The following evening Carol’s phone rang. “Hi. This is Carl Higgens.”

“Can I help you?”

“Well. I have to eat a lot of crow.”

“I have done that at times too.”

“I was just plain nasty last night. I wish I could go back, you know.”

“There are lots of things I wish I could go back and redo, for example, start an hour before I lost my leg.”

“I. I talked to Julie and Janice on the way home. I haven’t been the father and husband I should be. At least some of that is stupidity and some of it is alcohol.”

“We all do stupid things. I know I have done enough of them.”

“I talked to Carl Jr. today. I need help. He thinks he does. How? I mean. How do we get started?”

Carol spent about an half hour giving things like AA meeting times, doctors who specialized in helping with alcohol dependency, and some personal items. When she finished he said, “Then you really believe this. You weren’t being a bitch.”

“Well, I don’t know if I would go that far. There are enough people who think I am one to consider it. But yes, I really believe it.”

“Let me try. I think my family would be better off if I had done this ten years ago but starting now is better than waiting another ten years.”

“Starting today is better than waiting till tomorrow.”

“Can I ask another question?”

“Sure. You know I don’t have all the answers.”

“I think you have more of them than I do. I want to know what surgery you were talking about for Janice. And I want to know why if it was good for her, why not Julie? Julie talked about it for Janice but didn’t say anything about herself. She works so hard and anything that would make it easier for her would be great.”

“Well. I don’t know why she didn’t think it would be fine for her too but it would be for both.” She explained the surgery and the reasons why it was good.

“So you are telling me they could make their knee bend and not have that thing that makes their leg sore?”

“That is a simplification but it is pretty accurate.”

“Why didn’t the doctor do it that way when he cut their leg off? Should I sue?”

“No. When they had their surgery this wasn’t available. It has only been a little over a year and only a few doctors are doing it. I had my stump revised just about a year ago.”