Dexter sat in the lawn chair listening to the birds chirping in the tree. He was taking a few minutes to relax, after the long drive to the national park, and the effort to set up the camper. There was still a lot to do before it got dark. If Will or Sarah had any experience camping, he would have tasked them to do some of it. At least sunset was several hours away.
Will and Sarah were seated next to him bored out of their minds. Neither had any clue concerning what to expect when camping. It had sounded adventurous, but the camper had kind of taken some of the adventure out of the whole deal. They had fetched and carried when Dexter told them to do something, but that was more like work than adventure.
"Let's get in the truck and get some firewood from the local store," Dexter said.
Will looked puzzled. Pointing to the woods, he asked, "Don't we get it out of the woods?"
"You can't do that. With so many people coming here, there wouldn't be any woods left near the camping areas if everyone grabbed their own," Dexter said.
"I guess that makes sense," Will said.
Sarah asked, "So we go to the store and buy it?"
"Yes," Dexter answered.
"Isn't this kind of like sitting out in the backyard?" Sarah asked.
"Do you see the trees around us?" Dexter asked.
"Yes."
"You don't have that in the backyard," Dexter said.
Will asked, "So?"
"Then there are the animals. We might see some deer," Dexter said.
"Deer?" Will asked.
"Sure. There are a lot of deer around here," Dexter said.
Sarah asked, "You mean, they've got tame deer here like at the petting zoo?"
"No. They are wild deer," Dexter said.
"Are they dangerous?" Sarah asked nervously.
"Not really," Dexter said. "They are wild animals, so you should leave them alone."
"Are there other wild animals around here?" Will asked.
Dexter said, "I'm sure there are. We can ask at the store."
"They have an information booth that would answer questions like that?" Sarah asked.
Dexter said, "No. There will be a friendly sale's clerk and we'll talk to him or her."
"You mean a clerk like at the convenience store," Will said.
"Sure," Dexter replied.
"They don't answer questions unless it is about the store," Will said.
"That's right," Sarah said.
Will fumbled with his cell phone, then shocked, he said, "There are no bars! I can't go to the web and look it up."
"That's okay. We'll talk to the clerk," Dexter said.
"They won't answer our questions," Will said.
"Let's go to the store," Dexter said getting out of his chair.
The trio returned to the campsite an hour later. The kids were bewildered by their experience at the store. It had only taken a few minutes to pick-up some firewood, a coffee for Dexter, and two soft drinks for the kids. They had spent forty-five minutes talking to people at the store about what to see in the area. It wasn't just the store clerk, but customers who stood around chatting with each other. No one seemed to be in any hurry to leave.
During the discussion, they had learned where to go see eagles, bears, and deer. They learned what fish were biting, and what lures were best for catching them. There had also been a couple of exchanges about good places to fish, with people pointing to various locations on the map. They found out where they could rent a boat, if they want to use one while they were there. They listened to an informal weather report, which was then commented upon a dozen times.
Most surprising to them was that they had nearly finished their soft drinks before Dexter even paid for them. They hadn't been required to bring the wood into the store to get rung up. All Dexter had to do was tell the guy how many bundles of wood he wanted. The clerk trusted Dexter to take the amount for which he had paid. It was all very casual.
The store, more than the campground, convinced the two teenagers that they were in a different world. At home, spending forty-five minutes at a store talking to folks, was unheard of. People didn't do that.
Upon arriving back at the campsite, the kids were further surprised when Dexter suggested that the three of them take a walk around the campground. The two teenagers approached the excursion like taking a hike. Dexter was much more relaxed.
They hadn't even gone past the trailer next to theirs when they were engaged in a conversation with the couple at the campsite. It was a nice little exchange in which they were informed that the camp hosts held a story night in which they told about the history of the campground.
The kids wondered if Dexter knew the people and then were shocked to learn that he had never seen them before. It seemed to them that they couldn't walk past more than three campsites without getting greeted. In one hour they had met more people in the campground than they knew in their own neighborhood. It was kind of shocking to them.
They hadn't been back at the campsite for more than ten minutes when four kids stopped by. They were invited to go down to see the lake. Both kids looked at their father wondering how they were supposed to respond. They were shocked again, when Dexter told them to have fun.
Dexter went about setting up the camp while the kids were out exploring. He got out the lantern, the grill for use on the fire pit, and set up the table for dinner. He started a fire in the fire pit, with the wood purchased at the store.
