Do Overs

A portal into another’s life and family is a sci-fi concept, but growing up in a salvage yard and having the Jorgenson family and J J Laundromat right next door was way ahead of its time and any concept I had of beaming up anywhere. The amazing 10-inch gap in the salvage yard’s ten-foot picket fence was a step into another world for both families. The hole in
the fence was used by every member of both families, even Jorgenson’s family dog. The portal was open free of charge with no pretense except being in another world while you were visiting.

The adults would come through the fence to visit and share a libation after a hard day’s work. I have no doubt that our parents shared joys, disappointments, fears, and the state of the world at that time. This was when the only biased news was from Paul Harvey, and in my family, it was a
requirement to be quiet during Tthe Rest of the Story. The kids and dog would travel back and forth just to play. Now, this was a time when kids played outside and enjoyed the ability to entertain themselves with a million different things, sharing outside games, places to hide, and
all the best parts of being young and feral. Showing up for feedings was the only requirement by both parental units, though it was a given we might be eating on the other side of the fence.

The hole in the fence was where we all traveled to welcome George home from Vietnam. I can recall my sister coming home with her firstborn Kathy and the Jorgensens popping through the fence to welcome her. Walt came through the fence on Sundays for the Packer games. This 10- inch opening held secrets and hopes of two families and businesses. This entry into the worlds of each of our families was a very small part of the big picture, but for me, it will always hold a big part of how natural and relaxed two families can be with just a hole in a fence between
them.

I always liked Walt and Mary Ruth, but that feeling was magnified when they showed up to see my father when he was dying. That generation exchanged pleasantries with little outward emotion, but it was so obvious to me, looking at Walt and my father with their Scandinavian eyes that couldn’t lie. Yep! It was just a hole in the fence.