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+Episode 3.06, Summertime, and the Livin' is Easy
+------------------------------------------------
+
+The band of clouds to the west faded from their red glory of a half
+hour ago. A patch of sky above them was an achingly clear blue, with
+two stars. Joan sat in the Adirondack chair, a lemonade and stack of
+books at her side. A large book was open on her lap, but she was
+watching the evening stars.
+
+Kevin rolled out onto the patio, with Lilly. "Where's everybody?"
+"Dad's working late. Mom is around somewhere. So is Luke."
+"That's helpful."
+Lilly eyed Joan and the book: "A hot Friday date with Summa
+Theologica. Been there."
+Kevin interjected "We're going for some ice cream and hanging out.
+Tell Mom and Dad I'll be back whenever."
+"Sure. Have fun!"
+As they turned to go, Lilly added "If you start fantasizing about
+Thomas Aquinas, give me a call. 'Lilly's Hot Line for Recovering
+Sisters,' call day or night."
+"Thanks for the warning. See you."
+
+Joan turned back to her book for a moment, then looked at the evening
+star again; the blue had deepened, and the star burned with white
+brilliance. Luke bounded through the door. "Where's everybody?"
+"Dad's working late, Mom is somewhere. As I just told Kevin. He and
+Lilly just left. I'm invisible."
+"Oooooh.... look at Venus. And Jupiter. They are wonderful tonight."
+Luke gazed at the sky. "They are getting closer together every night.
+Did you know that by the end of the month they are only going to have
+2 degrees of separation?"
+"Thank you for that priceless bit of information."
+"You're welcome. Anytime."
+After a moment Joan said, "Ummm, Luke... how 'bout a game of chess?
+If you're not busy or something."
+"That is pathetic. My sister. Friday night, and her idea of a hot
+time is playing chess with her kid brother."
+"Gee thanks."
+"Grace and I are going to hang out. I'm headed over there now."
+"Oh."
+"Uh.... Joan. You want to come along?"
+"And be the third wheel? No. That would be even more pathetic. But
+thanks for asking."
+"Another time on that chess game." Luke came over and kissed Joan on
+the forehead.
+"Bye. Be a good girl."
+"Like I have a chance to be anything else. Say hi to Grace, and
+remind her of the crab boil tomorrow."
+
+Joan was left to marvel at Luke actually showing some affection. That
+was frighteningly un-Luke. Was she becoming everyone's favorite
+object of pity? She stretched, wincing a little: she was still stiff
+and sore from the accident, and a long afternoon at the bookstore.
+She was still tired all the time. It felt good to sit out in the warm
+evening.
+
+She returned to Aquinas. Before she had gotten through a page, Helen
+came out. "Where's everybody?"
+Joan rolled her eyes. "This is a recording: Dad is working late,
+Kevin went for ice cream with Lilly, Luke is hanging out with Grace,
+and I'm having the exciting social life I dreamed of as a little
+girl."
+"Want some company? I brought one of my books out to read until it
+gets dark."
+"Sure."
+Helen sat in the other chair. They read in companionable silence for
+a long while, Joan sipping her lemonade. Helen had an iced tea. The
+evening breeze was soft, a silken pleasure after the hot afternoon.
+It grew dark; the fireflies were out, and cicadas buzzed in the
+trees. It was getting too dark to read. Helen laid her book in her
+lap: "Joan?"
+She looked up. "Umm?"
+"I've been wondering. You don't have to say, but.... what happened?"
+"What happened to what?"
+"You and Adam."
+"Oh."
+"Things were going along, you all were getting really serious, and
+all of sudden, boom. You clean your room like you're planning to
+serve dinner on the floor, you rip up his pictures and box up
+everything he ever gave you and out it goes, you dig him out of your
+life like poison ivy, you take up knitting. And you never really said
+why. You're sort of talking to him again, and you went on that trip
+with the Polonsky's with him, but it is Over. No more flowers and
+bunnies."
+"It's personal. Very."
+"OK. Sorry I asked."
+After a moment, "Adam had sex with Bonnie."
+"Oh. Oh my."
+"It sucks. It really, totally sucks. I trusted him."