The kids returned from their explorations, exhausted. They had walked and run more than they had in years. The other kids seemed very willing to head off on some road, just to see what was down it. They had come across some other kids who were riding bicycles. None of the teenagers had parents hovering over them!
Dexter cooked up some steaks over some coals taken out of the fire. The kids had been surprised to learn that they weren't supposed to cook over the flames. The steak, beans, and canned peaches was the best meal the kids had ever eaten.
They were surprised to learn that dishes had to be washed by hand. Sarah wasn't sure that it was sanitary to wash them by hand. Will was skeptical that the dishes would actually get clean, without a machine to do the work.
After the dishes had been washed and dried, the trio headed towards the campsite of the camp's hosts. That involved stopping by a couple of campsites to exchange greetings with other campers. No one seemed worried about reaching the camp's hosts at a set time, but by the time they reached the campsite, they were one of a dozen people approaching it.
It turned out that one of the camp's hosts was the son of one of the men who had helped build the campground during the Great Depression. Pictures of the campground getting built were shown, using a projector on a portable screen. It was amazing to see people cutting down large trees with two man saws, and then hauling them away with mules. There wasn't a single picture of a bulldozer or any earth moving type of equipment.
They looked around at their surroundings with eyes that saw the world differently, now. It was as if the campground had been transformed from an everyday place, to something special. That building over there, had been made of logs that had been cut down in the woods, by hand. They had been trimmed and shaped by men, and lifted into place with muscle. The camp's host touched their imaginations, and made those days live!
After the presentation, they headed back to their campsite, talking about the stories the camp's host had told. It was a pleasant walk, with Dexter lighting their steps with a flashlight. The stars were out, but the moon hadn't risen yet so it was rather dark. Used to a world with streetlights, the kids were shocked by how dark it was.
Back at the camp, Dexter lit the lantern hanging it a good distance away from the chairs. It provided a nice light that allowed them to see without detracting from their ability to see the stars. There were a lot of stars in the sky.
After stirring the campfire back to life, Dexter sat back in his chair.
He asked, "What did you think of your first day here?"
"It was strange," Will said.
"In what way?"
Will said, "The people here ... they talk to each other."
Dexter said, "When I was kid, we would walk around the block a half an hour before sunset. Folks would be outside. We'd stop and exchange words with them. Sometimes, a couple of families would be sitting around drinking and talking about world events. It was like today, where people took that little extra moment to say hello.
"I think hello is one of the most important words in the English language. It is more important than please and thank you. You see, 'hello' says that I see you, and I acknowledge your existence.
"We all want to matter. We all want our existence to be recognized by others. We want to feel special. 'Hello' accomplishes that. Getting told several times a day by complete strangers that you exist, changes you. It gives you confidence in yourself. It helps establish trust with others. You say 'hello' and they say 'hello', then the world becomes a better place. I think we've forgotten that.
"In the city, you don't say hello to perfect strangers. Everyone is too busy to acknowledge that you exist. No, they attempt to establish their importance and value by what they do, by what they can buy, and by what they can make you do. They get their identity from their money and their jobs. It is a shallow form of recognition, because money and jobs come and go. You're always having to compete for attention and recognition. It is sad.
"You get out here, where there are wild beasts and open spaces, and you're reminded that people need people. A couple dozen people acknowledge your existence, and you don't feel the need to prove yourself at the expense of someone else. It changes the tempo of life. It changes the quality of life."
Will said, "I think I know what you mean. We spent all that time at the store, but it didn't seem like we were there for all that long."
"That's right," Dexter said. "People talked and others listened. Then other people talked and people listened. Questions were asked, and taken seriously. What animals can we see? Go up to the point in the early morning. You'll see a couple eagles. Then someone else points out that it is an impressive sight."
"Yeah," Sarah said.
"Tomorrow, we'll go up to the point, in the early morning. We should take our cameras so that you can show other people what you've seen," Dexter said.
"I can put it on my webpage," Will said.
Sarah said, "I kind of expected camping to be different."
"In what way?" Dexter asked.
"Hiking over a mountain or something," Sarah said.
Dexter said, "We'll probably walk along one of the trails, but not one of the long ones. We don't have the experience to tackle the hard ones."
"I am kind of tired from the walking we did today," Will admitted.
Dexter said, "Maybe we can rent a row boat one of these days, and spend a little time on the lake."
"Fishing?" Will asked.
"I'm sure we could do that. We'd have to do catch and release. I don't particularly feel like cleaning fish," Dexter said.
