When I came to this valley I quickly met most of the people who lived here, except one. I would occasionally catch a glimpse of this mysterious guy as he walked the trail that ran along the edge of my back woods.
He looked like the twin brother of Uncle Fester from the Adams Family. The dog Sandwich would rush to meet him with a delighted bark, they would greet, he would scrub her head a few times then point at me and she would come running back. This was the most acknowledgement Sandwiches human ever got. This is a live and let live kind of place if he wanted to be left alone that's what I'd do.
But if Sandwich liked him he was okay in my book. She could analyze character better than any human ever dreamed of and I had come to trust her judgement without question.
That's how it stayed until one Halloween night.
I had been a member of the volunteer fire department for a few years, by then, an experienced emergency medical technician, I had been on many aid calls. This particular night I was headed to a costume party at a friends it was Friday night and the moon was full. I was dressed as Elvira.
I stopped at the highway behind an old truck. The truck pulled out and diappeared with a mighty crash. I was in schock I had been to many accident scenes but this was my first time actually seeing one. My lights picked up a person laying in the road. Adrenaline pumping I swung into action paying no heed to what I had on.
The person in the street was badly injured, he was also Sandwiches mysterious friend Uncle Fester. I sat with him and told him to lie still while I checked him for broken bones, he had many. The ambulance arrived and took him off to the football feild to be life flighted out in a helicoptor.
I kept track of his slow progress to wellness over the next month until finally he was released from the hospital.
I continued to check with my neighbor Bob on how things were going. He steadily recovered. One day Bob told me my former patient was now home and would like to meet me.
His name was actually Fred.
We sat on his porch while he commented on my farm and the work I had done. We talked about the things he did, he told me of his various inventions and his interest in propulsion systems. He offered me some of the wine he made. He gave me about a quarter glass told me he didn't want to worry about me walking home all lit up. I raised an eyebrow, and smirked at the thought it was even possible.
He spoke of his accident as I sipped the very smooth and tasty wine. After awhile he went silent and then began telling me his story how he he had seen a horrible monster that night, it had been bent over him, it was really all he remembered of that night, it seemed so real he was sure it wasn't a dream he had been awake. He was still having nightmares about it. He was worried he had brain damage or maybe he was crazy but it just seemed so real. He was thinking maybe he had a glimpse of hell. He wanted to know if I had seen anything that might account for it. He began to describe this horrible creature, halfway through I realized he was describing my Elvira costume. I explained. The look of relief on his face was amazing. We had a great laugh and I apologized, it never occured to me I could have literally scared him to death. I staggered home.
This sounds like the weird beginning of a great friendship and in a way it is. A five gallon jug of wine appeared on my doorstep the next month with a note to let it "ripen" for a couple of months before drinking.Every year after another one has appeared. Every year I have bagged the harvest of rubarb from the dozen ancient plants by my grandmothers barn and left it on his porch. A couple of generations of dogs since Sandwich have rushed happily to have their heads scrubbed by him as he goes about his daily walk. Now when he sends them back there is a wave and a smile for the human.