THE OLD HOUSE DOCTOR 1-7-02

GRANDPA AGAIN

Grandpa led the children through the streets of Eureka Valley: it seemed a strange procession to those who watched from behind pulled curtains. Grandpa was going on about the “goodle days”, back a couple of hundred years ago. Before the Water Wars, before the Corporate Government. The group stopped before a fast food stand backed by a thirty-foot cliff. Grandpa cackled at the familiar logo, which he referred to as “the big yellow bum”.

“This was called Basin Spring back then,” he croaked. “Used to be a park.” Tyree spoke first.

“What’s a spring?” Grandpa looked sadder than before. He shook his head slowly.

“This town was called Eureka Springs once. It had hundreds of places where clean water just bubbled out of the ground.” The kids looked doubtful. Water was bought at the Depot, it didn’t flow on the ground. “Did too, and in the King’s Valley, too.” The kids asked what had happened to all the water.

“Oh, well, it disappeared when everybody moved out of town. They all dug wells and the groundwater just dried up. The people moved out of town when the tourists stopped coming.” He could see what was coming, and didn’t wait for the attack. “The tourists stopped because the town got shabby, and it got shabby because people argued about how to keep it up. They argued with the city government, they argued with each other, and the worst thing in the world happened. No new people moved into town. The populace grew old and bitter, and nobody wanted to work on the old houses because of all the rules the city set up. Not that they were all bad. But working on old houses is hard enough, and the workers made more money outside of Eureka. Without craftsmen or caring owners, the old buildings fell apart..”

“I want to go home,” M’lina sniffled. Grandpa sighed.

“So do I, child. So do I.”