Mr. Bill

 It has been several years since Mr. Bill moved to Florida, yet we all continue to miss him dearly. Countless times I have caught myself heading over to his house, eager for a reprieve from the chaos of my boys and a friendly ear. Whenever anything breaks, or when we have exciting news, we all fight the urge to walk across the street to talk with Mr. Bill.

Although I miss him throughout the year, his absence is more profound during the holidays. For years he helped me play Santa, stashing all of our gifts in his closet and assembling the toys before they were gifted. I miss sneaking over to his house at night to wrap the gifts. He would tell stories, drink eggnog and sing Greek songs while I wrestled with wrapping paper, tape and the stress of the season. Towards the end of the evening, as his eggnog began to kick in, his singing would become louder and my holiday stress would melt away.

Yesterday was the day I designated to wrap Christmas presents. As Scott and I were figuring out ways for him to distract the boys during a pandemic, my thoughts were drifting back to Mr. Bill. I looked out the window and saw a silver truck coming down our driveway. At this time of year, it is not unusual for deliveries to arrive in personal vehicles so I didn't think much of it. But there was something about the way that the truck turned into our driveway that felt familiar. Before the driver even turned off the truck I was running out the door.

Mr. Bill came to visit! His daughter was married over the weekend so he drove up from Florida for her wedding. To say that we were happy to see him would be an understatement. In such a dark and difficult year, his surprise visit was a highlight.

Robby came running out to the living room when he heard Mr. Bill's familiar booming voice. Despite having two heart attacks during the past year, he looked fantastic. His visit was brief but we were all delighted to spend a little time together. My goodness how we miss having him as our neighbor!