on it and I come home on that last day and I ain ’ t never goin back ain ’ t never gonna let him talk me into nothin again and I ’ m all smellin of tar and my wife she cries and cries and I says to her not to worry no more I ’ ll be home all the time and me I ’ m cryin a little too though she don ’ t notice just thinkin how she ’ s had it so lonely and hard and all and for one whole day I just sleep the whole damn day and the rest of the week I work around the farm and one day I get an idea and I go over to my brother ’ s place and get some pieces of wood left over and whaddaya know? they are all livin on that damn boat there in the middle of nowhere him and his boys and some women and my brother ’ s wife she ’ s there too but she ’ s madder than hell and carpin at him to get outa that damn boat and come home and he says she ’ s got just one more day and then he ’ s gonna drug her on the boat but he don ’ t say it like a threat or nothin more like a fact a plain fact tomorrow he ’ s gonna drug her on the boat well I ain ’ t one to get mixed up in domestic quarrels God knows so I grab up the wood and beat it back to my farm and that evenin I make a little cradle a kind a fancy one with little animal figures cut in it and polished down and after supper I give it to my wife as a surprise and she cries and cries and holds me tight and says don ’ t never go away again and stay close by her and all and I feel so damn good and warm about it all and glad the boat thing is over and we get out a little wine and we decide the baby ’ s name is gonna be either Nathaniel or Anna and so we drink an extra cup to Nathaniel ’ s health and we laugh and we sigh and drink one to Anna and my wife she gently fingers the little animal figures and says they ’ re beautiful and really they ain ’ t I ain ’ t much good at that sorta thing but I know what she means and then she says “ where did you get the wood? ” and I says “ it ’ s left over from the boat ” and she don ’ t say nothin for a moment and then she says “ you been over there again today? ” and I says “ yes just to get the wood ” and she says “ what ’ s he doin now he ’ s got the boat done? ” and I says “ funny thing they ’ re all living in the damn thing all except the old lady she ’ s over there hollerin at him how he ’ s gettin senile and where does he think he ’ s sailin to and how if he ain ’ t afraid of runnin into a octypuss on the way he oughta get back home and him sayin she ’ s a nut there ain ’ t no water and her sayin that ’ s what she ’ s been tellin him for six months ” and my wife she laughs and it ’ s the happiest laugh I ’ ve heard from her in half a year and I laugh and we both have another cup-of wine and my wife she says “ so he ’ s just livin on that big thing all by hisself? ” and I says “ no he ’ s got his boys on there and some young women who are maybe wives of the boys or somethin I don ’ t know I ain ’ t never seen them before and all kinda damn animals and birds and things I ain ’ t never seen the likes ” and my wife she says “ animals? what animals? ” and I says “ oh all kinds I don ’ t know a whole damn menagerie all clutterin and stinkin up the boat God what a mess ” and my wife laughs again and she ’ s a little silly with the wine and she says “ I bet he ain ’ t got no pigs ” and “ oh yes I seen them ” I says and we laugh thinkin about pigs rootin around in that big tub and she says “ I bet he ain ’ t got no jackdaws ” and I says “ yes I seen a couple o£ them too or mostly I heard them you couldn ’ t hardly hear nothin else ” and we laugh again thinkin about them crows and his old lady and the pigs and all and my wife she says “ I know what he ain ’ t got I bet he ain ’ t got no lice ” and we both laugh like crazy and when I can I says “ oh yes he does less he ’ s took a bath ” and we both laugh til!
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