Arcana
By Athena-Luna
"Steven's Intro"
When he was just three Basil joined our family. More like he was thrust upon our family. But we welcomed him. Back then there were only four of us, Mom, Dad, Angie and I, and we had room in our hearts and our home for one more. Now that we are twelve in number and may not be able to fit another body in this house, I still think we would give that three-year-old orphan a home. Even knowing what we do. Perhaps we’re fools, but I choose to believe we’re optimistic, and that people deserve second chances, and third and fourth chances, if necessary.
Fools, the lot of us.
“At least we’ve got each other,” as Dad would say when one of us share our opinion of his and mom’s sanity, or lack thereof.
Basil’s mother had brought him home to the Old Country after conceiving and giving birth to him here in Fremont. She was a cousin of old Corinna Stein, who was fond of traveling back to the homeland of her grandfather.
On returning from a summer-long visit Corinna brought home a second or third cousin named Basia, who planned to stay with the Steins for a year while learning English and going to school. Basia’s family was large and had little money, but the Steins welcomed the distant relatives with which Corinna often returned.
All I knew of Basia before I was six was the occasional mention of her by Corinna Stein, usually followed by a remark from her son, Frank, in a language I didn’t understand. Amelia would then touch her husband’s arm and the subject would be changed.
Just after my sixth birthday and before my sister Angie turned three, my parents sat me down and explained that Basil would be coming to live with us. They said his mother, Basia was a relative of the Stein’s and that she had died suddenly, leaving no one available to care for her son. The Stein’s had a new baby of their own and didn’t feel it was fair to poor Basil to bring him into a family where the focus would most likely be on the newborn.
Right. All you have to do is start a story with the phrase, “You see, Hannah, there’s this poor little orphan,” and my mother would have the adoption papers signed and notarized before you took your next breath. She has always been a sucker (or a fool, if I wish to keep to my earlier description of this family) for kids with no one left to care for them. It’s meant less of nearly everything for the rest of us kids, but I admire my mom so much, I wouldn’t change this aspect of her a bit.
Now that I am older and know their family better, I’m sure the Steins just wished to keep Basil as far away from old Corinna as possible. She scares the bejeezus out of nearly everyone who meets her, so I would feel sorry for any three-year-old who’s just lost his mother, thrust into a home with a nut-job like Granny Stein living in the guest room. Of course, this may explain the Stein children themselves, but that’s a tale for another time.
At first Basil spoke a bit of what I now know was Czech, but he learned English quickly. He and Angie grew up as best friends, being the same age and having the same fiesty temperment. I became a ‘big brother’ right from the beginning, whether I wanted the role or not. Any time I tried to play with those two my rigid morale first-born code would assert itself and I would be forced to put a stop to their shenanigans. I think they enjoyed having me as the ‘enemy’ along with Mom and Dad, as it brought them even closer together. Besides, the year after we adopted him Lindy was born, so Mom and Dad had their hands full with another rowdy Dodd child. I was proud of my role in the family as older brother, snitch, and occasional jailer, since it helped out my folks.
After Addy and Hill were born I realized that these sweet little girls, born just eleven months apart, did not need a jailer or a snitch but a confidante, as well as an occasional shoulder-to-cry-on. This has been my most favorite role, which I have cherished for years now. Even Angie began to turn to me in that respect once she hit her teen years. But Basil never seemed to see me as more than the older brother who lectured him constantly. I would be happy to stop lecturing him, I would say, as soon as he decided to shape up. That went over about as well as you’d expect.
So Basil grew more distant while the rest of us grew together. When Brian was born and Jenna, Erin and Josh joined us a few years ago after their parents (friends of our parents since college), they were quickly folded into the Dodd family dynamic. Perhaps this was the last straw for Basil, losing his last chance to have someone on his side besides Angie. I think that’s why she let him get away with so much for all those years after she settled down a bit herself; she was trying to be all the family he needed.
I miss them both so much.
* * * * *
Read also:
From Hubie to Pegs
The Library
The Plot
The Break-In
Emily and Livia
