BRO

Through the years people leave a lot of stuff here at Mile 14. Wet raingear, broken tackle, old coolers, just mostly junk. But the other day right there on that seat where I wait for my fishing friends every morning was the darndest thing, a book called 'Bro'. And, it wasn't left there by accident either, its part of a book out reach kind of like a literary geo cache thing called Book Crossing.  Well as I don't believe in co-incidence and I'm always looking for bigger meaning I just had to read it.

Its about a nine year old kid named Tugwell Dockery who's learned more and seen more in his years than most 50 year olds. When he's quite small his parents were hit by a train while drunk and killed. He then went to live with his grandparents on a poor cattle ranch in Florida. As he was playing one day he noticed his grandma lyeing unresponsive, she had been tromped by a high strung horse and his grandpa Branch is so saddened that in a fit of anger he kills the horse with a knife right in front of Tugwell....And Tugwell has not spoken a word since. But his brother who is 9 years older, Broda Joe is Tugs voice and inspiration. Tugs life is hard and he hates, even loathes Branch. But Broda Joe brings him around slowly but surely even though more pain is to come....its what Tug calls 'heart sore'. Theres a scene where Branch gives Tug a gift of a pencil with an eraser. He tells him that the written is so easy to erase and that he wishes it were so easy for other things....Well the book is about continuation and forgiveness, its about the faults in life in a really condensed form and it got me to thinking...

Forgiveness is something I've never been good at. Maybe its the Irish in me. I'm a varsity level grudge holder. I'm a guy who actually ruminated over going to my 40th high school reunion and smacking the class bully. Years ago my friend Don Frazier who was a Teamster Union big wig told me I'd had the perfect teamster attitude....you reward your friends and punish your enemies. Well, I'm tired of being that way, it takes time and energy and when you you're 58 years old why waste either. On the scale of problems this isn't a big one but you know the first step in problem solving is to admit the problem. I'm there. Thanks for the bump Tugwell Dockery.

So manana I'm going to find a cool place to let the book 'Bro' go, catch and release. I went to the net and the book came from 'ghir' in Hawaii and Slowdotna was its first stop. This deal ultra-grande-cosmicly cool so if you want to get with the program go to http://www.bookcrossing.com/ .