+"Do you think that all night thing was part of it?"
+"Yeah. Maybe if I'd done it with him, we'd still be all right. But it
+just felt wrong."
+"You did the right thing, Joan."
+"If it was the right thing, why is everything screwed up now? No, I
+am NOT going to cry. It is over."
+Helen thought for a moment. "Adam introduced Bonnie to me, brought
+her to me so I could help her. I saw them work together; it looked to
+me like they were just friends."
+"Yeah, right."
+"Really. It was like Luke and Friedman get. They were two art geeks
+off in their own world. I didn't see anything romantic going on. They
+are my students, but I would have told you if I'd sensed anything."
+"He claimed he was working on some project; that was why he couldn't
+spend any time with me."
+"That part was real. He had some things he was doing for Michael, and
+after that was done.... did you see the mural under the overpass on
+32nd Street? It was only there for a few days before they painted it
+over."
+"Yeah, once. It was good. Kind of twisted and scary."
+"Adam and Bonnie."
+"They did that?"
+"Yes. Her idea mostly. She needed help to get it done before the city
+painted it over again. That's why she keeps getting community
+service; she likes to do 'guerrilla art.' Adam took pictures of it,
+and showed me."
+
+After a long silence, Helen said, "Joan, I'm going to tell you
+something."
+"Mom, I don't need advice. I'm surviving."
+"No, it's not that. This is... it is probably something I shouldn't
+be telling you. It's about your father and me."
+Joan looked up in the darkness, horror in her eyes.
+"Mom, please don't tell me you're cheating on him."
+Helen laughed, shaking her head. "No. Remember Lucy Preston? She was
+Will's boss, until she got promoted to the Justice Department in DC."
+"Yes. Kind of a businesslike lady."
+"She was making moves on Will."
+"Oh God."
+"They worked together. They enjoyed each other's company, at least at
+first. They ate lunch together. They worked late together. She wanted
+more. She set up that award thing for you at the school. And, umm...
+she did something that she thought would please Will, something big
+on a murder case, but it was very unethical, and she handed it on a
+silver platter to him. She expected a lot in return."
+"Did Dad...."
+"No. He was suspicious and dug into it. Once he figured out what
+happened, he was disgusted with her for being a bad cop, but he was
+stuck; he had to work for her, and I think she was using her position
+to lean on him. I didn't know all this, but I knew something was
+wrong. There were lots of late nights at work, a lot more than there
+needed to be. He said afterwards that he would never cheat on me, and
+I believe him. But... I think it could have gone the other way, if
+things had been just a little different."
+"Mom! What did you do?"
+"I cried a lot. When I started sensing what was going on, I would cry
+myself to sleep every night he was out, wishing he would just come
+home. That empty bed was an agony."
+"I'm so.... sorry. You could have told me."
+"No, I couldn't. You are my daughter, and that is one cross you did
+not need to carry. You just don't tell your children something like
+that. It is like things going on in your life -- do you always rush
+right home and tell me everything?"
+"No, of course not."
+"Joan, I'm on very thin ice here. My hunch -- call it a feeling -- is
+that in a way, Adam and Bonnie were the same sort of thing. They were
+working together, and things just happened, and he didn't know how to
+deal with it."
+"That's what he claimed. But this kind of thing doesn't 'just
+happen.' He said he loved me."
+"I am absolutely convinced of one thing about Adam Rove. He loves
+you."
+"Then why did he do it?"
+"He messed up. Badly. But 'let him who is without sin cast the first
+stone.'"
+"You want me to make up with him?"
+"I can't tell you what to do. You do what you want anyway, whether I
+tell you or not."
+"He hurt me. Mom, he really hurt me. I don't think I'll ever get over
+it, not entirely."
+"You won't. Some scars are there for life, and this is one of them.
+Come here; let me hug you."
+They stood up and hugged. Joan started to cry, Helen too.
+"I said I wasn't going to cry," Joan said, smiling a bit.
+"I won't hold you to that."
+"What do I do now? I'm so lonely."
+"Joan, I don't know. Just let it sit. See how you feel about him in a
+few months."
