The King of Hearts

“The Universe smiles upon you because your intentions are pure” -unknown

It was spring time in the valley and sounds of reawakening could be heard ringing throughout the otherwise quiet neighborhood. Bright rays of light from the rising sun began peeking over the distant hills as the blue Chevy carpenter’s van pulled up to the curb in front of the yellow split level house. The driver honked the horn twice and then got out and walked over to a tire swing hanging from a large oak tree in the middle of the front yard. He sat down and started to oscillate slowly as his mind navigated through the daily turmoil of his life.

Inside the scene was not so tranquil.

“Max, what’s taking so long?” called his mother impatiently from the bottom of the stairs. “Your dad’s waiting outside.”

Max came bounding down all ten stairs in one perfectly timed leap. His toes barely brushed the clear plastic tread cover as he used the sweatshirt wrapped around his hand to slide down the banister. He couldn’t stick the landing and his momentum carried him tumbling into the living room. “Mom, do I have to go?” he whined from the ground.

“Yes, sweetheart.” His mom patiently replied. “We talked about this and you know how important it is to your dad.”

“I know, I know” he grumbled. “Dad’s van is boring. Yours has wi-fi and movies and I can watch whatever I want and his doesn’t even have a TV. How long of a ride is it again?”

“It’s only a few hours and you’ll be back tomorrow. Go on, it will be a good chance for you to spend some quality time with your father.”

Max kissed his mother on the cheek and grabbed his Spider Man backpack as he headed out the door. His dad’s face lit up into a big smile as Max bounced down the stairs leading up to the front door and then charged wildly into his dad’s midsection for a bear hug.

“Hey big guy!” his dad picked him up and tossed him into the air, catching him just before he hit the ground. “Ready to go?”

“Yup, I’m ready” Max replied. “Can we stop for donuts?”

“Of course, pal” his dad said agreeably. “Whatever you want. Hop on in and we’ll get this show on the road.”

Max took out his notebook and pencils and started to draw as the van pulled away from the curb. The radio was tuned to a classic rock station and the windows were all open just a crack. Since he had been sleeping in it more often than not lately, Max’s dad had taken the initiative of covering the entire interior of the 1981 Chevy G-20, including the ceiling, seats, walls and dashboard, in a high-pile frizzy blue carpet. He had also installed a twin size bed. His thoughts were meandering as he cruised the back roads heading towards the interstate.

“Are we almost there?” Max asked.

The inevitable question shook Max’s dad out of his own head. “Not quite, buddy” he answered. “It’s a long ride today but we’ll stop for donuts soon. What are you drawing?”

“It’s me, Grandpa and Nana at the Dinosaur Park. I never got to take them there before they moved to California but I told them all about it.”

They pulled into the parking lot in front of a brick-fronted single level strip mall and settled into a spot in the shadow of a large sycamore tree away from the sprinkling of other vehicles. Max’s dad unbuckled his seat belt and pulled the keys out of the ignition, making sure to grab his money clip and sunglasses from the carpeted assembly he had built between the front seats. Max unbuckled his belt too and patiently waited for his dad to come and open the sliding door. When he did Max jumped out and his dad caught him and gently placed him on the ground. They held hands as they walked through the parking lot and into the bakery.

Max loved getting donuts with his dad. He always got to pick two of whatever he wanted and today he settled on a jelly filled covered in powdered sugar and a chocolate covered glazed adorned with multi-colored sprinkles. Max’s dad paid and they walked back out to the van with their breakfast. They both got into the back of the van and sat down on the edge of the twin size mattress. Max’s dad opened up a red Igloo cooler and pulled out a black cherry flavored soda for them to share. He closed the cooler and placed the food on top along with a miniature deck of playing cards. He awkwardly shuffled the mini cards and dealt thirteen to each of them, next placing the deck on the cooler and flipping the top card over. It was a six of hearts.

“Where are we going again?” Max asked around a mouthful of sweetened dough. His face was covered in white powder and a bit of red jelly was smeared across his cheek.

Max’s dad smiled wistfully. “We’re going home today. Well, my home anyways.”

“Your home, dad? But I thought you lived in the van.” said Max innocently.

Max’s dad looked at the captain’s bed and matching night table he had bolted down in the back corner of the van and the closet bar he had semi-permanently installed to hang his shirts on. “Believe it or not, and I wouldn’t blame you either way, I did not always live in a van” Max’s dad chuckled. “Actually, I grew up in a nice house, in a quiet little town just like you.”

“Oh” commented Max, quickly losing interest. “Sounds boring.”

“It was pretty boring, I guess” Max’s dad answered. “But boring in a good way, like where you live. What do you remember about your grandparents?”

Max thought about his grandparents. They had moved to California a couple years earlier but he remembered a lot about them. Like how they always seemed happy to see him even if their was no particular reason. He remembered going to sporting events and on vacations with them. They had gone on a glass bottom boat ride in Florida and been skiing out in Utah. He remembered family dinners and holidays gathered around their big dining room table and lots of smiles, hugs and laughter. Always a kind word and a helping hand. “I remember that they always played with me and talked to me about stuff I like” Max eventually offered. “And I remember Grandpa always said that the safest way to drive at night was by lining up the hood ornament with the yellow lines.”

