Porkchop Hill
I was visiting at my grandmother's (Margaret) one Summer. I don't remember how old I was; 12? Michael came down from the upstairs apartment and told our g-ma he was going to the movies with his best friend, Boo Radley. I jumped up and said I wanted to go, too. Michael's immediate displeasure was made known, but I insisted and g-ma told him to take me along. We got to the theater and as we settled into our seats he told me to be quiet while the movie was on. (His sister, Maureen, likes to talk constantly.) The movie was Porkchop Hill; a war flick. When the movie was over and I hadn't said a thing. He asked me how I liked it. When I told them that I really enjoyed it, the two boys looked at each other startled, amazed, and with overt joy . After this movie, I could do no wrong in cousin Michael's eyes and we became fast friends. The last thing he ever said to me at his wedding shower many years later was, "If you weren't my cousin, I'd marry you." He passed away about a year after this in a car accident at the age of 22. I miss him dearly.
