Cans on the Fence
Cans on the Fence
©2005 Elizabeth L. Clark
They were close, always together, playing, talking. The Texas sun had them nut brown from all their adventures on the huge farm their families worked. For the two of them it was a place of wonder and imagination. They were best friends, two little girls in a world of love, peace and simplicity. They had a tradition, every time they got a treat that came in a tin can, they would each take a nail and make a hole in the bottom of their can, then string it up on the fence that surrounded the land. They loved the sound of the cans hitting the fencing when the winds blew and they made up songs to go along with the sounds.
On each can they painted a wish and swore they would always be friends.
Time passed, one girl went off to college, working very hard to make her wishes come true. The other found herself caught in a world of drugs, parties and sex. They drifted apart, but never forgot each other. Years passed, the one, now a business woman and happily married mother-to-be got a package. Inside was a can, with a wish written on it. She raced home and told her husband she had a trip to make and hurriedly packed her bags.
She arrived at the run down apartment complex the next day, tired and worried. She knocked and a sullen woman answered; "It's about time. You owe me twenty for staying here with her."
She paid the woman and closed then locked the stained and peeling door. On the bed, the only furniture in the one room apartment lay her best friend, emaciated and dirty. She sat beside her, tears filling her eyes. In a halting voice, she was told the story, her friend leaving out nothing. They wept together and she made arrangements to get her friend out of the hell hole she was living in.
The hospital confirmed what they both suspected and told them she had only weeks left. She took her home, where her husband had made their spare bedroom ready, even getting help from his sister so that the room was light, airy and feminine. He knew how important this woman was to his wife and being the kind hearted man he was, he had no qualms about welcoming her into their home.
She made those weeks as beautiful as possible. They talked, laughed and cried. One day she helped her friend outside, and there in the back yard was a section of the fence, with rusted cans dangling from it. On a table were the cans from the kid's style pasta they had indulged in the night before. With tear filled eyes they sat down and strung the clean cans and wrote their wishes on them and swore to always be friends.
As they sat there watching the sunset, she leaned against her devoted friend and let out her last breath. It wasn't until after the funeral that she took the time to read what her friend had written on the can. When she did she clutched it to her breast and cried.
"I got all my wishes the day we became best friends, I'll be waiting for you at the fence."