Roger made it to 95. One week later, he said Jean and Arnaud wanted him to meet them. I told Colin.

Two days later, “Let’s go for a ride. I want to show you something.”

I knew he was working on improving the trailer court. I thought that was something he wanted to show me. When he didn’t take the turn for the trailer court I began to wonder what he had to show me. Driving past Ivan’s farm and the outlet store, “Did you buy a farm?”

“No. Who would work the farm? Not you and certainly not me.”

He turned onto a country lane. After about three miles further, he turned onto a dirt road that led through several trees. At the end of the road, there was a building on a knoll. He stopped the car, got out, and opened my door. “I want to show you something.”

Hand in hand, we walked to the top of the knoll and then I realized what it was. “You built a mausoleum.”

“Yes. Roger and any friend of ours will sleep here. I couldn’t accept putting Roger, Marie, or Pat in the ground somewhere. When we were in Paris for Arnaud’s funeral I got the idea of something like that for our family. When we returned and then learned that Jean had left us, I knew I had to do something.”

He opened one of the doors, and turned on the lights, “This is mine and that is yours.”

I looked around. The crypts were two high, “How many are there?”

“There are enough for our family and friends.”

“Who is this for?” There was a tape over the door.

“Armand, don’t peel off the tape.”

“This is for Roger, isn’t it?”

“Yes, he said he doesn’t have any plans. He’s a good friend and he needs to be with family.”

Looking around there was something missing. I wasn’t sure, but I knew an angel would be needed for Roger’s bed.

On the way back home, “Let’s stop at Ivan’s.”

Lil Ivan was no longer Lil Ivan. He was now helping his dad run their farms. When Ivan bought the farm next to him, he refused to plant anything until he could no longer find traces of a compound called Urea. It was a fertilizer that was and is used for lawns and flower gardens but it can also be used on land for raising food. The problem Ivan had was James and Elsie. James through the club supported Ivan’s farm. The Home agreed to the same standards as James. With the expanded farm, they now had contracts to provide the outlet with products that they grow without the use of commercial fertilizer. When I asked Lil Ivan what his dad was going to use, he pointed to the cows. Since Lil Ivan came of age, they invested in dairy cows. With Colin’s help, they built a processing building that included milking, and collection into a large tank that was equipped with coolers. The cream would come to the top, which was removed and turned into butter, buttermilk being the offshoot of the process. The milk had to contain a certain percentage of fat so there were two tanks, one for milk without cream and one for a certain percentage of cream.

Ivan and his son were smart, although it was something else. One of the girls that grew up in the Home went to Yale for a degree in Chemistry.. She met Lil Ivan and the rest is history, as they say. She said the lab was hers.

They took five acres of land at the back of the property, fenced it in, and now have several hen houses. He provides James and the Home with eggs and the surplus is sold from the outlet. He still has the peanuts.

“Did you show him?”

“Yes, he was surprised but I think he was concerned about Uncle Roger. Now he knows what lies ahead.”

Are you going past the Home?”

“Yes.”

“Can you drop this bushel of potatoes and these three sacks of peanuts?”

“Sure.”

After loading the potatoes and peanuts, I had to go and collect Armand. He was in the house talking to Elsie.

“Armand, if you are ready to leave, we need to stop at the Home.” I watched as he emptied his cup.

“The next time I am at the outlet I’ll drop some cornmeal off for you.”

Driving toward the Home, “She likes the polenta?”

“No, I think Ivan and Lil Ivan like polenta, I need to stop referring to Ivan as little Ivan. He isn’t so little anymore.”

Pulling into the driveway to the barn, I got out to open the gate. I didn’t see the boys as they tackled me when the gate was open. I pulled them aside as Colin drove the van past the gate and before I had a chance to relock it, one of the boys did it. They opened the door for Colin which allowed them to smell peanuts.

The boys took one sack of peanuts, and Colin and I took the bushel of potatoes. We were halfway to the kitchen when more boys rushed us yelling peanuts.

We laughed. “Do you think Ivan knows how much joy he gives these kids with his peanuts?”

“I’m sure he knows they like them but he needs to see them when we bring them peanuts.”

“He must deliver them as well.”

“I’ll bet he pulls his truck up close to the kitchen. He has other vegetables, milk, butter, eggs, and now potatoes. We generally only bring peanuts except today we have that bushel of potatoes,”

“Those boys run to meet us even if we have nothing with us.”

Stopping in the kitchen with the potatoes, we took a cup of coffee and headed to the office. Tommy called and said he had some photos for us,

Walking into his office, he picked up a box, “Follow me.”

I chuckled as we headed to Pat’s apartment. We found her in the sunroom, napping.

“Pat, are you awake?”

I always thought that was a dumb question and the response was just as dumb, “No, I was just resting my eyes.”

“Dr. Hamlin sent us photographs of his new children’s home. They did a fantastic job. I thought we could look at them together.”

“Tommy, where is Pepe?”

“He’s probably in the game room. I think he likes to get involved with the boys who have kits. I decided this year I’m going to get him a kit. Haven’t decided if it will be a plane, or a ship, or maybe a rocket. The boys like him, so it is good. I have a question for you Pop. Some of the boys want to know when fishing starts.”

“Tell them the next time Ronnie is here, ask him. I gave the fishing boat to him. Since the old captain and first mate are no longer here, he took over the boat.”

I thought about the Captain and first mate. Another two friends are gone.

“Here is a photo of one of their rooms. Unlike us, they have four beds in a room. The bathroom is a little larger and so is the closet.”

“I only see two desks. Where are the other two if they have four beds in a room.”

“I think he put a drawing of one of the rooms in this box somewhere. His letter listed the items in the box.”

I watched as Tommy started to go through the contents of the box.

“I think this is it.” Unfolding the paper it was a sketch of a room.

Looking at the sketch, as you entered the room, there were two desks against the wall like we have. At the end of the beds, there are two desks.

“So in front, the desks are side by side but at the end of the beds, the desks are separated. I wonder how is he going to assign the desks. The children having the desks in front can collaborate but those with the desks in the rear cannot. We thought the kids would do better in school if they studied in a side-by-side configuration. Is there a library in his design?”

“I didn’t see one.”

“I think you should respond. Make a comparison between his design and ours. Try and find out his rationale for four beds versus two beds per room. I’m sure it must be related to the number of children he expects to be there.”

“I thought maybe you and I could go and see his building.”

“Did he say where they are in the construction phase?”

“No, there is nothing in his letter nor is there any annotation on the drawing.”

“Call him. Tell him we received the drawings and would like to see the building.”

Finishing our coffee, we headed home.