Jolly, Jolly Sixpence

(2) — Originally published in Pangolin Papers, Fall, 2003

Continued from page (1)

The campground, the best in West Virginia, was booked through September. Trouble was when Joey stayed with Riley in the apartment, Riley had to sleep on the floor so Joey could have the sofa bed.
    Sure enough, that night as Doris stood with the storm door open and the heavy wooden door closed behind her, she asked him to switch weekends. “He can’t be with you this coming weekend, either. Swim team try-outs. We’ll move everything up one weekend and in the fall you can have him two weekends in a row, okay?”
    “I’ll swing by on his birthday and give him my present.”
    “Don’t do that,” Doris said quickly.
    Riley frowned.
    “The party’s up at my mom’s” Doris said. “Our backyard’s, you know, so small.”
    “I’ll bring it by Friday night.”
    “We’re going up Friday morning, staying the weekend.”

    Riley told them he could work the Saturday of Joey’s birthday, but they’d already scheduled a full crew. They even had someone to pump gas while the regulars worked on cars in back. Riley was left with nothing to do. That morning, he scrubbed his hands and did the best he could to wrap the green-and-white box that Joey would instantly recognize as swim fins. The finished package looked pretty bad. The blank side of the wrapping paper showed at the creases, and the ribbon was barely long enough for a knot on top. Joey wouldn’t care. His mom had told him fins were just too expensive, so he wasn’t expecting them. Maybe the next time they went camping, the fins would put Joey in a better mood, and Riley could teach him the sixpence song.
    He was half fish, that kid. Riley had to watch to be sure he didn’t go out too far. When he was littler, Riley kept him in the shallows by giving him horsey rides. He sat on Riley’s shoulders while Riley pranced waist-deep and listened for Joey’s giggled commands. At the end always came, “Throw me, Daddy.” Riley would lift him straight up and fling him into the deep water. Riley chuckled. He could still hear Joey’s screams of laughter.

Continued ...

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