Infant Writer: "A Good Man."

“A Good Man”

Can you comfortably say of some one, he is a good man? Perhaps you don’t know of any man that would qualify to be called good. What traits or behaviors do you think are important for a man to be considered good? Remember, you’re not being asked to say he’s a “perfect man.” And yes I do think there is such a thing as a perfect man, but that’s a different blog. Perhaps the descriptor good is like beauty. Good is in the eye of the beholder.

Joseph, in my novel, Baggage burdens. is frequently called a good man. After the last blog where Joseph is shown to treasure Jill as the best thing he ever had, you might wonder how he could be seen as good. Yet several characters including Jill speak of Joseph as a good man.

As a result of their prolonged conversation, Mary hangs up the “closed” sign. Joseph catches the hint. With a wave to Mary, he turns to Jill and says, “Maybe next weekend you and I will go to Mirror Lake for a while.”

“I’ll think about it,” mouths Jill, as she leads him to the door. The bells above the door sing out and the shop closes for the day. Jill is surprised to see the place empty. Mary sets the teacups out for their usual day’s wrap up. Two large peanut butter and chocolate chip cookies centerpiece a small paper plate.

“So, if I didn’t know any better, I’d think Ben has a little competition. Yes, definitely a little competition.” Mary points to Joseph as he drives away.

“He’s just a nice guy. That’s all,” disclaims Jill with a wave of her hand. She nibbles at her cookie.

“Oh, come on. A strong well built man like that. From the size of his hands you can tell he’s a hard worker. He cares about himself. His long blond hair is always clean and combed. That’s a good sign. And you know, he owns a pretty good chunk land south-east of Camrose.”

“Okay, so he’s attractive, and he has land, but there’s nothing between us.”

“In your mind only,” counters Mary.

“Well tell me, how do those two fellows stack up, you know, Joseph and Ben?”

‘Is she’s trying to figure out if Ben’s in danger of losing me? Whose dilemma is this? Ben’s? Mary’s?’ Jill puzzles how to share her evaluation of the two boys without presenting any kind of commitment to either Ben or Joseph.

“Joseph’s ambitions drive him to long hours of work, whether it is with Thomas to earn money for his projects or simply to develop his acreage. That suggests he has little time for me. It also means I’d be free to do what I want. He’s shy and fairly sensitive. The location of his farm brings a feeling of isolation, of privacy, something he values.”

“Like you.”

Jill smiles. “Yes. But it would be nice if he lived closer to you or Ann.”

Mary nods.

Mary’s words when they drove from Edmonton after shopping for her wedding dress rescue Jill. “Joseph is a very good man.”

‘Mary’s right,’ she tells herself. ‘Joseph is a good man. He doesn’t drink any alcohol. He’s not like my father.’

Jill’s misdeed pounced upon her like it was released from a trap––you deserted Josey. She was only trying to help you. Before Jill could dismiss the accompanying guilt, Gertrude’s comments arrest Jill’s remaining anger. Poor Joseph. He tries so hard to please Jill. He’s such a good man. Her description of Joseph as a good man was the same as Mary’s. Jill’s anticipated challenge evaporates. Gertrude’s lament echoes again and again. Joseph is such a good man.

For the first time ever Eve sees tears in Daniel’s eyes. “It’s not fair. It not fair. Dad’s such a good man.” Looking at Eve he adds. “You know he said he’d drive me to school everyday so I wouldn’t have to take home schooling from my mother?”

“I know. You told me.”

“And now he’s broke. He’s broke because of that stupid house my mother wants. He has to borrow money.”

“It’s only a temporary thing. And it’s good that he has people like Thomas who are willing to help. That’s just like what your father does for people he builds things for. He doesn’t insist on being paid right away. Maybe it’s good that sometimes your father is on the receiving end. It shows you that people love him too.”

From Joseph’s many traits and behaviors one might think that he is indeed a good man. However, Ben had a number of attractive traits too. Who had the most desirable qualities? Number isn’t a critical factor in deciding who was a good man. To Jill or anyone, one particular trait may have a very high value, so high that over rides all the other qualities. For Jill Joseph’s outstanding trait was he didn’t drink, even socially. This quality received such a high value because of Jill’s many painful experiences from her alcoholic father. She feared making the same mistake that her mother made ––marrying a social drinker who later became dependent on alcohol and hit family members. While Mary and others had different reasons for seeing Joseph as a good man, Jill’s was more important than all theirs combined.