The Hearns 'n Jones Is

January 04, 2010

One of the places I’ve lived was just up a little but kind of a steep hill which overlooked a 90degree curve on a two way street that at the time ran right through the tiny burgh and on its way to points east and west. While I lived there they began a faster connection that passed the town altogether completed after I left. Not good for town businesses but that’s always the way of progress. Until that happened the walk was two short blocks down and two long blocks to the left before reaching the middle of Main Street.

It was a very busy and loud thoroughfare both weighs two times a day until the bypass was completed. It was also a very dangerously narrow one. Many vehicles’ driver’s sighed mere roars were gone to the weigh of the scrap heap because of it; only to have more than won can count Bigger rigors continue on their way to the up most importance.

It was basically a semi-unfriendly avenue hill that more times than knot, even with signs quite visible explaining other why’s of course, the larger than the street could bare buses. The worse part was that trucks of all kinds would back off their engines in long sounds like a train with four locomotives was passing threw at ten miles per our. Needless to say, it wasn’t conducive in competing with a hushed tones neighborhood. Even the local squirrels jumped back into their tree pouches from this continual machine gun engine effect; most likely from something their parents explained to them from babyhood on about hunter’s fright.

Wasn’t long ago while living in this little Northern California and one of those little panning gold towns that I met the next door neighbors. They were a family of seven with the oldest child, a boy about 14 years old at the time and the youngest about 7 years old also a boy. In between were two other boys and a girl who was the second oldest and whose name everyone shortened to call her Sam. She wasn’t really a tom-boy per se but she was definitely tough enough so that her brothers treated her with respect as being a girl who could stand her ground and be just as competitive wild doing any kind of sports. She is beautiful too. Hi Sam!

Quite an impressive family they were. The dad, a tall lanky, salt and pepper hair guy was more than friendly to everyone he met; stern but loving with the children and a genius of a mechanic besides; at least, ”on vehicles that didn’t have too much electronics in their system,” he’d always say. He was also great with huge highway or farm machinery of any kind including those with more hydraulics and wires then you’d see at the phone company.

The bigger the engine the more he loved to get his hands on it. Naturally a guy like this has more than four or five vehicles in this unregistered possession, sometimes more and usually only one works; most times so that he or the rest of the family can have at least one in which to ride with him or he alone in order to get parts for whatever he was working on at the time. Kathy, the mother had her own vehicle that she depended on for work so that was kept in the best shape at all times; not to mention food, soccer, church, track meets or practices of any kind.

Kathy, dad’s then not yet married to live in girlfriend was a medical person. They
eventually both decided to marry each other a few years later and whose wedding reception I attended held at ‘The Boy Scout Camp That Wasn’t.’ Thereby making them an official and legal husband and wife team. Kathy wasn’t a doctor really but she is certainly certified or/and registered with the county. She is a person with more than enough education and knowledge to be hired privately to give medications of all sorts of things including those one would need to survive a myriad of ailments one would get from early childhood to a ripe old age of 100 or more depending if she could catch you with her needles. She usually did.

Besides being a medical person, Kathy was raised on a farm so she also knows a great deal about farm animals as well as growing things; I can be her witness when anyone will question in court, why she has two green thumbs; all of which she proves everyday either before she leaves to take care of other people or after she returns home to hang with her husband; which isn’t very often. Most times she’ll be driving back and forth to all sorts of kid’s activities as well as doing or being the general of daily house chores. The woman is a dynamo with a warm heart who knows how to do most anything when it comes to raising children.

A large part of her job’s were sleep over’s; sometimes when closer to home and work, she’ll do this two, three or even at four day increments in order to have a flexible enough schedule to also be a reliable and loving mom. Anyone would quickly realise that both parents were awesome when it came to parenting because it was reflected in a big way by how one would perceive their children. Great kids they were and still are. It’s been about seven years since first meeting them. The only changes I’ve seen are that they’re older, taller and much wiser.

Early on the family and I shared the same fence. Shortly after meeting them I began to play uncle or another guy in any number of games we used to play together. I can also take credit for presenting the rules, regulations and boundaries before, during and after we were too tired to play another game of stick ball or stair ball; both of which I think were invented by somebody who lived on the streets of New York City; mmy original home town. “What? You’ve NEVER played stair ball?” I remember asking them when they were bored one day during a weekend summer visit.

Needless to say I loved the kids and still do. We’ll all talk on the phone every now and then when I call their parents in order to catch up on what their family is up to. The following poem was composed while sitting in mmy vehicle one warm summer night. I was parked in their circular, graveled driveway under one of the huge trees on their property which granted plenty of shade next to the roof of that particular house where they used to live; the one before the one they’re in now.