+
+Will leaned back in his chair. It had been a long day, and there
+would be many more during the transition period. "Chief of Police:
+Will Girardi," the sign said on the door. He had wanted to wait until
+it was official, but the guys in the department insisted. Carlisle
+and Williams had to physically push him through the door: "Girardi,
+this is YOUR office. Like it or not. You've belonged here all along."
+Arcadia was getting a fresh start, and they had to get it right. This
+department had forfeited the trust of the community, and they were
+going to have to prove themselves.
+
+Toni Williams walked through the door with a file. "You should go
+home. It's Friday night, for crying out loud."
+"Looks like you're still here, too."
+"Yeah. I guess we're gluttons for punishment."
+"What'cha got?"
+"Good news for once. This is Daghlian's file from Connorsburg." She
+read from one page: "'a first-rate officer, hard-working and honest
+to the core. He has my highest recommendation.' So he's really coming
+back here?"
+She handed the file to Will; he leafed through it, nodding his head
+and smiling. "Yeah. I'll call him now."
+
+"Daghlian."
+"Mike, this is Girardi. You're hired."
+"That's great! I guess the files got there and looked OK."
+"Yeah. They like you up there in Connorsburg."
+"It's been good here. But Arcadia is where I belong."
+"So when can you make the move?"
+"I'll have to give thirty days' notice; I'll turn it in on Monday."
+"Let's see... this is August 12, so how about Monday the 15th of next
+month?"
+"That works. And... Will, thanks for giving me another chance. You
+taught me a big lesson."
+"Yeah. The school of hard knocks is a first-rate teacher. We've both
+been there now."
+"While you're on the line, I talked with Carlisle about that paint
+and we may have something. A cashier at one of the marine outfitters
+here says she distinctly remembers selling the pink paint, and the
+other colors. She says they almost never sell any pink; that's why
+she remembers it."
+"Got an ID on it?"
+"Nope. The guy paid cash. But Carlisle is sending up a photo of
+someone he says might be a suspect. We'll mix it in with some other
+pictures and see if the cashier can pick him out."
+"Thanks. Let us know what you get. Oh, and Daghlian -- It'll be great
+to have you back."
+-------------------
+The morning sun streamed through the window as Joan sat crosslegged
+on her bed. She hesitated a long time, holding the phone, then slowly
+pushed the button.
+
+Adam's voice: "Hello."
+"Hi."
+"Ja... uh, Joan."
+"Yeah."
+"Umm... hi."
+"We're having crabs this afternoon. You want to come over?"
+Long silence.
+"Joan, do you really want me there?"
+"You're sort of.... kind of part of the family here, and this is a
+family thing."
+"You're sure about this?"
+"Yes. It's not like you haven't eaten with us before."
+"I'll be there. Thanks..... thank you."
+"Bring your dad. I think he'd enjoy it."
+"Sure. He loves crab. I do too. Tell you what, we'll bring some
+coleslaw."
+"Adam."
+"Yeah?"
+"I'm still mad at you."
+"Unchallenged."
+"See you later."
+"Bye."
+
+Joan came through the kitchen, headed for the door. "I'm going to the
+park for a while. I need some time to think," she said in the general
+direction of Will and Helen, who were sitting at the table. "Oh, and
+Adam and his dad are coming, They're bringing coleslaw."
+"Don't be long; there's a lot of setting up to do," Will said.
+"OK Dad. Bye."
+
+After she had gone, Helen said, "Honey, do you think we have enough
+for everyone? Adam and his father make two more."
+"I've ordered a lot of crabs. Roebuck is coming, and bringing extra
+ice and drinks."
+"I was thinking of this as a little family picnic. I didn't think
+you'd be inviting people from work."
+"Helen, guys like Roebuck -- he is like family to me. You know that."
+"Well, just so long as you don't start talking shop."
+"We'll be good. I promise."
+Helen smiled and said, "I guess it's all right then that I invited
+Father Ken to drop by after 5:00 Mass."
+Will laughed: "Fair warning. If you all start talking religion, I'll
+ask Roebuck how the arson investigation is going."
+Helen said, "I still wonder if we should have invited the
+Goetzmanns."
