Chapter 12

Later the next day, after the three of us had all showered and the Lister's had left, I stood at the kitchen sink getting some water when I heard a knock on the front door. There stood Gene and the administrator of the Community, Winston Jefferson. I'd met Winston briefly the day I'd moved in, but hadn't really had a chance to chat with him.

"I hope you don't mind us stopping by, Mike," Gene said. "But we were just down the street and Winston said he'd like to get to know you a little better, so we decided to see if you were home."

"Come on in," I invited, and opened the door to admit them. Thank goodness I'd had time to get the place straightened up after Henry and LuAnn left earlier.

Winston and I shook hands and I invited the two of them to have a seat at the kitchen table. I offered them something for their thirst and Winston wanted a glass of iced tea and Gene asked for some water. As I turned to get the refreshments I hard Winston ask,

"So how's your first weeks been since you moved in, Mike?"

"They've definitely been busy, I'll say that. I finally got all my things moved in arranged and I've even had a chance to take a couple of walks around the area and I've met some very interesting people so far."

"Who've you met?" he asked.

"Well let's see, the Lister's, Henry and LuAnn, Gene," I nodded in Gene's direction, "and an old friend Robert Towns."

"Not too many I see," Winston said. "I wanted to let you know that we have a monthly gathering at the Community Center on Hillsboro Drive and wanted to make sure you got an invitation. It's mostly for the new arrivals so you can meet more people and get better aquainted with the community you'll be living in now. It's very informal and we usually have a buffet catered for all who come. Nothing fancy, but you'll get to meet a lot more people. You'll find that we have some very friendly people here and I'm sure you'll find some that share your interests, as well."

"That would be nice. I love to read and I do cross stitch as well. Other than those I fairly open to try new things," and I winked at Gene, who caught the implication and winked back.

"I've never heard of a man doing cross stitch," Winston said.

"It's something I learned as a child and I've loved it ever since. It's gotten me through some rough times and it's very relaxing at the same time. Used to be that when I'd get a headache I could sit and stitch for a while and before I knew it the headach would be gone. It's very theraputic, too. Keeps the old fingers nimble."