In the space of one afternoon, they went from names on a check to friends. They were very kind, decent people. Dawe promised to come back. Once, maybe twice, every year. We talked about the hospital, other things.
Elderly people tend to get lonely, especially when there are no children around.
Johnson no longer worked the apple orchard on the farm but leased out the 50 acres. He also had worked for the Post Office for a while. Mildred grew up on the farm across the way. They had few extravagances, aside from the theater. They'd often take the train to New York City, or drive to Toronto, for the theater.