Floyd and I lived side by side on 47th Street in Des Moines, Iowa, he in his house and I in mine, for four or five years. He had a 20-year head start on me and has surely moved on to better things by now. Yes, he was elderly when I knew him, and therefore had much to offer as a good friend and neighbor. When we are in our teens and 20s, we think we know it all, but when we are in our 70s and 80s, we actually do know it all, and many of us have learned how to be civil to one another.
Floyd was a gardener, tinker, carpenter, short distance runner, house painter, engineer, economist and philosopher, writes Orrin Frink of his former Des Moines, Iowa, neighbor. Rich Abrahamson file/Morning Sentinel
Floyd was officially retired, but what he retired to, was a full life around his house and home. He was gardener, tinker, carpenter, short distance runner, house painter, engineer, economist, philosopher and was willing to share all of his knowledge with anyone would stand still long enough to hear it.
Nowadays everyone seems in such a hurry to get somewhere, do this, buy that and fill out all the forms before listening to what we have to say to one another, and that doesn’t leave much time for learning what there is to be learned. Wisdom doesn’t chase you down and attack you, saying, “Please, please let me in!” You have to earn it, and that takes some time and patience.
Floyd’s house was a one-story, wood frame bungalow with a little garden under each window, and not large, at that, not the gardens of Versailles, but still, a garden with pretty flowers is always a joy at any size. Floyd was always ready to show me the latest additions to his gardens and point out the “volunteers” that had managed to overcome and survive the harsh Iowa winters, step forth, salute you and say, “Yes, sir, let’s do that again.”
Floyd was a short distance runner, limiting his race, which was not against time, nor another contestant, but against himself, to once around his city block, and at a pace, such that he could survive. Dressed in long legged athletic pants, sweatshirt, a baseball cap and wearing pretty fancy looking trainers on his feet, holding his fists up in front of his face and making the boxer’s jabbing motions, his feet moved to the rhythm of left foot, two, three, right foot, two, three, left foot, two, three.
When you get to the finish line, you’ve won, and it doesn’t matter how long it takes. Running your body around the block is just like taking care of an old car – you run it around the block once a day, so the oil doesn’t turn into glue and grow mold in the gas tank. It’s preventive maintenance.
Floyd painted the outside of his house every spring, but just one side. That is, he painted the north-facing side one year, and the east-facing side the next year, the south-facing side in the third year, saving the west side for last. And then back to the first side in spring of the fifth year, thus starting an easily managed cycle again and ensuring a pretty fresh look for the house and something an older man could manage without breaking the bank or a blood vessel and without having to hire a team of strange people from the passing circus.
About politics, Floyd said, “It isn’t politics, but civility we should be worried about. Be yourself, but be nice about it! Sometimes it takes “tough” to get a thing done, but you can be nice about it. You can always be civil.
Orrin Frink is a Kennebunkport resident. He can be reached at ofrink@gmail.com.
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