Out of the Muck
Matt wasn’t much for flowers, but he did love his hydrangeas. They seemed almost shy to him. The whites especially so, but the blues and pinks were a little saucy. Always a little sad when they lost their blooms, petals dried up and turned brown, he had been dead-heading them to keep them fresh. Hearing a vehicle coming into his yard, he looked up from his work. Setting his shears down in his wheelbarrow, he pulled his gloves off. “Dez? What’s she doing here. Seems to be on a mission.”
~~~~~
On her way home from lunch with Emelina, Dez was about to turn down her street when the light turned red. Her thoughts settled as she slowed and stopped the car. “Matt…. That’s who I need to talk to. He’s not involved in this weird situation……..Yes, I’ll go see him.” She didn’t make the turn, but drove on through the intersection. It was a short trip out of the city. Driving into Matt’s yard, she could see him at his hydrangeas. There were no other cars in his driveway. Dez breathed a sigh of relief. “He must be alone so maybe he’ll have time to talk…..This seems so silly. Silly that I feel caught in the middle of such simple things that really have little to do with me. Martha’s party and Em’s honeymoon!” She pulled her car up beside his truck, stopped and got out. “Dez! Where have you been?” Matt was glad to see his friend. They had not seen or heard from each other for several weeks. She looked great. Laughing Dez said “Do I have to drive all the way out here to see if you’re still alive?” She was as glad to see her good friend. “Go ahead and finish what you’re doing. I’ll just watch. But I do want your advice when you’ve time to talk.”
“I can finish this up anytime, Dez. It’s hot and I’d like a beer. What about you?” Lifting the handles of the wheelbarrow, he walked his tools under the car port. “We can sit in the back. It’s cooler back there and there’s good shade under the grapevines.”
“A beer would be great, Matt. What I’ve got to talk about is kind of odd, but I need an objective opinion. I thought of you because you’ve got little to do with Em and what’s going on at the Estate.” She held the door for him, helping him with bringing a small load of wood into the house. “You’ve got me interested now, Dez. What would I know about Estate business?” He laughed. “I told you it was odd.” She accepted her beer from him and followed him out to the backyard. “This is so lovely out here, Matt.” She stepped down into the yard and under the grape ivy. “Do you think you’ll get many grapes this year Matt?” Looking up into the thick leaves, she could see some clusters of grapes. “Oh, not many. These are pretty old vines and they’re not fruiting as much as they did before. Now what’s this odd thing you think I can help you with?”
~~~~~
Throughout the afternoon, Dez told Matt the three stories: Em’s plans, Jeremy’s plans and Martha’s plans. She told him she had managed to get involved in each one. She was keeping secrets for her sister and for Martha. Somehow they were all coming together, and she felt trapped.
“Well, here’s the way I see it. From everything you’ve told me, it sounds like you know what you should be doing - or saying. Stay out of it unless someone asks you to do something.”
“But I’m the go between for Martha and for Em. Martha has tried to get the party for Em and Jeremy going for weeks now. I just don’t want them to go away on this honeymoon Jeremy has planned before she gets it going again.” Her brow furrowed, she was tapping her fingers on the arm of the patio chair.
“But why is it your responsibility, Dez? You don’t even live out there. I know you really care about everyone, but that doesn’t make it your stuff.” He was amused but kept a serious look on his face. “And you also want to help - or maybe you want to control it all?”
Dez took a deep breath and sighed. She really didn’t like hearing that last bit. Control. She could say that about her sister, and maybe even Martha, but never herself. Now she was amused, her face relaxing into a smile. “You’re right, Matt. I have thought of that before, but just keep getting drawn into their little plans and ideas.” She slapped the palms of her hands on the arms of the chair. “Their plans are their plans. I guess if I’ve got any role at all it’s just to listen. Thank you, Matt.”
~~~~~
They spent the rest of the day and into the evening, talking and laughing about their lives. Both were fully vaccinated. They talked of the line up’s and the anti vaxxer’s. Matt took her into the orchard, giving her more tips on how to maintain her orchard. He was pleased that she would have the opportunity to be out at the Estate for the three weeks that her sister and husband would be away. “You could really get to know the trees, Dez. And you might get to know the others that live and work out there as well.”
~~~~~
“Remember always that you not only have the right to
be an individual you have an obligation to be one.”
~ Eleanor Roosevelt
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