On our last trek north we ran into major plumbing problems. The toilet tank cracked and drained, and in sympathy its neighbor, the sink, started to leak. Luckily, a jack-of-all-trades lives down the road.
His temperament can be irascible at times but underneath the crustiness beats a generous heart. More than once he has come to our rescue. Last summer we caught up with him in his workshop, sanding a small box, a carefully crafted piece of workmanship.
The Accidental Coffin Maker
The northwoods whiskey-swilling
carpenter builds wicked-good cabinets
when not nursing a grudge
or in the thick of a bar-provoked fight
over some perceived slight.
His neighbor wedded to a woman
with Alzheimer's looks beyond the bluster.
Commissions a handcrafted box, cross
planed on the lid, sized to sit on a dresser,
contain a bag of ashes.
Knows it will be polished with care.
Somehow, word will leak out,
and woe to the local who snickers.
Marilyn Aschoff Mellor
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