Dorthy

On a Thursday night in the middle of my crib game with my wife, Cheryl, I went to my computer, & looked up the poem, “The Cremation of Sam McGee”, and printed it.

(I intended to start memorizing it the next day on my shift)

I folded it neatly and put it in my briefcase, then returned to my crib game.

The next day, on one of my last trips to Steveston Village as a “407 Gilbert” a little old lady of my Mum’s height and weight, got on my bus. She looked to be about 80’s or so.

I was bored in a happy kind of playful way. She’d been waiting at the bus stop in the cool wind a bit too long and was shivering. The idea came to me that she and I could have a chat, since we were all alone as we drove along.

I picked my favourite topic, “What books have you read?”

“none for a long time” she said… “but I use to read a lot, but I can’t remember any of them, but I can remember a poem.”

“like what?” I said

“The Cremation of Sam McGee” she says,

Well! That was very exciting to me!

I pulled over, got out my briefcase, and handed her the folded paper, she looked at it, and instead of being amazed like me, she immediately read it out loud, with beautiful expression, she knew it well!

“My father”, she told me, “used to read it to me all the time.”

“What’s your name,” I asked, “Dorthy” she says,

“Do you know what your name means?”

“Yes,” she says,

“A gift” I said,

“A gift from God” she corrected, and then added “But i don’t think so”

“Well you’re a gift to me today, Dorthy” and I bid her goodbye “until we meet again…” I haven’t see her since, I Hope she is at Peace wherever she is. Before she went on her way she gave me another poem by the same fellow, My Madonna

That was in the spring of 2018, shortly after my Mum had passed away.