Book 4 — Story 2

When there's a lot going on.

Playing Checkers

“That’s my sixth gutter ball in a row,” Dan said. “I guess I just can’t bowl today. I’ll be lucky to break 30.

“Let’s go to my place and watch the World Series,” Alfie said. “That won’t take so much energy.”

“Good idea,” Dan said. Alfie Ennis and Dan Ward were cousins. They went to the same high school. Alfie was a sophomore and Dan was a freshman. Their mothers were sisters. Dan’s grandfather on his father’s side had died yesterday. Dan was feeling down.

Back at Alfie’s house, they turned on the TV. The game was in the third inning. Alfie said, “Look who’s up. Think he’ll hit a home run?” Dan did not answer. Alfie said again, “Think he’ll hit a home run?” Dan did not answer. Alfie said again, “Think Rooster will hit a home run?” Dan still did not answer. Alfie stopped talking and just watched.

About an hour later, Dan said, “I need to go to the ATM. I have to move some money and make a payment.”

“What payments do you have to make?” Alfie asked.

“My dad gave me money to buy my MP3 player. I’m paying him back. Let’s go to the ATM by the grocery store,” Dan said.

Alfie said, “I heard it’s supposed to rain. I’ll get umbrellas.”

The two of them walked the two blocks to the store. When they got there, Dan could not remember his pin number. Finally, he said, “I guess it doesn’t matter. I’ll just do it later.”

The next day, Dan went to a wake for his grandfather. Lots of neighbors and relatives came. Dan sat with his older brother, Ben and his little sister, Lizzie. There was a back room with food for the main family members. Dan, Ben, and Lizzie took a plate of cheese and crackers to their chairs. They talked and nibbled.

Ben was a senior. He was named after his grandfather. He said, “It is so odd to see an obituary for ‘Ben Ward.’ ”

Dan said, “I bet it is odd. Can you read it to me, please?” Dan had tried to read it earlier, but he had trouble with it. And, he really wanted to know everything it said. Dan had a learning problem. It made reading hard. In school, the teachers gave him extra help. Quietly, Ben read it aloud. Lizzie listened too. She was in 5th grade. She could have read it on her own. But, she still liked to have her big brother read to her.

Lizzie asked, “Why did Grandpa die?”

“He died from diabetes,” Dan explained. “It’s a disease. His body could not use food right. It made his organs not work like they should.”

“His organs?” Lizzie looked puzzled. “His piano worked. I used it.”

Dan smiled. “No, not his piano. An ‘organ’ is a musical instrument. But, the word ‘organs’ also means ‘main parts of the body.’ For example, your heart is an organ. Your kidneys are organs.”

Lizzie asked, “Are my lungs organs?”

“Yes, they are.” Dan said. “Grandpa’s eyes and heart were hurt by diabetes.”

“So, that’s why he couldn’t see?” Lizzie asked. “The food he ate hurt his eyes?”

“Yes, it is sort of like that,” Dan said. “His body couldn’t use food right. So, his eyes and heart were sort of broken.”

“Why didn’t he go to a doctor for eyes and hearts?” Lizzie asked.

“He did,” Dan said. “His heart doctor was Dr. Freems. He helped as much as he could. His eye doctor was Dr. Mertz. He helped a lot, too. But, in the end, Grandpa’s body just wore out.”

Lizzie said, “Oh.” Then she climbed onto Dan’s lap and they hugged. They were still hugging when their Aunt Sue walked up. Aunt Sue was their dad’s sister.

Aunt Sue bent down and hugged the two of them at once. She said, “You two look so sweet sitting here. We are so lucky to have such a nice family. We’ll all miss Grandpa, but we still have each other.” After Aunt Sue left, others came to talk to Dan and Lizzie.

A neighbor said, “Sorry for your loss. I know you spent a lot of time with your grandpa.”

Lizzie said, “Yes, we did. Grandpa played checkers with my brothers and me. I’m little. But I still won sometimes. Grandpa gave me candy when I won.”

A great aunt said, “Your grandpa and I had a lot of fun when we were kids. We played outside whenever we could. He used to try to scare me with snakes and frogs. But, it didn’t work. I liked all the animals.”

Grandpa’s oldest brother came over. He said, “He was my little brother, you know.” He stood too close. Dan had to back up three times.

All night long, the room was full of neighbors, friends, and relatives. Dan was surprised to see that he knew almost everyone. But, they didn’t all know each other. He introduced some of grandpa’s “people” to some of his other “people.” It was a long day, but a warm one.

After the wake, Dan got a text message from Alfie. “Want to hang out?”

Dan texted back, “No. Not tonight. I’m going to play checkers with Ben and Lizzie.”

What do you think?

1. Dan forgot his pin number. Why do you think people have to memorize pin numbers instead of writing them down and keeping them in an easy-to-find place?

2. Alfie took umbrellas on the walk to the store because the news report said it was going to rain. News reports are often wrong. Do you think Alfie was silly to take the umbrellas on their walk? Explain.

What would you do?

1. It takes strength to be positive when people are down. Think about Dan in the story. Say you were his friend. What would you do to help him deal with losing his grandfather?