I share three stories and three sentences from Alvin's life.
Three stories, about brothers, about children, and about friends.
Alvin, 73 years old, handicapped and dazzled, drives a lawnmower from Iowa to Wisconsin to meet his brother who has had a stroke, 10 years before they have been isolated for reasons long erased by time year. This is the first story.
Alvin was a front-line sniper in World War II. When he was ambushing on the front line, Alvin sniped a figure wandering in the woods. The next day, the comrades found that the intelligence officer in the company, Kotx, who was also Alvin's friend, was shot in the head and died in the woods. Everyone thought that it was the Germans. Only Alvin knew it wasn't. This is the second story.
Alvin's daughter has a mild mental retardation. She has four children. Once she entrusted the children to someone else's care, the house caught fire and her second son suffered serious burns. The state government believed that she was unable to support the children, so they were forcibly taken away. This is the third story.
Three sentences, excerpted from
Alvin straight: The worst part of being old is remembering when you was young
Alvin straight: A brother's a brother.
Lyle straight: (He saw the lawnmower) Did you ride that thing all the way over here to see me.
Alvin straight: I did, Lyle .
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