Madeline and Jerry and Janet

Madeline:

Mommy and I live in an old house on an old street. It's a nice street with lots of big trees and we have a big backyard. We used to get the mail delivered to our house but now there is a street mailbox. Mommy lets me get the mail because I'm seven and the box is just at the end of the street. It's one of the jobs I do to earn money.

Mommy grew up in the house but moved out when she was eighteen. Grandma said mommy used to be a hellraiser.

Mommy met a man at a bar when she was twenty-eight and became pregnant with me. But she never saw the man again and didn't know where he lived. She looked but never found him.

So mommy moved back home with grandma and I lived with mommy and grandma. I have a grandpa but he lives with another lady in another state so we don't talk about him. It makes grandma grumpy.

Grandma owned our house and we had lots of money when she was alive because she worked as a manager at MacDonald's and mommy is a hairdresser. But grandma died last year and now we don't have lots of money. Mommy often gets upset when I get the mail and she sees bills. She tries not to react in front of me but I know we don't make enough money because we don't eat at MacDonald's anymore and we shop at the thrift shop for clothes. I don't mind because they have nice clothes but I think it upsets mommy.

We have two next-door neighbors but there is a big wooden fence on the one side and we never see those people. Mommy says they're not very friendly.

Jerry is our neighbor on the other side. He's new. He just moved in last month. Mr. Granger lived there but was really old and mommy said he couldn't take care of the house anymore and moved to an apartment.

Mommy has talked to Jerry a few times and said he seems nice. He's older than mommy and has grey hair. I think he's forty-five which means he's ten years older. He used to be married but his wife got sick and died.

I felt sad for him when I heard that because I remembered how I felt when grandma died. It wasn't nice and I still think about her.

There is a fence between our house and Jerry's because Mr. Granger had a dog but it's a chain-link fence so I can see through it. My bedroom looks down on Jerry's yard so I can see what's going on. Mommy says I'm nosy but I'm not! I'm just curious.

My school is ten minutes away by bike. I always call mommy to let her know when I get home. She worries until I call. It bothers her that she can't pick me up. I don't know why because it only takes me ten minutes to get home on my bike and I'm very fast. No one would ever catch me and I don't talk to strangers.

Mommy works until eight some days. I eat the food she puts in the fridge for me and then do my homework. I'm very smart and finish my schoolwork fast.

My school friends don't live close so I'm not allowed to bike to their place. Mommy won't let me get a cell phone to talk to them. She says we can't afford it. But I can talk to them on our iPad.

There are no kids for me to play with on the street because most of the people are old. I don't see my friends from school throughout the week. So I'm often bored until mommy gets home.

I've been looking at Jerry's backyard through my window lately because he just got a puppy. It's very shaggy and cute looking and she runs around the backyard. I know it's a she because Jerry calls her 'Sadie'.

Jerry saw me looking through my window one day and smiled and waved so I waved back. He saw me again the next day and smiled and waved again and I waved back. I decided he was okay with me being curious, or he wouldn't have waved, so I put my shoes on and went outside to the fence to see Jerry and Sadie.

Sadie ran over and licked my hand through the fence and wagged her tail. Then Jerry came over.

He smiled. "Hello! You must be Madeline. I'm Jerry."

He reached down over the fence to shake my hand. His hand was very big and calloused.

"Why is your hand so hard?"

He smiled.

"Because I'm a carpenter and work with my hands so my skin has become tough."

That made sense. "I like your dog. What kind is it?"

"It's a Bearded Collie."

"She has long hair. She looks like Benji from TV."

"Yes, she does."

"Does she like to play? Does she bite?"

"Yes and No."

"Could I come over sometime and play with her?"

"Of course, if it's okay with your mom."

"Okay! Thanks! I'll ask mommy tonight! Bye!"

"Goodbye, Madeline."

===

Jerry:

I preferred old neighborhoods because I grew up in one and liked big old trees and narrow streets.

But Jane was a designer and wanted to build a house from scratch.

Unfortunately, that meant building in a new subdivision with no trees.

Unfortunately, Jane got pancreatic cancer and was dead six months after we moved into the house.

The house was nice but living in a new subdivision was not my cup of tea and the house reminded me of Jane all the time, which made me sad. I hadn't built any serious relationships with our new neighbors and didn't need to live in a five thousand square foot house. There was just me. So I sold it.

