Episode 21: An old man standing at the altar can't remember the name of his soon-to-be wife. A classic tale of a second marriage taking place in a retirement community, rife with unhappy children worried about their inheritance and old friends who have excessive amounts of hair growing out of their ears.
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At this wedding it wasn’t his in-laws he had to worry about but rather his children. The oldest daughter who had sat in Edith’s stomach for his first wedding now sat in the front pew. Joseph couldn’t see her face. For that he was grateful for his lack of glasses. He knew his daughter and other children were not showing simple expressions of good will. Understandable, Joseph thought. No one wanted to see their father remarry. Even nine years after their mom died. Nine years? Joseph thought. Damn, Edith, you’ve been gone for almost a decade.
His chest ached.
He couldn’t be sure what percentage of his children’s concern was emotional and what was financial. He supposed in the end it didn’t much matter. He’d already set some money aside for them. And they were grown ups. Nobody had set anything aside for him. They should be grateful they were getting anything. But he tried not to say that too much or he ended up sounding grumpy. He often sounded grumpy when his kids asked him about money. Money money money, Joseph thought. I wonder if they’d be here if I was flat broke. Maybe not. Who knows. I wouldn’t have gone to my father’s second wedding even if that bastard had had quarters popping out his ears, you can be sure of that. But maybe that’s just because I’m financially irresponsible.
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If you enjoy westerns like True Grit or The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, check out Tim’s western novel, Dust, available on Amazon in eBook form in addition to being read on the podcast.
For other resources, visit timdrugan.com.