2 days ago
How moving back to my old house came as a surprise
One day over a year later, I gathered the boys and our swimming gear into the car. The summer weather was warm and we had planned a drive to see friends at a lake in New Hampshire.
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I pulled into the gas station and someone motioned from the other side of the pump. I waved back and realized it was the fellow who'd bought our house five years earlier. I didn't want to be rude, so I went to say hello. He had impressed the boys by sending back their Legos he'd found in the backyard grass.
David was quiet but friendly and asked how I was. His grayish beard was trimmed and his blue eyes were a little tired behind glasses. He surprised me by saying that he and his wife had divorced.
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'I'm sorry to hear that,' I said. I wondered whether to tell him about us — it seemed false not to mention it. 'Actually … we did, too. We're still friendly and do a lot with the kids.' He looked genuinely sad that this had happened to me.
Summertime was relaxed and I thought again of David, who I knew was kind; we both needed kindness at that point. I called and left a message about coffee sometime. He was traveling for work but phoned later to arrange dinner. We didn't know much about each other, so there was plenty to discover. He was smart and funny and decidedly easy to be with.
After several dinners, and more anticipation each time, our friendship grew. But I'd forgotten that friendship is a strong foundation for love. When we kissed for the first time, I realized how underrated kissing can be.
I reintroduced the boys and they liked him. We celebrated the holidays together and felt comfortable. The kids thought it was funny that David owned our old house. He gave them a tour and they remembered the yard and rooms. The four of us bonded over campfire suppers and bowling nights. After they finished middle school, the boys and I made plans to move back to the old house since their high school was nearby and they could still have weeks with their dad.
I packed everything up again and moved back to the hilltop. One wise neighbor was not so surprised and thought us very well suited. On the 10-year anniversary of our meeting, David and I took a bottle of champagne to the gas station. Under the dark night sky, we made a sparkling toast to that lucky summer day.
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I've come back full circle to the house where I brought my babies home from the hospital. The boys were our photographer and musician when we married in the living room with our families before us. It was a perfect day in May. I still love the view from the hill and Mount Wachusett in the distance, even with this long, steep driveway I thought I'd left behind. It's so beautiful, even in the snow.
June Field Cloutier is a writer in Groton. Send comments to magazine@ TELL YOUR STORY. Email your 650-word unpublished essay on a relationship to connections@ Please note: We do not respond to submissions we won't pursue.