+"Weren't you the one that was just saying this is 'a little family
+picnic?' They are nice people and we'll have them over sometime soon.
+But not today; this is for us. Did you ask Sarah and Jakob?"
+"No. I figured they'd be busy, being Saturday. Grace is coming,
+though."
+-----------------
+Joan ambled along the sidewalk in the park. People were walking dogs,
+rollerblading, enjoying the fine sunny day. Children were on the
+swings, sweeping through the air. Four girls were preparing to jump
+rope. Joan hesitated, tempted to join them: no, these were little
+girls, maybe ten or eleven, and they didn't need a seventeen-year-old
+butting in. Her left knee twinged, reminding her that she wasn't up
+to it, anyway. "I'm turning into a regular old maid," she thought.
+The rope-jumping made her think of Casper, the homeless girl she had
+tried to help. "That seems like so long ago now. I wonder what ever
+happened to her: I hope she is all right."
+
+She had grown accustomed to hanging out with Adam: too accustomed.
+Maybe it was good that they had split up. "We were starting to act
+like a married couple that's gotten bored with each other. I need to
+remember how to have a good time by myself. I don't need him. I don't
+need anyone."
+
+Just then, a harsh guitar twang sounded from Joan's right. A man
+began singing
+"End this war
+Look upon your friends
+Don't you know the reason why
+You called us back again."
+Joan rolled her eyes, and walked up to the singer, a young man with
+dreadlocks. "You are butchering the song. Please!"
+He smiled at Joan and continued singing:
+"Night is long and getting longer
+There's darkness from above"
+Joan joined him, his singing a crazed counterpoint to her melody:
+"And hate is strong but love is stronger
+We are alive as long as we love."
+She gently pried the guitar from his hands.
+"Spare me. It's a nice song; can't you at least sing it in tune?"
+"Ya. Me jester dis way: "For every moon must have its shadow..."
+Joan put her hand over his mouth, muffling the last words. "God,
+you're embarrassing me."
+A jogger came by, turning and looking at them. Joan smiled awkwardly
+and waved; God said "Ev'rything cook and curry, mon."
+"OK. OK. Just.... don't sing any more. Please?"
+God smiled. He sat on the bench and began putting his guitar in its
+case, motioning for Joan to join him on the bench.
+"You forget dat song, na true?"
+"How could I?" Joan answered, shaking her head. "'Queen of the
+Zombies.' My moment of stardom. What a disaster!"
+"Sweet disaster, shorty. It make good ripples."
+"Let me guess. You are going to pick on me about Adam, aren't you."
+"We are alive as long as we love..." God sang softly, perfectly in
+tune.
+Joan smiled, surprised at the accurate singing. "I've got another
+song for you." She sang "I'm gonna wash that man right out of my
+hair..."
+"Not working, no?" God said with a smile.
+"No."
+"Me tell you how me handle forgiveness. When you hurt me and you
+sorry about it and change yourself and do it no more, me forgive you.
+What you done be gone, 'as far as east be from west.'"
+"We're not talking about you. I'm the one he hurt, not you."
+"Adam hurt you. Adam hurt Bonnie. He hurt me, he hurt himself, too.
+Me was dere. Every pain, every sufferation hurt me; I connected to
+all of you. If me forgive, you can forgive."
+"But that's hard to do."
+"Jah know. Me have da scars."
+Joan thought for a moment. "So you're like Mom; you want me to get
+back together with him."
+"Me no say dat, your mother no say dat. Me say dis: let it go. Adam
+and Grace be your best friends. You need dem both, plus your other
+friends and your family, and me. When the hard times will come, we
+stand by you."
+"Hard times. I don't like the sound of that."
+"Joan my friend, ease up: Today be good. Enjoy da bashment at your
+house today. Enjoy all your friends and family for who dey be.
+Cherish dis day; such days be rare."
+God stood, and began walking away. "Run a boat, sister," he said,
+giving Joan an over-the-shoulder wave.
+
+Kevin and Will were putting layers of newspaper on the assortment of
+card tables in the back yard. "Kev, are there liners in the trash
+cans yet?"
