My Mysterious Uncle Bernard

My Mysterious Uncle Bernard


I didn't see much of my Uncle Bernard while I was little, as he was always busy. He was a tall man and stood approximately six feet. He had straight dark brown hair.

After he retired from being an agricultural agent, he came to live with my grandmother on the farm. It was there at the farm, where I spent my summers that I began to know him. He would spend a lot of time in his bedroom, as he would rest a lot. He was a quiet man. I never did know if he ever had any girlfriends, as he never married. I think that he felt self conscious as he had developed polio as a child. One leg was shorter than the other and shriveled in size.

What I remember most about Uncle Bernard are the times we spent in his boat fishing on the lake. I was always bundled up as we were out very early in the morning, and it was chilly on the lake. Grandma was with us and we had to sit very still and wait for the fish to bite. My uncle would say that the fish could hear, and we had to be very quiet.

When I was a teenager, my uncle would tell me that he had gone golfing with some of his friends. I would always give him golf balls for Christmas. What else would you give an uncle who had everything?

When I became an adult, my uncle told me that he would go and swim at the local swimming pool to help strengthen his leg that was damaged by polio. My uncle is not an outspoken man. He listens and gives advice when asked. At other times he just kept to himself. He spends a lot of time outdoors and has a dark tan every summer. He loves to build bird houses. I remember helping him build them and hang them up on the posts in the fields. We would always wait for the birds to come and see if they would like our houses. I remember being disappointed when they would not come right away. My uncle said it would take a long time for the birds to adopt the houses that we had built.

Uncle Bernard would chop the old trees down that were around the farm and replant new ones. He loved and still does love nature. I am guessing that he is now in his early seventies. Ten years ago, he learned that he had developed late onset diabetes.

I still write Uncle Bernard letters although not as often as I should. The letters that he writes to me still have the strong smooth writing.

Now that I think back on it, as I write this, I don't really know Uncle Bernard. he will always be a mystery to me. Will I ever know the man I know as my uncle?

NOTE: At the time of this writing my uncle was still alive. This story, as well as "Between Two Countries", is dedicated to him, as he passed away on January 11, 2008, at the age of 82. Our family will dearly miss him.