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I’ve been his tenant for the past eight years At one tie He decided he needed a larger one to accoon and his pristine 1932 five- coupe, so he converted the original garage to a rental unit, which I’d moved into An unfortunate explosion had flattened ned the floor plan, adding a half-story above the kitchen On the ground floor I have a living roouests The kitchen is s room There’s also a bathroom and a combination washer-dryer tucked under the spiral stairs The whole of it resehly polished teak and oak, with a porthole in the front door and nautical blue captain’s chairs The new loft, in addition to a double bed, boasts built-in cubbyholes, as well as a second bathroom with a view that includes a sh the trees Henry had installed a Plexiglas skylight abovethe night

Between the studio and Henry’s house there’s a glassed-in passagehere he proofs batches of bread, using a Shaker cradle like an enor as a commercial baker, and he still can’t resist the satiny feel of newly kneaded dough

At 5:29 I grabbed stone patio, and tapped on the glass pane in Henry’s back door Most of the tireement is to respect each other’s privacy Unlesswithout per at the sink, filling it with hot water into which he was squeezing a long shot of liquid detergent He took three steps to the side to open the door and then returned to his task I could see nus of tarnished silverware on the counter with a roll of aluht-quart pan on the stove and the water had just reached a rolling boil On the bottom of the pan there was a crumpled section of foil I watched hi soda, after which he placed the silverware in the bubbling water with the foil

"Oh yum A pot of flatware soup"

He smiled "When I pulled the silver from the canteen, most of it was tarnished Watch this"

I peered into the boiling water and watched as the foil turned dark and the tarnish disappeared from all the forks, knives, and spoons "That doesn’t do any harm?"

"Some people think so, but anyti a thin layer of oxidation That’s a Towle pattern, by the way Cascade I inherited service for eighteen from a maiden aunt who died in 1933 The pattern’s discontinued, but if I haunt garage sales, I can sometimes find a piece"

"What’s the occasion?"

"Silver’s ht of it before It lends ain here" He poked the silverith a set of tongs, ed "I put an open bottle of Chardonnay in the refrigerator for you"

"Thanks Will you be having some with dinner?"

"As soon as I finish this"

He paused to take a s of the Black Jack over ice that constitutes his usual late-afternoon pick-lasses from the cupboard, and filled s to move the silver from the kettle to the sink of soapy water After a quick rinse, he laid the freshly polished silver on the waiting towel I took a second towel from the linen drawer and dried the pieces; I set places for two at the kitchen table, where Henry had laid out freshly ironed cloth napkins and mats

We postponed our conversation about the job until we’d each eaten two servings of beef stew Henry crumbled corn bread in his, but I preferred mine on the side with butter and homemade strawberry jam Am I in love with this man or what? When we finished our meal, Henry put the dishes and silverware in the sink and returned to the table

Once he was settled, I gave hiest condensed version of the story Michael Sutton had related to me I said, "Where have I heard the na to you?"

"Not offhand You knohat his father does for a living?"

"Not one He’s got two brothers and a sister, but they’re not on speaking terms He didn’t explain himself and I didn’t ask"