+"Yeah. I did that a little while ago. I brought out the paper towels
+too, the whole 12-roll package. And the pliers from the shop."
+"Crabs are messy, but they sure are good."
+"Right about that," Kevin answered. "I'm glad Joan is with us this
+year. It was kind of a shame to do this last summer with her off at
+Gentle Acres."
+"Yeah. That put a damper on the whole summer for all of us."
+"You know, she is my weird little sister and she drives me bonkers
+sometimes. But last summer taught me a lesson. God, I missed her."
+"Didn't we all. Looking back, I wish Helen and I hadn't sent her to
+that place. We thought it would help, you know, after the Lyme
+disease. I think it hurt more than it helped."
+"You still have your lamp?"
+"Both of them."
+"Me too. Oh, by the way; I've been meaning to tell you. I found out
+about Mr. Hunter's money."
+"Yeah? What did you turn up?"
+"Well, he has a lot of it. Mostly, it is from dot-coms in the 90's. I
+found a little article in Barron's back in 2001 -- 'Ten Young
+Investors to Watch,' and there he was, number two. Seems he played
+around with day trading when he was in high school, got together
+about 50 grand, and put it all on a tech IPO. It returned sixty-fold
+in about three months, and he sold just before it tanked. That made
+him a millionaire before he was eighteen. He turned right around and
+sank all of that into another IPO, and that one went forty-fold. He
+sold that one in January 2000, just before NASDAQ crashed, and put it
+all in long-term government bonds -- right as interest rates peaked.
+Now he's a player in the oil futures market; his name shows up in
+Petroleum Monthly now and then, and he's still making the right moves
+at the right time. He has an uncanny sense for what is going on. The
+guy's a genius!"
+"Or very lucky."
+"Yeah. One thing gets me, though."
+"What?"
+"Why is he so interested in Arcadia? He doesn't even live here. The
+article said he lives on some rural acreage west of Millersville. I
+checked it out, and that's still where he lives; an old farm house on
+a couple hundred acres. Hey, there's Lilly."
+"Thanks, Kev. That is a big help; hey, run printouts of what you have
+if you don't mind."
+"Yeah. Will do."
+Will finished spreading the newspapers, muttering to himself.
+"Millersville... There has got to be something solid..."
+-----------------
+"There you are, Joan," Helen said, as Joan came out into the yard.
+"You want to help me with this cooler?"
+"Yeah. Where do you want it?"
+"Right over there by the maple tree. Then we need to bring out the
+butter and lemon juice, and the Old Bay Spice -- Will dug it out from
+the back of the cabinet, and it is on the counter by the stove. He
+and Roebuck will be back any minute with the crabs."
+
+Luke and Grace were heating a blue graniteware pot of water on the
+grille.
+Grace said, "Is this thing never going to boil?"
+"Patience. You know how many BTU's it takes to boil a gallon of
+water? And this is a 33-qt. canner; we've probably got what, six or
+seven gallons in here?"
+"Where did you come up with this?"
+"It was grandma's canning pot, for boiling-water bath processing. You
+know, pickles, that sort of thing."
+"Yeah. Grandma Polk used to do that too. Kosher dills to die for."
+"Oh, there's Adam and his dad."
+
+Adam carried a huge dish covered with foil, and set it on one of the
+tables, as Mr. Rove followed. Helen came over to greet them. "Carl,
+it is good to see you. I'm so glad you all could come."
+"It was good of Joan to invite us. Adam and I brought a little slaw;
+it goes great with crab."
+"A little? You must have been shredding cabbage all morning."
+Adam laughed: "Unchallenged. It was fun."
+Joan came over: "Hi."
+"Hi."
+"I'm glad you're here."
+"Me too."
+Just then, Will and Roebuck came out, carrying a large washtub.
+"Ta-da! Here they are!" Will said, as they set the tub by the grill
+in the shade.
+Joan and Adam went over and looked inside:
+"Oh my God!!!" Joan said.
+"What?" Adam answered, grinning.
+"They're still alive!"
+"Cha. You'd better hope so; you can't eat them if they're dead before
+you cook them. You've never had crab?"
