple ones and a pair with lights in the heels that flash when she stomps.
I bought my heart pills. A whole bottle. I stopped cutting them in half. Dr. Patel noticed my blood pressure went down and asked what changed.
“I stopped worrying about the roof,” I said.
I fixed the brakes on Hank’s old Buick. I fixed the sag in the front porch, finally. Earl’s sons did it. They said Hank built a good porch, it just needed a new beam.