It was a five acre estate near another small town. They had a few tame and docile horses, more eggs from chickens than you can shake a feather rat, a great and not so small of a dog who slept in the parents room and traveled wherever they moved; of course there were the usual family, family of cats, gerbils, parrots in two separate cages, the continually enhanced rabbit brigade, a visiting skunk or two, possums, raccoons, squirrels all over the place and once in a while an unwelcome snake that the kids would find roaming around somewhere and bring it home to mother. The dad skinned a few and either made belts with them or hung them up for display. This was also the place where the dad had the fewest vehicles I’ve ever known any maniac mechanic not to have.

They moved to this place a short time after I moved about an hour away. I visited many weekends mostly to get relief from big city life. Unfortunately due to the under a year old landlord selling the place they moved one last time. This time the day has a great job. They live outside of what no one would really consider any town at all except for the combined grocery, bar/restaurant, and a few houses close by neighborhood.

A mile away is a two story house they lucked into because of a church friendship. The house which really wasn’t was converted from what used to be an office complex. Including huge machinery that the dad can work on in a humongous garage/pole barn with a cement floor. Both sit right next door and within hear ring diss tints of a huge, getting ready to be online, bio-mass fed electrical producing facility. I was still living on an 85 acre property and visited them there as well. A little heard of cattle hung close by, a big enough lake to have row boat fun, and lots of acreage for everyone to get lost or do plenty of kid things without mom or dad being able to watch one’s every move.

It’s great to recall all their energy, smiles, and greetings as I approached any or all of their houses. Dinner was also wonderful washed hands everywhere and on everything time. Most times arriving on a late Friday afternoon when all they wanted to do was play it wasn’t easy but it was always fun with any one or the entire family wild keeping up with:

The Hearns ‘n Jones is

Adrian, Samantha,
Chris, Jacob ‘n Josh
Count down, all five of ‘em
Week end’s family wash!

Michael Jones - dad ‘n
Kathy Hearn’s mom
Parent’s of the clan
Spend in a weekend with fun on

Drive in from big town hell bent,
‘Bout an hour from M-K’s plays.
Passed din - suburb’s city scent,
Flight planned, ran, rush bye fray’s.

Evade see meant talk’s burr sting fast
Traffic’s herd ill’s stag ‘n ants massed.
Malls ‘n walled, stalled engine’s crunch
Up to roost, stir J ‘n H bunch.

Arrive at gate’s knoll get out - in.
Greened cut’s smell - horse wags, tales spin.
Rooster’s marched cocks a doodles raze dust;
Feed ‘em, lead one’s screech - soar plus.

Aye, peek eggs - tolled - can’t touch a new.
Rest of crest did hens, coddle too
Look a round ‘fore stick ball mates.
Bat’s at ready, gloves crew waits.

Si, they’re smilin’ face is burst,
Glad tag’s, wild run’s too the bench.
“Wanna play stick ball, MMick?” Jake’s verse
Josh smiles, turns the ‘betcha, bud’ wrench.

“Course aye do pals, who’s at bat?”
“Lemme first!” fires Jake ‘fore most crack.
“Watch it now they’ll knot be slow.”
MMick’s first pitch, Jake takes - fly’s blow.

“Geeze! ‘at’s great Jake! Watch ‘er float!”
Jake’s all smiles; “Hit’s far!” - Hearts bloat!
“Come on slick, just one more pitch,
Due win good, ain’t aye amm, MMick?”

Next is Josh, won little tyke’s big.
Hits ‘em hard, balls croak, bat’s twig.
Then their’s Cris crisp swing pitch lopes
Get’s ready- bat’s flexed, high, ball’s toast.

Sam’s cool pitch in, there’s no doubt
Pro swing’s, smashed hits, “Phew!” oui tout.
Adrian’s the man ‘n works hard to
When throw wins strikes, he’ll fast, bye you.

Ball’s in, fall aisle’s play - this team
Best of Michael’s - Kathy’s lights beam.
Y’all never find a better than, brood
Bright, cares, smiles, in joy rides - true.

Michael ‘n Kathy’s nature, nurture plans.
Mom’s ‘n dad’s ain’t better at get it.
Mechanical genie us Michael’s twice ‘The man.’
Clever Kathy, mom’s magic - Medic.

Kin’s guide their clan from dawn to dusk
All hop in, through won, the beat.
They’re ray’s, “There, good,” rewards ‘n trust.
Mr. Skinner’s walk moves their feat.

Praise the Hearn’s ‘n Jones is;
What a pleasure - treat.