+"Well, yes. At a restaurant. We always go to a crab house when we go
+to Baltimore, or down on the eastern shore. But they're already
+cooked."
+-------------------
+"Joan, would you say grace?" Helen asked, once they had more-or-less
+assembled around the tables. Joan felt self-conscious with everyone
+looking at her. Grace looked like she was thinking about the "half of
+a red pill" and wondering when the other half would come. Luke looked
+like he was thinking "Well, say something. And not in French." Adam:
+"This girl is a mystery to me. But I love her anyway." The silence
+was becoming embarrassing. She might as well pretend that she was
+talking with God like she always did when she saw Her, and just say
+what she was thinking. "God, thank you for the food, even if it is,
+umm... still moving." That drew a giggle from Grace. "Thank you for
+my mom and dad, and my brothers." Looking around her, she said "Thank
+you for all the people here; thank you for bringing us together."
+Catching Adam's eye, "Thank you for love, and for putting up with us,
+no matter what." Smiling now, "Thank you for today. Amen."
+------------------
+Luke and Grace sat down across from Joan. Grace said, "How're you
+feeling? You're still sort of gimpy when you walk around. Not that
+totaling a car and spilling blood all over your mom could have
+anything to do with it."
+"I'm doing better," Joan said. "I tried my yoga stretches a few days
+ago and I still have aches in places I didn't know I had. But I think
+the yoga will help."
+"Well, you're alive, and not too much worse for the wear."
+Joan smiled, and hummed, half to herself, "We are alive as long as we
+love..."
+To Grace she said, "Yeah. It's good."
+Grace asked, "So what's with the yoga, anyway? Is this another one of
+your weird hobbies? Let's see... chess, boatbuilding, band, piano
+lessons, yearbook staff, the diving team, knitting, drama queen...
+And not to forget, cheerleading."
+"Please. I'd like to forget that one."
+Grace smiled, remembering. "You know, that day when you did the
+tryouts? That was when I knew you were an OK person. Strange, but
+OK."
+"Gee thanks."
+"So now it's yoga? At least you've stuck with it longer than some of
+the other stuff."
+"You should try it, Grace. It puts you into some kind of flow with
+the universe; very spiritual. And it feels good."
+Luke said, "Now you're sounding like Aunt Olive."
+Ignoring him, Joan said, "Yeah. The accident kind of put it on hold,
+but I'm going to be starting classes on Wednesday. That is, if I'm
+not in another car wreck between now and then."
+-------------------------
+Luke was showing Grace how to dissect the crab: "Once you've done the
+legs, you pull this little tab on the carapace."
+"Kind of like a soda can,"
+Luke said, "So you've really never had crab before?"
+"It's a regular item in all Jewish households," Grace said. "We keep
+it around for when we want something that totally breaks every Kosher
+rule in the book. Get a brain, Lukey."
+Ignoring the last, Luke said "Then you take out the gills and
+intestines, here, and the other internal organs, and the meat is
+underneath. But see this? That's the tomalley, or the liver. If you
+don't want it, give it to me; it is the best part."
+"What's this orange stuff?"
+"That's the roe; that's good, too. Just the females have it. Some
+people like the female crabs better, in general."
+Grace said, "Why do I think this conversation is about to go way
+downhill?"
+
+Lilly came over and sat by Helen. "This is great. It is good to see
+everyone so happy."
+"Yes. It is a good day."
+Looking over at Joan, Lilly asked "How is she doing? Is she getting
+over the accident all right? And how about you?"
+Helen said "Oh, I'm fine. I was hardly hurt at all. Joan is too,
+basically. She still says she is never going to drive again; we
+haven't crossed that bridge."
+"Yeah. She's going to have to get back on the horse."
+"We haven't pushed it. Yet. At least she's OK, thank God. But -- I've
+been meaning to ask you about something. I have vague pieces of
+memory about what happened, the windshield crashing and bricks
+falling in front of us and the car flipping over and Joan screaming.
