It was a cold morning. The first big snowfall of the winter had hit hard two days before. Our neighborhood was buried under several inches of snow and I was not looking forward to school that morning. People were slow in shoveling their sidewalks, which made walking the road mandatory. The snowplow had cleared one lane which I shared with passing cars as I made my way up the hill to the bus stop. Garbage cans lining the side of the road were an ugly intrusion against the white landscape. It was garbage day.
As I reached the top of the hill, I caught sight of the garbage truck keeping to its weekly schedule. It let out a rude snort and stopped a few feet ahead of me. With great agility, a worker jumped off the truck and talked one of the cans. As I pass by, I heard a soft voice say,
“HI, Maryann.” I was taken by surprise to hear my name. Garbage men had spoken to me before, but this one knew my name. He stopped what he was doing and straightened up. He was tall and wore a green knit hat over his long honey brown colored hair. I looked up into his face, a face I knew well, and with much surprise I exclaimed,” Walter! What are you doing here?”
“My brother-in-law got me this job,” he said leaping onto the back of the truck with his long, lanky legs. I shouted after the truck as it headed down the road, “Don’t you go to high school?” But the truck moved too quickly for Walter to answer. Only the wave of his hand was visible as the truck made the bend at the end of the road. I turned and ran to the bus stop. I couldn’t wait to tell me friend Lucy hat I had seen Walter Dubbey, and of all the things, he was a garbage collector. I couldn’t get the sight of Walter out of my mind as I spouted the story to my friends. It was hard for me to imagine anyone my age not in school, but working. I felt sorry for Walter. I always liked him and sensed he was a good person. Walter had told me that his parents were deceased and that he lived with his older married sister, but without a mother or father, he didn’t get much encouragement to complete his education. I’m sure his sister took good care of him but she was young herself and needed guidance.
My curiosity got the better of me and I kept wondering what drove Walter to quit school. My thoughts went to practical matters as I considered how he could possibly make a decent living and support a family without an education.
Whenever the garbage truck came by, there was Walter gripping the back of the truck, jumping off and on again as the truck made its stops. We couldn’t talk since he was on the move. One day, I drew a smiley face and taped it to the garbage can with the message, “Have a nice day.”
“Anymore notes?” He shouted as the truck drove by the next time. He liked the attention so I wrote another note. This time I wrote, “What made you grow your hair so long?” I don’t recall if he ever answered my question but I do remember when the snow melted and the first blooms of spring came, Walter showed up at my front door. “Wanna go for a ride?” he asked.
“Where to?”
“Around the block,” he said smiling. I followed him as he led me down the walk and around the bend. There it was, parked alongside the curb idling---the garbage truck. I looked at Walter. Walter looked at me.
“Climb aboard,” he said extending a helping hand with a quick boost, I was standing in the rear.
“Hold on,” he told me and with his long legs leaped up on the opposite end. As he gave a signal to the driver, Walter shouted, “Hold on Maryann, we’re off!”
We whipped around the corner. People were waving at me from everywhere. I felt like I was flying. I looked to my left and saw Walter smiling at me. He waved his hand at the driver as he stepped down. Then he took my hand and helped me off.
“Where are we?” I questioned. He didn’t answer me, but when we reached the top of the hill it was the most beautiful sight I have seen in my short years.
“I come here when I need to think or bring the weirdest people.” Walter laughed sarcastically. I stayed silent and took in the view. After a few moments I said, “This is just amazing. How did you find this place?”
“One day I decided to get a job so I could pay my sister back and the first day we drove by and I knew it was just perfect.” An hour passed by feeling like seconds. Walter took me home and I learned a lot about him. He waved me a friendly goodbye as I watch the truck disappear down the dark and foggy road.
The next day I felt the warm rays of the sun hit my body as I’m lying in bed. I flip over my covers and walk to the kitchen, on the small table across the room sits my breakfast. As I sit down I feel the tablecloth rub smoothly against my thighs. My little brother is sitting across from me trying to kick me legs. Is name is Brent.
“How was your date with Walter last night Maryann?” my mother asked while taking a bite of her egg.
“Mom it was not a date! We are just really close friends.” I exclaimed.
“I know honey I’m just messing with you.”
“You better hurry up with your breakfast or you’re going to miss the beginning of the fair with Walter and Lucy,” my father told me putting his plate in the sink for me to clean later.
I finishing eating and run outside where Walter is waiting for me. We start walking to meet up with Lucy. I look down at my white shoes and I see Walter’s all torn and falling apart. I kick the biggest rock I found which was no bigger than a battery.
“You never told me why you dropped out of high school,” I said to him trying not to get him offended.