The housing market was going berserk so I made a ton of money and bought a small war-time house in a beautiful old neighborhood with lots of trees and narrow streets. Just like I liked. The house cost one-third of what I sold the new one for because it was small and needed some work. I was a carpenter so that wasn't a problem.

And it had a big beautiful backyard. I checked the dirt which was dark and rich with lots of worms. It would be great for growing veggies which made me happy because I had a green thumb and liked to garden.

The yard was already fenced in which meant I could get a dog. Jane was allergic to dogs so we never had one. But I grew up with a Bearded Collie. They're great dogs, very friendly and I liked their shaggy look. I looked forward to having one again to keep my mind off Jane.

I had zero interest in looking for someone new but was excited about having a dog so four weeks later I had a new Bearded Collie puppy named Sadie.

I always wanted kids but it never happened because my sperm count was low and Jane was indifferent so we never bothered with fertility treatments.

But I finally got to have a little kid with Sadie even though she was canine. She certainly was very loving.

Janet, the lady next door, greeted me when I moved in. She looked to be in her mid-thirties. Nice looking with a curvy body and long strawberry blonde hair. She seemed friendly and said she had a seven-year-old daughter named Madeline. She smiled and told me that Madeline was very curious and not shy and warned me I'd likely see her soon.

I looked forward to it because, as I said, I always wanted kids.

I saw a little girl ride out of their driveway several times in the morning. She was loaded up with a backpack. Likely on her way to school. She had long strawberry-blonde hair under her helmet so I assumed it was Madeline.

The third time I saw her, she slowed and smiled and waved. She had a nice smile.

Having a puppy is like having a little kid and I was out back with Sadie one day after I got home from work. She did her business and then raced around the yard like a madman burning off puppy energy.

I noticed Madeline watching from her bedroom window and smiled and waved. She smiled and waved back. The same thing happened the next day and then five minutes later Madeline was at the fence.

Sadie ran over to greet her and then I greeted Madeline. She was curious about Sadie and asked if she could come over one day and play with her. I said it was fine with me if it was okay with her mom. That night Janet showed up and asked if it was okay for Madeline to visit Sadie. I said it was and Madeline was now a frequent visitor at my place after I got home. Sadie and her quite like each other.

Madeline was a chatterbox and I rarely needed to say anything.

I quickly found out that Janet was thirty-five and there was no husband. Madeline said she'd never met her dad and didn't even know who he was. Her mom was a hairdresser and her grandma had worked at Walmart but died a year ago. She said she still missed her grandma but felt better than she did at the time.

She peppered me with questions.

"What happened to your wife?"

"Why did you move here?"

"Why did you get a dog?"

"What does a carpenter do?"

And so on and so on.

Eventually, it came out that Janet worried about Madeline going to school by herself. I asked Madeline where her school was and she told me. It was about a twenty-minute walk from where we lived. I walked Sadie every morning and told Madeline to tell Janet I could walk Madeline to school with Sadie if that was okay. That night Janet showed up and asked if I meant it. I did. I was walking Sadie anyway so I might as well walk with Madeline. So now I walk Sadie to Madeline's school in the morning and Madeline rides her bike beside me. She likes the company and chat's away about school and whatever else crosses her busy mind.

Then I walk back home with Sadie and go to work. So, Madeline gets an escort to school, Sadie and I get a forty-minute walk and Janet gets parental peace of mind. Works for everyone.

I now get homemade cookies from Janet once a week in appreciation for walking Madeline to school. Madeline and I share the cookies with milk. Madeline's a messy eater and there are always crumbs on the floor but Sadie cleans them up.

Madeline occasionally reveals things I don't think Janet would appreciate me knowing. For example, one day she looked at my hair while we walked Sadie.

"You should let mommy cut your hair."

"Why? Is there something wrong with my hair?"

"No, but mommy's hair place is close and they don't charge much for guys. Then mommy would get the money which would be good."

I was curious. "Is there a problem with money?"

Madeline looked very serious. "Mommy owns the house but we don't have a lot of money since grandma died. Mommy often frowns when she pays the bills. We don't eat out anymore and buy our clothes at the thrift store. I miss MacDonald's but the clothes from the thrift store are fine."

Then she looked at me. "So you should let mommy cut your hair."