Sarah said, "That's good. I don't think I could eat something that I saw alive."
"A lot of people feel the same way," Dexter said.
The three of them sat around the campfire watching the flames. Dexter always felt that watching a campfire was somehow hardwired into people. A dog could curl up in front of a fire without looking at it. A person sat down and inevitably faced the flames.
Will asked, "Where do you work now?"
"I own a website," Dexter said.
"You're making money on it?" Will asked.
Dexter answered, "Yes."
"I've visited your website. I thought it was just a little hobby site," Will said.
"I'm making a bunch of money on it," Dexter said. "I'm doing better than when I worked at the old company. I'm a lot happier, too."
Will said, "I don't understand. Why is it such a big deal?"
Dexter asked, "Did you enjoy today?"
"Sure," Will answered thinking his father was avoiding his question.
"What did you enjoy about it?" Dexter asked.
"I don't know, exactly. I guess talking to people," Will said.
Sarah said, "I enjoyed the store and the story telling."
"How about exploring around the campgrounds with the other kids?" Dexter asked.
"Sure, that was fun," Will said. "That doesn't answer my question."
Dexter said, "The reason my website is such a big deal is that I'm trying to take what happened to you, here, and transplant it to the city. I want to get people back to a point where they 'work for a living', without having to 'live for work'. I want people to start greeting people, again. I want to change the pace of life from that frantic 'nothing can wait' pace, to where there is time for common courtesy.
"I'm not alone in wanting that. Others want it, as well. That's why I get so many visitors to the website. I think that is why it makes the news so often. It resonates with what people really desire in their lives.
"I'll admit that some people are brought to the website because they want to get back a little of their own from the companies that have been abusing them. In the process, I'm hoping those people learn enough about the other things in life, that they can make changes in how they treat others.
"Sometimes I see something that really impresses me. I write about it, because I think it would be nice if someone else does something like that. The 'independent full service' at that gas station was one of those things. Now, I find them, everywhere. I use them, and I tip those folks well, because that's the kind of world I want to live in.
"Now, some folks see that kind of work as being degrading. I don't. I don't think the people doing it see it as degrading, either. They are the ones choosing to do it. It is no different than being a waiter or a waitress. The ones who do it well, make great tips. Those who do a poor job don't last. Every customer is another judgment of their work. There's nothing wrong with that.
"I do see something wrong in replacing everyone with machines. I don't use ATMs. I like going into a bank, and dealing with a person. Does that make me a dinosaur? I don't think so. It means that I like people. I like talking to them. I like being talked to in return. I want to hear that magic word: 'hello'.
"My website tells people how to get back some of what we've lost. It's not big steps ... not major changes in lifestyle ... It's just little things that people can do to make their life better. I don't have all of the answers, but I do notice when someone has found an answer. That's what I put that on my website. I think that is why my website is such a big deal. It helps people."
Sarah said, "Well, you sure fucked up our family."
Dexter wobbled his head in half-hearted agreement.
He said, "I'm not going to take full blame for that, but I will take a little credit for trying to fix things."
"How are you going to fix things?" Will asked.
Sarah asked, "Are you going to remarry mother?"
Dexter said, "I'm going to take advantage of the fact that we are in a cell dead zone and you're kind of stuck having to talk with me, rather than play your computer game or text your friends. We'll go and do some things that you wouldn't get a chance to experience otherwise. I'll tell you a little about myself. I'll listen to you when you share something important about yourself. In the process, maybe we'll build the kind of relationship that we should have had all along.
"I don't know what is going to happen with your mother and I. There have been a lot of hurt feelings. We don't know each other anymore. Ignorance is not a basis for a marriage. If we do get back together, it will only happen after we date and learn more about each other. Will we date? I don't know. If we do date, will we fall in love? I don't know. I can't make any promises."
"That doesn't sound very good," Sarah said.
Dexter said, "Maybe, but it is not hopeless. At least we're talking, now."
"Mom really regrets what she did," Sarah said.
"I don't understand why she did it," Will said.
"She told you," Sarah said.
"I don't believe her," Will said as he tossed a small stick onto the fire, and watched it burn.
"Enough about that," Dexter said.
He looked over at the stick Will had tossed onto the fire. He wondered if there was a hidden metaphor there that he didn't see.
He said, "I don't quite understand that whole game thing. What is it that draws you into playing them so much of the time?"
Will said, "Well, it's like this..."
End Of Part 2
Edited By TeNderLoin