It was November 1987. My dad was ill and I hadn't been well myself. We were in the midst of a difficult time and we all knew it. Late in the afternoon Mother and I checked Daddy out of the hospital in Lewiston. It was dark but they wanted to go home. Mother would drive them back to Orofino as soon as we ran an errand. Daddy wanted to go to PayLess and buy a small heater for the bathroom. He just couldn't get warm enough.
So, I drove to PayLess and instructed my parents to stay in the car while I ran into the store. I found a small heater – an "Intermatic" in an odd '70's mustard gold. Seriously – it looked like it was leftover from the previous decade. But the price was right so I purchased it and gave it to Daddy as a gift. It was little enough to do for someone who was leaving us.
Not many days later he did leave us. Prominently placed in his desk I found the information sheet that came with the little heater on which he had written in his customary bold hand, "Kathy bought this heater. Give it to her." That little message said so much to me. It said that he knew he was going, even though none of us could speak of it. It said that he was thinking of something besides himself in the darkest moments of this life. He knew he wouldn't need the little heater, so I should have it. So, I took it home and used it to heat the bathroom for my showers during the winter months. Perhaps it was never so important to me as it was when we moved to this little modular home because the master bathroom is cold.
But it ended last night. With a loud twang – after 21 years of service – the fan in the little Intermatic heater gave out. I had just turned it on and was right there to unplug it. Today it's in the garbage can.
It's interesting how you can struggle with the things in your life – even the quality things like an HP laptop – and some little heater with an obscure brand name will last 21 years. KW
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