Chapter 10: Edwin’s gift

Later that morning Jesse grudgingly stepped over and knocked on their neighbor’s front door. He half expected to wait ten minutes or so and then let himself in — to find the old man sucking on his oxygen tank again. But the door opened within seconds and he stood agape at the scene before him. Mr. Sinclair was still old as dirt, but he no longer appeared bent with age. He stood straight and looked vibrant for his 80-some years. His eyes were bright and his grip firm when he reached out with a friendly paw to shake Jesse’s hand.

“Good to see you, my boy,” he greeted jovially in a clear and steady voice. “Good to see you. Goddess’ blessings upon you. Please come in.” He turned back and led them into the kitchen where he indicated a chair by the table. There was a box of folders sitting on it that Edwin had been going through. “Can I get you a glass of water?” he asked.

Jesse shook his head as he tried to come to terms with the miraculous transformation of the man.

He watched as the old guy filled a glass for himself and drank it down with a smack of his lips. “Ah! Never appreciated good old water so much as I do now.” He turned back and winked at his guest. “And you being a water spirit should appreciate that.” The cackle was gone from his easy laughter.

“I am going to be leaving soon,” he continued as he took a seat facing the boy. “I have a lot of mistakes to make amends for and much work to do in her name.” He sat straight as an arrow as he spoke. “I owe you and your mother probably the biggest apology of all and I hope my next action will help to earn your forgiveness.”

Jesse shrugged and lifted a hand dismissively, “There is really no need for that Mr. Sinclair. We are just happy you are better now and...”

“Hogwash!” the old man replied with a hint of his former gruffness. “Now listen up. This is how it’s going to be.” He paused when there was a soft tapping on the back door. His eyes lit up and he bounded to his feet eagerly to admit Maia. She smiled brightly at him and moved over to sit on Jesse’s lap. “Good,” he continued, “I’m glad you answered.”

Jesse looked at her askance and she tapped her temple. “He called to me,” she said quietly.

“Wha...?” he replied sounding more than a little jealous. “How come he can...” he tapped his forehead, “and I can’t?”

“You’ve never tried darling,” she replied soothingly.

He grumbled quietly as Mr. Sinclair stood before them. ‘I bet you can’t hear what I’m thinking right now?’ he thought to himself smugly.

Maia gasped and slapped his chest. “Babe! Edwin could hear that too!”

He looked over and saw the old man grinning at him. “Ah to be young and in love again,” he sighed. “Who knows ... maybe somewhere, someday...” he had a dreamy look in his eyes that made Jesse blush.

“But anyhow, as I was saying, I will be leaving here and I won’t be coming back.” He gestured to the box. “I can’t take any of this with me and I have no one to give it to so I’m leaving it all to you.” He pulled several files out and set them on the table. “We will need to go to the Courthouse to transfer the deed and a couple of other things, but it shouldn’t be too complicated.”

Jesse took a sudden breath and nodded toward the folders. “Umm. Deed?” he asked.

Edwin just nodded. “To the house. It’s completely paid for. I will cover the closing costs and recording fees. You will have to take over property taxes. Other than that, it’s yours,” he replied smugly. “These are all the records I’ve kept on it since I bought the place twenty-five years ago.” He reached for another folder and opened it peering at the paper inside. A sigh escaped his lips as he peered back through his memories wistfully. “This is the title transfer for my car. She’s sitting in the garage. I haven’t driven her for years but I still go out and start her up once in a while just to hear her purr.” He set the file down and waved toward the garage door. “C’mon, I’ll introduce you,” he said as he grabbed an old set of keys off a hook by the door.

Jesse was more than curious as Maia jumped off his lap and held his hand while they followed him out to the darkened addition. When he flipped the lights on Jesse blinked twice before his eyes focused on the classic sky-blue convertible before him. He staggered as he missed the last step. “Holy shit!” he gasped as he took it in. He put both of his hands to his face, covering his open mouth.

“She’s a beauty ain’t she?” Mr. Sinclair asked beaming with pride.

‘She’ was a gleaming original 1950 Studebaker Champion in perfect condition. Jesse stepped sideways as he looked it over. The winged hood ornament gleamed at him as he made his way to the front and recognized the signature round chrome ‘donut’ on the grill. “Oh wow!” he breathed. “This is one beautiful piece of history!” The custom historical society commemorative plate read, “STUD50”. The top was down at the moment and he was able to peer inside at the thin steering column with the column shifter jutting off the right side below the simple oversized steering wheel. The front bench seat was fabric and only slightly worn. The floor below the wheel displayed the three small pedals and nothing else.

“Mr. Sinclair you’ve got to be crazy to give this away,” Jesse objected finally. “Why don’t you sell it to help you during your journey?”

“Son, yesterday I had one foot in the grave,” Edwin replied patiently, “that is a journey we all take on our own and nothing...” he waved his arm to indicate his home and car, “none of this gets to come with us.” He stepped over and dropped the keys firmly into the boy’s hand. “This journey I just accepted is very much the same deal — except I get to go forth and live rather than lay here and die. I must still leave everything behind. Gaia will provide for me from now on.” He patted him on the shoulder and turned to make his way back into the house.

Jesse turned to find Maia smiling up at him knowingly. She squeezed his other hand as they followed after him. When they were back inside, he turned to them with a cunning glint in his eye. He stomped several times on the floor which was covered with old and faded, chipped linoleum tiles. “One other thing,” he said firmly. “This flooring is old and all broke up. It needs to be pulled up and replaced.” He tapped Jesse in the chest and leaned in conspiratorially. “Just make sure you do the ‘pulling’ yourself,” he murmured and then went to the sink to refill his glass once more.

Two weeks later Jesse and Maia moved into their new home. It was a three-fold celebration for it was also the day of Jesse’s 19^th birthday. They celebrated by inviting everyone over to the newly remodeled and painted home for a celebratory dinner marking the Autumnal Equinox as well. The two weeks of remodeling, and remaking the home into something unique was a frenzy of activity. Maia took charge as expected and kept Jesse busy from morning til night each day as they completely stripped and built back the house from the inside out. During the remodel they discovered many things about the former occupant that amazed them both.

For one he was an avid reader of periodicals and a hoarder of note. He had subscribed to magazines since his childhood and retained every issue he ever received, all organized neatly in bookcases that lined practically every interior wall of the house and garage. They found Popular Science magazines in chronological order from 1933, Popular Mechanics then went back to 1930—before he was even born, and National Geographic which spanned over 70 years of the publication’s history. They even found several preserved and protected copies of original publications they had never even heard of dating back to the 1800’s.

In his attic, they found a treasure of old artifacts from the turn of the century and antique items that he had probably used regularly before upgrading to a better model. They also uncovered a chest full of old military memorabilia including a full Army Officer’s dress uniform with campaign ribbons from several older conflicts including the Korean and Vietnamese wars. In the bottom of another box, they found many old cast-iron toys and tin lunch boxes. What they thought was an old suitcase turned out to be an antique foot-powered sewing machine.