I nodded yes and made an appointment with Janet the next time I needed a cut. She was surprised but happy to see me when I showed up. I didn't mention what Madeline said about money being a problem and I left a big tip. The next day Madeline was all smiley and thanked me for getting my hair cut with her mom.

I remembered Madeline mentioning MacDonald's. I didn't like their supper food but got coffee and morning items on the way to work. So it wasn't too much of a fib when I told Janet that I visited MacDonald's on the way home from work on Friday and heard that Madeline was a MacDonald's fan.

Janet rolled her eyes and frowned. "Did Madeline put you up to this?"

Oh, oh! I needed to tread carefully. I didn't want Janet to know I knew they were tight for money. "No, she just said that she liked to go to MacDonald's. I could pick up something for you as well if you want."

Janet sighed. "We used to go there every Friday but money's been tight since mom died. I didn't even like their supper food except for the fries and coffee but Madeline loved it. It was her big treat of the week."

I smiled and lied. "Well, I go there every Friday myself so I could take her there after work before you get home. My treat. If it's okay with you."

Janet paused but then smiled. "Are you sure? Because I can't afford to pay you."

I smiled. "Yup! I always wanted to have children and Madeline is a treasure to be around. And when I don't have a drop of energy left to answer another question, I send her home to you!"

Janet laughed. "Ya, she's quite the chatterbox!"

I looked at Janet. "Would it bother you if I returned home with extra fries and a coffee?"

She smiled. "Nope! Not at all! Large fries and coffee, please! With double cream and sugar! And thank you so much for being so kind to Madeline and me. I won't even ask how you found your way to my hair place!"

Madeline was thrilled when we started going to MacDonald's every Friday. It only costs me a few bucks and brought joy to my heart watching her smile as she chowed down on a big mac, large fries, and a coke. And Janet liked her fries and coffee.

===

Janet:

I really like Jerry. He's a perfect neighbor and helpful with Madeline.

For example, Madeline loved playing with Sadie. I had a dog when I was little and enjoyed him but we couldn't afford a dog on my income so it was nice Madeline got to play with Sadie.

And it was a relief when Jerry volunteered to walk Madeline to school in the morning. It was a relatively safe neighborhood but I always worried that something might happen to her. Now I don't worry anymore.

And he's always willing to do things with her. One day I saw Jerry and Madeline set up tools by the fence. Madeline wore a hard hat. I was curious and went out.

"What are you guys doing?"

"We're putting a door in the fence so I don't need to go through the front door every time I visit," Madeline said.

Jerry looked at me. "Is that okay?"

"Sure. It's your fence."

Jerry looked relieved.

"So, you're going to help Jerry, are you?"

Madeline smiled proudly. "Yes, I'm going to hand him the tools as he needs them. First, we need to cut a hole in the fence. Then we need to create a door from the chain-link material. Then we need to put hinges on the fence posts and then attach the door to the hinges."

"Hmm! It sounds complicated! I'm glad you and Jerry are doing it and not me. Let me know if you get thirsty from all your hard work and I'll make some lemonade for you."

"Don't worry mommy. We'll let you know!"

I watched Jerry work with Madeline. He made sure to include her in every step. She seemed very pleased with herself and her mouth was flapping away most of the time. I think she was asking questions because Jerry would stop and explain something or show her something and then Madeline would nod her head and let Jerry continue until her next question.

I made some lemonade and sandwiches after an hour and Jerry and Madeline wolfed them down. Madeline burst into the house an hour later.

"Mommy! Come look. The door is done!"

The door looked very professional. Madeline made me open and close it several times to show me how smoothly it swung. You didn't need even need to close it. It automatically glided into the latch on its own. Madeline looked proud as punch as she showed me and Jerry was smiling at her.

I could tell he really liked her and she liked him.

One Saturday, my stomach was starting to rumble. It was getting close to supper and I was hungry but feeling zero motivation to make anything and we couldn't afford to eat out. I hated that we couldn't afford to eat out once in a while. At least Madeline got to go to MacDonald's every Friday courtesy of Jerry. And I got some fries and a coffee.

But that was Friday and today was Sunday! I needed food!

Then I smelled it. Someone was barbecuing and the scent smelled heavenly! It smelled like someone was cooking burgers! Hmm! Yummy!

