Uh-huh

Growing up in Iowa, I would spend as much time at the VanderPols' farm as I could get away with. Gary was my best friend. His dad's name was Garrett. I can't remember his mom's name, but I can't forget her. She used crutches, and though her disability may have slowed her down, I can't remember it keeping her from doing much of anything. She fixed our meals, cleaned up after them (and us), and walked to and from the outhouse in all weather.

On their wall was a postcard of the Crystal Cathedral. This was before the Crystal Cathedral was built, but even then it was a very big church. They were proud of of this postcard since it had been sent by Mrs. VanderPol's brother, Robert, who was pastor there. Gary's brother was named after him. Once I figured out who Robert Schuller was, I wasn't too fond of him. His exceptional sister deserved more than a postcard.

But I was going to talk about Garrett. That's Mr. VanderPol to me. He was always in a kindly mood--at least when I was there. It may have been deference to the preacher's kid, but I suspect he was kind most of the time. The only time I felt disapproval from him was when I rode my bike the couple of miles to their place on a Sunday when my parents were gone. He knew when he asked me about it, rather sternly I thought, that I wouldn't have been there had my parents been home.

He worked hard keeping his rented 120 acres productive, and he may have had a sore back. Whatever the reason, when he took a smoke break, he didn't stand quite straight. His legs were bent at the knees, and he leaned back a bit like Dagwood Bumstead can. He would stand there rolling his Prince Albert tobacco in a cigarette paper, and there would come a pause in our discussion, such as it was. He would chuckle in that deep gravelly voice of his and say, "Ya, I don't know. Mm-hmm."

I don't know what in particular brought on his saying this, and it may have been that he only used it as a filler. But the older I get, the more I realize how much I don't know and the more wisdom I see in his observation. Ya, I don't know. Mm-hmm.