Posted by Dave in A fencing story.
It was an early fall day in 1970. A moving van just pulled up beside the curb at the house next door to my house. I was 10 years old.
We had just moved into our house about 3 weeks earlier and now the new neighbors were moving in. Ours were the only two houses on the street. For now. The first ones built. In fact there was no street. Just gravel and concrete sidewalks. The street would come later. And about 50 more houses.
An Oldsmobile station wagon was behind the moving van and what seemed to me to be an old guy and his wife got out. They were really old to me. Probably in their thirties. I told my Dad that I thought the new people were here. He said to let him know if I saw them because there was something he had to talk to them about.
I watched from the dining room window as my Dad walked across our front yard, across their dirt and over to the driveway where he introduced himself to the Cox’s. They talked forever in kid time. Probably about 15 minutes, and back he came.
“Good people” he said. “Orlan and Helen. They have a couple of girls about your age and a boy who is 12. The kids will be here in a few days.”
It is now 35 years later and I am at my Dads Memorial Service. The Cox’s still live next door and when the Pastor asked if anybody had something they would like to say, Orlan stood up, walked forward, and told about the first day he met my Dad.
“Gary introduced himself to me and my wife and welcomed us to the neighborhood. He invited us over for burgers on the weekend. We talked for a few minutes and he said he had to ask us a question. He wanted to know if we “Fence People”. He said that he always felt that neighbors were better neighbors if there was no fence between them. We thought a minute and we agreed that until one or the other of us does something to tick off the other, we would not build a fence between our yards.”
I saw them shake hands that day 35 years ago and did now know what happened in the conversation till the story was told at the Service.
My Mom has since had to move into a care facility because of progressing Alzheimer’s. When I was back in Golden Colorado a couple of weeks ago and helping my Sisters clean out some things from Mom and Dads house, Helen and Orlan pulled up in the driveway. Helen was driving because Orlan no longer can. They too had just moved out because… well, because they had to. Helen no longer could do it all.
I told Orlan, and I think he understood, how moved I was about the story about the fence, and to this day, the lack of a fence between their houses. In fact, these are the only two houses in the neighborhood without a fence between them. Their bargain remained solid. Helen said that a Realtor was looking at their house and how she felt that the property would show better if they built a fresh new fence around it. We hugged, and we cried. They just don’t get it do they?
Please excuse me, I’m going to go say “hi” to my new neighbors.
Joe and Vicki Prin own Joe Prin Remodeling LLC, Idaho Registered Contractor #RCE-23530, and can be contacted at 573-1082 or by email- joe@joeprin.com. Listen to the HomeFix Radio show hosted by Joe, Saturdays, 8-10 AM on 580 KIDO