I looked out the window and it was Jerry. He was barbecuing and Madeline was standing beside him with a big hot dog in her mouth. Hmm! If Jerry could feed Madeline maybe he had some food for me!

I walked through the new fence door which worked quite well and smiled my best smile at Jerry.

"Hi, there! What are two doing?"

Madeline smiled. "We're eating mommy. Jerry was hungry and so was I so he asked me if I wanted to barbecue. I told him yes so he made some hot dogs for me and hamburgers for him. He asked what you liked and I told him that you like hot dogs and hamburgers so he made extra ones for you. He even got a chair for you to sit on."

Hmm! My stomach was very pleased. And my mind was pleased that Jerry had thought about my stomach. What a sweetheart he was. I gave him my best demure innocent look.

"Are you sure? I don't want to impose."

Jerry smiled. "No problem. I assumed if I was hungry and Madeline was hungry that you would be as well."

"Well, thank you. I'd love a burger!"

The burger was to die for! The meat was cooked just the right amount, nice and juicy but not pink and Jerry had all the proper condiments to make it fit for a king. He even toasted the bun for me on the barbecue. I savored every bite of the burger and then he gave me an ice-cold beer that was delicious. There was no label on the bottle which made me curious.

"Did you make this? It's really good!"

"Yup. I've been making my own beer and wine for years. It's a lot cheaper and I can make it taste exactly how I want. Be careful though! The alcohol content is 7%. It will knock you on your ass in a hurry."

Oh my God! Between the burger and the beer, I was in heaven! I just finished the burger and then Jerry asked if I wanted a hot dog.

"Mommy! You should have one! Mine was really good!"

I looked at Jerry. "Is that okay?"

Jerry grinned. "Sure. That's what I made them for!"

The hot dog was almost as good as the burger and Jerry gave me another frosty one. About halfway through I felt the alcohol kick in and had a nice little buzz going. I leaned back in my chair and slowly chewed my delicious hot dog and sipped my ice-cold beer. It was a sunny and warm day but not too warm. A gentle breeze blew across my skin. My head felt light but not too light. Madeline was eating another hot dog and feeding half of it to Sadie. What a perfect day!

Because my brain was liquored my tongue was loosened.

"So, Jerry, tell me what you do?"

"I'm a carpenter. I own a small business with ten guys. We specialize in house renovations. So maybe you want a new bathroom or a room gutted and redone. Or maybe you want some new kitchen cupboards. Stuff like that.

I knew he was a carpenter but I didn't know he owned his own business. Impressive!

"I just finished a room in the basement. Would you like to see it?"

Madeline interjected. "Oh, mommy! You need to see it! The whole wall looks like a desert!"

Madeline stood up and took my hand. Jerry smiled.

Madeline walked into the house like she owned the place and took me downstairs. She'd obviously been there before.

There were three entrances at the bottom of the steps. One was a normal door. Little Miss Know-it-all told me that was the door to the furnace room. There was another entrance with a bi-fold swing door. Madeline told me that was the laundry room.

The third entrance took my breath away. The wall was a terracotta color with a stucco finish. There was a rounded archway with a jade-colored door. Above the archway was an ancient-looking lamp. It looked like it could have been from ancient Rome.

Madeline grinned and open the door. "Look, mommy! The Desert!

I walked in. Holy crap! It was amazing. The whole room was done in a Southwest theme and one whole wall was a picture of a desert landscape. It looked real and the sun was setting in the upper right-hand corner and a light shined down so it looked like the sunset was real. The rest of the scenery was bathed in the setting sun.

I looked at Jerry. "This is amazing!"

He grinned. "Well, most of the credit goes to Jane. She was from Sante Fe in New Mexico and grew up with scenery like this. We did our new house in a Southwest motif and had a room like this. I just copied it after I moved here. All the furniture and paintings were taken from our new house.

I hadn't even noticed the furniture and paintings on the other walls. "Wow! They were so cool! There were paintings of horses riding. There was a painting of a face of an ancient-looking Native American woman. There were paintings of adobe buildings. There was a long brown rustic-looking leather couch with intricate carvings in the wood frame. The floor was terracotta tile and there was a small bathroom in the corner that looked like it could have been from an old Western movie, with old-looking taps, and an old toilet. There were antlers of some kind above the mirror. Even the toilet paper roller was made from bone. What a beautiful room!