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You Definitely Don’t Get People

Jeb was in his workshop listening to soft Christmas music as he finished sanding a batch of salad utensils. He was in the contemplative state that came naturally when he did work of this kind. He stirred from his rocking chair when he heard a knock at his door.

Dusting the fine coating of wood dust from his hands with a shop towel, he opened the door to find Pastor Greg admiring the copse of trees he’d strung with lights by the pond.

“Pastor.”

“Hi, Jeb. That looks so nice. Did you run a cord all the way down there?”

“No, there’s a solar panel for each of the trees. The LED lights don’t draw much of a charge, so they stay lit most of the night. Won’t you come in?”

“Yes, thank you.” He shook Jeb’s hand as he entered the cozy workshop. Seeing the glow from the pellet stove, the pastor made his way toward it to warm his hands.

“Please, take a seat, Pastor.” Jeb collected his pieces and dusted off the arms of the rocking chair.

“Thanks, Jeb.” He sat down gingerly and settled into the comfortable chair. “Is everything alright? I haven’t seen you all week.”

“Oh,” Jeb set his pieces in a tray on his shelf. He paused and ran his fingers through the hair on the back of his head. “I had some stuff to catch up on.”

“It wouldn’t have anything to do with the little calamity on Sunday?”

Jeb turned around with a jolt. The anguish on his face looked so out of place. Greg had certainly never seen this side of his friend.

“I seem to have hit a nerve.” Greg started rocking slowly. It was nearly impossible not to in such a comfortable chair. “Want to talk about it?”

“Honestly, Pastor, I’m actually a little afraid to give it further thought.”

“Nothing ever got resolved by hiding from it, Jeb. Tell me what’s bothering you.”

Jeb looked distressed. Greg had always seen his friend as being so serene as to be nearly emotionless. It was strange to see him in such turmoil.

“I’m not sure, Pastor.”

“Greg.”

“Huh?”

“Look, when I’m here on ‘business’, it’s okay to call me Pastor. Right now, I’m here as a friend. Okay? I’m just Greg. We’re just two guys having a chat tonight. No need for the formality.”

“Greg?”

“Yeah, Jeb. I’m just Greg right now. Let’s talk about how you’re feeling.”

“I really wanted to make a change…”

“But?”

“I don’t get…” Jeb pulled another rocking chair beside the pellet stove. The shadows cast by the fiery glow accentuated the worried expression on Jeb’s face. “…people.”

“Not everybody does. It shouldn’t deter you from walking among them. We’ve all missed you this week.”

“I did have a lot of work to do. I wasn’t really hiding quite as much as I might have seemed to be. I’ll show you how the bear is coming along before you go.”

“Nice. I’d like to see how that’s coming along but let’s talk about what’s troubling you first. You are trying to make a change, but?”

“I heard what you said in your sermon. Change doesn’t come easily or even nicely.”

“I can definitely hear a ‘but’ brewing in that statement.” Greg chuckled.

That brought a little bit of a smile into Jeb’s troubled expression.

“You had said that you realized you were feeling lonely. That was an unfamiliar sensation because you had always been rather content.”

“Yes, I remembered that Aundrea had always been the closest thing to a friend I had when I was a kid.”

“Really?”

“I liked to watch her play softball in the summertime.”

“Just her?”

“The whole game was interesting, of course, but I really liked watching her.”

“She’s very pretty.”

“Always was but that’s not what drew my attention. It was the way she played. It felt like the other kids were doing it wrong.”

“Athletic skill tends to vary.”

“Not wrong like doing it incorrectly. Some were better than others but they seemed like they were concentrating on the rules or whatever. Aundrea always put her whole heart into every game.”

“She was competitive?”

“I suppose so but it was more than that. It was like she lived for the opportunity to shine on that field. She was amazing to see.”

“But you never approached her to get to know her better?”

“What more than that was there to know? She laid her soul bare on that field. She was a blinding torch of uninhibited joy and I considered myself blessed to be able to see it.”

“Wow.”

Jeb smiled and rocked back in his chair. He seemed lost in the memory for a moment before trouble began to cloud his expression again.

“And we’ve lost it. What happened, Jeb?”

“I wanted to do what I probably should have done way back then.”

“Talk with her?”

“Yes. In looking back, I guess I should have talked to her about how she made me feel.”

“It’s never too late.”

“Not so sure about that. I tried to say something after the service but she jammed a box of cookies in my gut and gave me a look that could curdle a whole cow’s worth of milk. I have no idea what I did to offend her unless she was still mad at me for making her faint at the store.”

“You did what?”

“I went in to ask her if she’d sell the wooden utensils I’ve been working on in her bakery. I got flustered when she came to speak to me about it and said I’d come to propose. She went down like a trapdoor before I could finish saying that I’d come to propose a business arrangement. Phyl and I got her into the kitchen before anyone could see her like that but I figure she’s still mad at me for faking her out like that. I didn’t mean to say it that way, Pastor.”

“Greg.”

“It was an honest mistake. I really didn’t mean to put it quite that way.”

“Sure, Jeb. Do you suppose that she reacted that way because she has been harboring feelings for you?”

“If that look she gave me when she shoved those cookies in my direction is anything to go by, she’s harboring feelings of murderous rage.”

“I’m sure it’s not as bad as all that.”

“She was furious, Greg.”

“But she gave you cookies, Jeb. How were they?”

“No idea. I threw them away.”

“Really?”

“I kind of had to. I dropped the box when Trilby hit her head on the end of the pew.”

“That was a lot of blood. I’m glad Herb was able to get in with the steam cleaner. I saw the bouquet you brought her. That was lovely.”

“I felt bad about how that went.”

“What went?”

“I invited Trilby and Marta to join me for breakfast. I had wanted to invite you along but she just keeled over. Y’know, I’m likely to develop a complex about this.”

“About what?”

“All my life, I’ve hardly spoken to anyone about anything. I tried to turn over a new leaf and maybe make some friends.”

“And they all faint dead away.”

“Exactly.”

“Well, you’re right about one thing.”

“What’s that?”

“You definitely don’t get people.” Greg smiled as he pushed himself up from the rocking chair. ”Let’s go take a look at this bear of yours.”