When Brian worked away his usual in and out was three weeks out and two days home. It was pushed and pushed hard by a much younger brother who has eyes only for money **so the two days were the only days home. The two days were farming days. It was an impossible way to live.
One year the guys worked right up to Christmas Eve and though Brian didn't like it, he wasn't driving on his own. He really didn't get a choice. But somewhere before he came home he had time to do a little shopping.
He came in the door with a box with this big red bow on it and he put it on the counter with this goofy look on his face. I read the box and started laughing. I wasn't sure if I was offending him. I hoped not.
The box was labeled Sex in a Box.
Trust me. You would have laughed too.
It was a box with a bottle of cheap champagne, two glasses, candle holders and two tall white candles. And after the kids went to bed, we drank the wine and then fell asleep.
But still. It was so much the kind of thing he would do and I miss that. I will remember the gentle soul and smile for what was. It's easy to forget how lucky one is but down there, hiding among the days and weeks, he remains a very big part of my life.
The world needs more socks so that everybody could find the time to remember.
Note: This may sound unfair but it is what it is. He was just barely out of high school, had no family, no wife, and only mom and dad to come home to. He had no way of knowing.
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