+And... here's the point: I am sure that I was hurt. I remember
+thinking 'I am going to die,' just before I lost consciousness. But
+when I woke up later, it was as if there was... I don't know... it
+was like a warmth, like being at the beach in the sun or something,
+washing over me, and I could feel that it was coming from Joan, from
+her hand where she was touching me. And I was fine. They checked me
+out at the hospital: no injuries. None. And instead, it was Joan who
+ended up in ICU. But I have a fragment of memory that it was me that
+was bleeding, not Joan. And other fragments, like there were people
+outside the car trying to get in. I sort of remember one of them
+saying 'This looks bad. We've got to hurry,' and someone else saying
+'There's no way they survived that.' So here we are; me without a
+scratch, and Joan not hurt much, nothing really serious. Lilly, we
+were on the interstate, going 65. We flipped over. We should have
+both died. Are we talking miracle here?"
+"You're asking the wrong gal. No. Stop looking at me that way."
+Helen continued looking at Lilly.
+"Well, OK. There's your charism... when you start talking about that
+sort of thing... Well, miracle is a strong word. But it might not be
+too strong." Lilly looked over at Joan, who was laughing at something
+Adam had said. "I wonder about Joan, too. I've felt for some time
+that she must have some sort of spiritual gift. There is something
+uncanny about her, Helen. Not in a bad or spooky way, not in the
+least; it is almost like the old paintings, with the halos over the
+saints. They didn't know any other way to represent what was
+different about these people. And Joan is like that. Maybe."
+"Joan, a saint?" Helen shook her head, smiling. "Lilly, you know
+better. She is a teenager. Come by some morning when we're trying to
+get them to eat breakfast and out the door for school. Or when she
+and Luke are snapping at each other. Or... let's just say she's been
+grounded a lot this last year. More grounded than not since about
+March or so. For good reasons."
+Lilly grinned, "Yeah. I know. But still... people get the wrong idea
+about the saints. They aren't these holy people dressed up in
+bathrobes like you see in the stained glass windows. Nor are they
+people with some kind of weird 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' powers. No,
+it is like they are more 'normal' than the rest of us, more
+'natural,' like a tree or a sunset -- more true to their nature, to
+what God intends for them, if that makes sense. I see that in Joan.
+Not all the time, no. But sometimes."
+Helen shook her head again. "No. No way."
+"Think about it," Lilly said. "All the times she's done these oddball
+things, and somehow they have turned out right. More than right; like
+they have been healings for people, for situations. Maybe I'm wrong.
+It's just a feeling, nothing I can put my finger on. But I think
+there's something going on with that girl. Helen, saints do miracles.
+That is part of the definition. No, that's not quite it: saints are
+channels through whom miracles happen; it is God who does the
+miracles. I am so jealous. Here I was, doing the nun thing all those
+years and nothing happened. And here you and your daughter are with
+charisms I would have died for."
+Helen said, "I need a promise from you."
+"Yeah. What?"
+"Don't you dare tell Joan. She is insufferable enough already."
+----------------------
+Will, Carl Rove, and Roebuck were at the grill, boiling the crabs.
+Will said "Roebuck, you're an O's fan. You think they'll break .500?"
+"No. Not a chance. This has been the year from hell. Injuries, the
+whole bit. Sixty-two days in first place, then lose 16 out of 18 and
+no more Mazzili. He was a class act, I tell you. Deserved better."
+Carl said, "Aw, c'mon: they're just what, nine and a half back?"
+"Yeah, and in next to last place with a new manager."
+"Maybe Perlozzo will turn things around."
+Roebuck shook his head. "It'll take more than a new boss. Everyone is
+looking over their shoulder, thinking they might be the next after
+Palmeiro. Probably half the team is on steroids; Raffy's the one they
+caught."
+Carl said, "I bet they're not doing the steroids any more. They see
+the league means business."
+Will said, "Ten-day suspension? They should have axed him for the
+season. Maybe for life."
+Kevin had rolled over during the conversation. He said "Wait a
+minute. Here everyone is, ready to hang the guy. Like Mr. Roebuck
+says, half the team is probably doing it. More like half of the
+people in baseball. And three-quarters in the NFL."
+Will said, "Kev, steroids are against the law. Are you defending
+them?"