Max’s dad laughed. “Did you know that your Grandpa used to play tennis?” he asked.

“I remember seeing a lot of tennis stuff on the wall in his office but he never really talked about it.” Max answered. “Was he any good?”

“Some people thought so” Max’s dad smiled. “Most of that stuff on the wall in his office belonged to your Grandpa. It wasn’t as big of a deal back in his day, but he actually played professionally for a while. That’s where we’re going tonight” he continued. “Your Grandpa is receiving a special award from the league he used to play for and he asked us to accept it for him.”

“Cool” Max replied. “He must have been pretty good if they are giving him an award after all this time” Max seemed genuinely impressed.

“He was pretty good but he wasn’t the best tennis player in the league” Max’s dad calmly replied. “He is receiving this award because of the things he accomplished off of the court.”

“Off of the court,” Max asked “like what?”

“Professional athletes didn’t make very much money back then” Max’s dad began. “But your Grandpa owned a successful business after his playing days were over. Before he was successful, someone else had helped him when he needed it and so he used some of the money he earned to help other people who needed it as well. He helped so many people that they are honoring him tonight by giving him this special award.”

“Hmm.” Max finished his donuts in silence and then gathered up his cards. “What do the symbols on the cards mean, Dad?” Max asked as he arranged his hand by suit and put the cards in numerical order.

“That is a really good question buddy” Max’s dad responded. “No one knows for sure, but some people think that the four different suits represent the four elements that everything on this planet are made from; wind, water, fire and earth. They also represent the struggle of opposing forces in life. Spades symbolize fire and confrontation, clubs stand for luck which can change as quickly as the shifting winds, and diamonds represent earth and wealth or physical possessions.”

“So hearts stand for water?” Max asked.

“That’s right” said his dad. “Blood is mostly water and our hearts are what pump it throughout our bodies, keeping us alive.”

“Cool” said Max thoughtfully. “Do the numbers and pictures stand for something else too?”

“Yeah,” replied Max’s dad “they do. The ace represents birth and death. It can be the lowest value card in the deck and also the highest, even more valuable than the King. The ace symbolizes how coming into this world and leaving it is a journey that each person has to take by themselves. The numerical value of an ace is one because no matter how much a person acquires during their lifetime, when they leave this world they can’t take any of it with them.”

“So the higher the number on the card is kind of like how much money you make and the King is the strongest?” asked Max.

“Partly right” said Max’s dad. “The King has the highest value of any card in the deck other than the ace, but becoming a King in real life is more about influence than wealth. A King of Diamonds gains influence because of his riches, but there are other types of Kings too.

“What do you mean, Dad, what’s influence?”

“When you’re young, you only have to be responsible for yourself, right? Well, that’s kind of like being a low number card. You can’t really take care of other people yet, and you also don’t have the power to change very many things or make decisions by yourself, no matter how much you might want to, right?”

“I guess so. But what kind of things would I want to change?” asked Max.

“That’s a good question that you should never stop asking” his dad replied. “Maybe you would start with your bedtime or only going to school when you feel like it. There are a lot of really incredible things in this world, but you’re also going to discover a lot about it that you don’t think is fair. If you work hard and treat people well, than one day you’ll be able to take some of those things that you don’t like and change them for the better.”

“Wow! Me dad? But how can just one person change the whole world?” asked Max doubtfully.

“One person can’t do a whole lot on their own, Max. That my boy, is where influence comes in. As you grow up people are going to start relying on you. Maybe you’ll start a family of your own and your partner and children will depend on you to take care of them. Or maybe you’ll start a business and your employees will count on you to help them provide for their own families. All of those people who believe in you are going to support you just like you support them. And when something is important to you, it will be important to them to. Most people can’t do a whole lot to make the world a better place all by themselves, but a small group of determined people who all feel the same way can and have throughout history. That’s how America got started. The actions of a King influence the lives of everyone around them and so they can do more than any one person ever could on their own.”

“A King started America?” Max asked doubtfully. “But I thought we only had Presidents.”

“You got me there, son” Max’s dad laughed. “I just meant that the founders of our country were a relatively small group of determined people, that’s all. And George Washington may have been the first President, but that doesn’t mean he wasn’t a King. I’d say he was one of the biggest King of Spades in history, and one of the biggest King of Hearts too.”

“Which one is Spades again?” asked Max.

“Spades stands for confrontation” Max’s dad reminded him. “George Washington became a King by using force. He was one of the greatest Generals of all time. He defeated the most powerful army in the world with what amounted to a bunch of farmers with pitchforks.”

“But why Hearts too then?” Max queried.

“It was what he did after the fighting was over that made him a King of Hearts” his dad told him. “Once the war was over, General Washington surrendered control of the Continental Army back to the States. By resigning his commission and giving command of the military to a civilian authority, he began the Great American Experiment that we enjoy the benefits of every day. When we talk about what it means to be free and how all people were created equal, we’re honoring and expanding his legacy. If it weren’t for his selfless actions, our lives today would be very different.

