Chapter Two #2
“It’s not that big a town, and when you get to know people and put down roots, then you hear things.
A few years ago, Billy had a health scare.
He’s okay, thank goodness, but the bills were horrendous.
Loyal customers got together, booked the restaurant, and held a benefit for him… right here. That’s Carlisle for you.”
“I’ve always heard what an amazing town this is.
Apparently, a lot of people at the barracks make this posting their last one and retire out of here so they can stay.
” He sipped his water and nibbled on a piece of bread once David brought a basket.
“So, you were telling me about the holidays in your class.” They’d gotten off the subject, and he wanted to bring it back to what Dade had been saying earlier.
Dade nodded slowly as his mind seemed to click back on to the subject.
“You have to understand that most of the kids in my class still believe in Santa. I have a special Christmas book that the kids do. Together, we make up stories about a new reindeer that the kids get to name. And, of course, we have a big craft project so the kids can make something for their parents. It’s a real big deal. ”
“But don’t you end up doing a lot of the project?” Cliff asked as David brought the wine for Dade.
“Sometimes. I try to come up with something that the kids can do themselves. I mean, we make jack-o-lanterns at Halloween and turkeys for Thanksgiving. But my thought is to develop a project for Christmas that the kids can do in stages. Last year, I got clear plastic ornaments, and the kids colored a transfer that went on it. Then we applied them and decoupaged over it. They turned out really nice, and I brought in a tree that we hung all the ornaments on so the kids got to enjoy all of them. Then, before the holiday break, they each took their ornament home.”
Cliff loved the light in Dade’s eyes. It was like he was experiencing this all over. “I have to ask how you make math fun. Because at that age, I struggled with that so hard.”
“I try. But math is math. We talk about the concepts, go over them multiple times. We also play games around math and have a lot of drills. Things like math and language arts are so important. They’re the foundation of everything.
I really want my kids to be able to come out of my class ready for the next steps.
We talk about multiplication a little in the second grade. ”
“I remember that. Math was the one subject that didn’t come easy to me, until it did,” Cliff added.
“I had the hardest time when I was in the first and second grades. It was like I didn’t have enough fingers to count on, and then I suddenly understood.
The light went on, and it got easier all of a sudden. ”
“It’s like that for a lot of kids, and I love when it happens in my class.
That aha moment when they realize that they can do it.
A lot of the learning tools we have are on tablets, and the kids take them home.
Sometimes they do some of their assignments on the tablets.
I like the kids to be able to do the work on their own.
Some of my colleagues think I’m a little old-fashioned, but I think the kids should know what the tablet is doing before they move ahead and just let the tablet do everything.
” He shook his head. “It’s kind of crazy sometimes.
” He sighed. “Things are the way they are.” He sipped some water. “So, tell me more about what you do.”
“It’s pretty simple. My job is to make sure that the things the army needs are in the right place when they need it.
We have depots and warehouses all over the country.
For some things, it’s pretty simple. Everyone stocks toilet paper and basic essentials.
But a few years ago, with all the sudden rain on the west coast, we needed gear that’s ordinarily kept on the east coast out there. ”
“Isn’t it a matter of shipping the stuff?” Dade asked.
“Sort of. But shipping can take time. My job is to try to anticipate. So, when my team realized what was going to happen, we got the gear packed and shipped ahead of time and found space in one of the supply depots for it, though it wasn’t there for very long.
The heavy rain gear was distributed to units within days of its arrival. ”
“So you look out for the troops and make sure they have what they need? That’s pretty cool.” He sat back as their food arrived.
“I like to think so,” Cliff said as he dug in.
His stomach rumbled at the golden-brown goodness on his plate.
He ate slowly, and Dade did the same. “God, this is so good.” He took another bite and closed his eyes.
“My mom made sure I knew how to cook basic things. But it isn’t as though I can do much more than that. So, I heat something up at home.”
“Okay, I have to ask. Is army food as bad as they show it on TV?”
Cliff chuckled. “Sometimes. I mean, there are things that should never be served to anyone. But on the whole, no. It isn’t grand cuisine, but it’s not goop either.
Now, after all these years in the army, I can eat just about anything.
If there is something I don’t like, I close off that part of me and swallow it because it’s what you have to do in order to get through the meal and on to the next thing that’s required.
” He sighed a little. “But I don’t think I’ve ever had anything as good as this.
” Cliff had to stop himself from rushing.
He was so used to eating in a hurry and then getting back to work that he had to keep himself from going into that mode.
This was the type of meal he wanted to savor, and that included his time with Dade.
After tonight, it wasn’t likely they would see each other again.
He’d gotten Dade out of the smoke-filled building, and Dade was thanking him.
It hardly mattered if he found Dade fascinating.
It seemed that Dade was not interested in seeing a guy in the military, and that was too bad, because Cliff would have liked to see more of Dade. Lots more.