+"No. But what's a guy to do? Remember the district football
+championship my junior year, against South Park? Remember those big
+linemen they had? Word was, every one of them was juicing. And they
+are probably all playing Division One ball now. What was the score
+that day?"
+"Don't remind me. 46-14."
+"Yeah. They killed us. So if you're a kid, and you see that
+happening, and all you want in life is to play ball, what are you
+going to do? This is America; if you aren't number one, you're
+nothing."
+"You were good, and you weren't using steroids."
+"I was lucky. All of the coaches at the school had agreed on a
+zero-tolerance policy; if you were caught, you were out. Period.
+Besides, you would have locked me up and thrown away the key."
+"Right about that," Will said.
+"And I was good; I was able to be clean and still make it. What about
+the guys that are on the borderline; if they don't get that boost,
+they won't make the team, and they know it? I'm just saying don't
+blame Palmeiro when it is everywhere."
+Roebuck said, "Kevin, do you think the fans will forgive him?"
+"Yeah. Mark my words: they'll boo him for a game or two, but as soon
+as he gets a couple big hits, all will be forgiven. We shouldn't be
+blaming the players; we should be blaming the fans. 'Winning is
+everything.' The fans don't really care about the steroids, or what
+the players are doing to themselves by taking them. And there they
+will be, booing the guy for using a drug when half of them are up in
+the stands drunk as skunks. Which is worse, doing the steroids or
+DUI-ing after the game? You aren't going to kill people or turn them
+into gimps with a bottle of steroids. Hypocrites. Don't go blaming
+someone until you've looked in the mirror."
+Carl said, "Well, right or wrong, I'm afraid Raffy's going to pay the
+price. His rep will never be the same, and it might keep him out of
+the Hall of Fame. Congressional hearing. Yikes! Why can't they just
+play baseball?"
+Roebuck said, "Where's Cal Ripken when we need him?"
+Carl said, "Yeah. Things were a lot better in those days. I loved it
+when they had him and Cal Sr. and Billy. It was a special time."
+Roebuck said, "Senior was another guy they didn't give enough time in
+the driver's seat. Great baseball man, through and through..."
+Will said "Hey, there's the padre."
+
+Father Ken was carrying a two-gallon tub of ice cream. Helen said,
+
+"I'm so glad you could make it."
+
+"I love crab feasts. Nothing like it. Thanks for inviting me."
+
+"Here, I'll stick the ice cream in the freezer until after while.
+Still some crabs left. There's coleslaw over there, and drinks in the
+cooler, and iced tea."
+
+"I can tell I came to the right place. This is great!"
+
+------------------
+
+By now, the shadows were long. It had been a happy afternoon. The
+children were laughing and having the best time Helen could remember
+for a long while, maybe since Kevin's accident. Helen smiled: Adam
+and Joan had been together all afternoon, and they had that look in
+their eyes again. It wasn't going to be puppy love any more, but it
+might be something stronger, something that would carry them through
+the ups and downs of life. Helen got the ice cream from the freezer
+compartment of the refrigerator and set it on the counter by the
+sink, next to the chocolate brownies, already cut and on paper
+plates.
+
+Looking out the window, she saw that Adam had a few streaks of gray
+in his hair; he was as slim as ever. Running in merry circles around
+him were the twins, three-year old Elizabeth and Helen. Joan had cut
+her hair short, put on about fifteen pounds, and looked very happy.
+She was with Grace, who was nursing little 'Michael Faraday Girardi'
+-- Helen shook her head and smiled at the name Luke and Grace had
+given him. Then she saw Kevin, and grabbed the counter to hold her
+balance. He was standing! There was a tire swing on a rope hanging
+from the big maple tree, and Kevin was pushing little four-year-old
+Joan in the swing; she was laughing with glee. Lilly, her hair
+completely gray, was coming toward the door: "Helen, you need help
+with dessert?"
+
+Helen smiled, and blinked away the tears. Lilly was by her: "Are you
+OK?" Helen looked again into the yard, and all was as it had been
+before. "Yes. Yes, I'm OK. Everything is good." She smiled at Lilly:
+"It is good to be alive."
+