Time Again

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to heaven, we were all going direct the other way - in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.
Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two CitiesEnglish novelist (1812 - 1870"

Gloria asked if we were getting a reduction in rent for all our hard work.
We aren't.
But....
In January, Mary Anne called to say that she would be sending us a letter shortly to notify us of our rent change.
Here we go, I thought, four years of having an incredibly low rent and now with more vacancies they are going to raise our rent.
Nope.
Mary Anne and Anwar in their belief that they had prospered over the last couple of years and continue to prosper financially wanted to extend their own economic stimulus to those who might not have experienced the same. Who has ever heard of a landlord lowering every one's rent by $100?
Last year, their handyman of 10+ years died of lung cancer. He could do anything, fix small engines...big engines, repair plumbing, paint, cut down trees, and he was company for Anwar. The memorial service was held on Anwar and MaryAnne's front yard facing the river underneath their glorious oaks. MaryAnne arranged for a retired Episcopal minister to say a few words, and Anwar stood beside us and made his quirky observations.
I started praying that God would bring another handyman to assist them and after several months they asked Josh if he could help them out in his free time. That wasn't what I was thinking but it would appear that God had something else in mind. Doesn't He always?

Yesterday, John-Thomas spent the better part of his day doing yard work for MaryAnne. At 13 years old he should be ready for a job but I must admit that he isn't really motivated. Mary Anne has graciously offered to train him in the diligence and the rhythm of regular work. He has not taken it to be so gracious but with the offer that he may spend a sizable chunk of his earnings on an outdated electronic game he is now motivated to go to their house more regularly.

So you see, I work for free...not really free, because as I said, she does feed us wonderful lunches and is so hospitable to me whenever I stop by....offering plants to me, potting soil, fertilizer, persimmons, pink grapefruits and books. Did I mention she loves to read? One time I was there and she brought out her treasured copy of The Federalist Papers and suggested John-Thomas read it. I am proud to say that he did indeed read it and was able to relate a minutia of information he gleaned. Good for him because I don't think I could.
So time and time again they have been much more than landlords and more like good neighbors or even yet...friends, like I mentioned in my last post.

Pictures compliments of my darling husband Josh.