“Are you a King, Dad?”

Max’s dad chuckled. “Not quite, buddy. I’d say I’m more like that 6 right there.”

“Well who’s the biggest King you’ve ever seen then” Max challenged him.

“Your great grandma would say it was Elvis but I think Bruce Springsteen is the biggest King I’ve ever seen” Max’s dad said definitively.

“Bruce is cool, but why is he the biggest King, shouldn’t it be like, Lebron or Elon.”

“Goteborg, Sweden 1985” Max’s dad confidently answered.

“What happened there, Dad?” Max was curious.

“Bruce was in the middle of his first big European tour, it was right after he had released the ‘Born in the U.S.A.’ album”

“I love that song” Max started singing and playing air guitar.

“Great song” agreed Max’s Dad. “So he gets to Sweden and he’s playing outdoors at a soccer stadium in front of sixty thousand people. About half of the crowd is on the field and they’re going nuts for the Boss. Everyone there was just hanging on his next word, all of them reacting with a ton of energy and emotion to every little thing he did and said. He would stand there in the middle of the stage and drive the crowd into a frenzy with just a raised hand or held chord. Do you remember how we used to watch his concerts on YouTube and you would dance and sing? What was that song you used to love so much, um, um ‘Waiting on a Sunny Day'”.

“Yeah, I remember. Mom still shows me the videos of me dancing sometimes” Max laughed.

“Well it was like that. The whole crowd was so tuned into him, it was like they were amplifying everything he did. Midway through the set he starts playing a classic Beatles dance song called ‘Twist and Shout.’ The whole crowd starts dancing in perfect time to the song and all of a sudden the stadium starts to shake. In old video footage you can actually see the metal awning covering the seats moving like a tidal wave. It turned out that the timing of the beat in the song matched up perfectly with the natural vibrations in the clay under the field. The effect of thirty thousand people jumping up and down in perfect harmony with the ground beneath their feet literally shook the stadium all the way down to the pylons buried in the bedrock hundreds of feet below and almost brought the whole thing crashing down around them. It was breathtaking to see one man hold so much power in his hands. Sixty thousand people acting in unison. It was almost like witnessing a modern day version of the Samson story from the bible.

“Hmm” Max thought for a minute. “What kind of a King would Bruce be, Dad?”

Max’s dad thought for a minute. “He would be a King of Clubs. Musicians mostly achieve their influential status through natural born talent and hard work but timing and luck play a big factor too. I doubt that Mozart would be any more popular today than Michael Jackson would have been in the Classical period. Bruce may very well be the best live performer of our time, but at any other point in history, his rock and roll skills would likely have gone unappreciated. Sometimes, a person is just the right fit for their time and place.”

“Why are you only a six, Dad? Is it because you live in the van?” Max asked innocently.

“You’re a funny guy” his dad chuckled. I’m a six because there are people who I can depend on and who can depend on me like you and your mom. I can provide for myself and don’t need anyone else to take care of me for the most part, but I haven’t really built my own kingdom yet either and there isn’t a lot I can do to help the people I care about or change the things I don’t like.”

“Oh” said Max, seeming disappointed as he stared down at his feet. “Can we play rummy now?”

“You got it, pal.” replied his dad.

After their game, Max’s dad strapped him in with his seatbelt and climbed back into the front seat. He pulled down on the round mahogany knob fastened to the end of the shifter and turned back towards the interstate.

“Army ants” Max’s dad said to him with a smile.

This wasn’t the first time Max had heard this puzzle and gazed up at the NFL team stickers adorning the visors over the windshield, reading through the names until he found a match.

“The New York G. I. Ants” he answered excitedly.

“Good job buddy. I got a tough one for you, are you ready?” his dad asked. Max nodded. “Dollar for an ear of corn”

This was a new one. Max thought long and hard. He looked through the teams again and again but couldn’t come up with any that would match. “Aw dad, that one’s too hard. It’s making my brain hurt.”

“The Tampa Bay Buccaneers” his dad said with a smile. “Get it? Dollar for a piece of corn, that’s a buck an ear.”

Max didn’t get it but he laughed anyways. He loved this game and they kept playing as the blue van pulled onto the interstate and headed south. After a while Max nodded off and left his dad alone with his thoughts and the low whine of rubber meeting asphalt. He woke up to the sound of a tractor trailer riding his air brakes and the sun was high in a sky partly covered by a thin layer of wispy clouds.

“Are we almost there, Dad?” he said as he wiped drool from his chin with the bottom of his t-shirt.

“Almost, big guy.” Max’s dad called him lots of different nicknames like sport, pal, little man, and bud, but Max liked it best when he called him big guy. “We’ll stop up here and take a break.” They turned into a dirt lot next to a green metal truss bridge spanning a small river. “Go ahead and unbuckle your seat belt and then I’ll meet you at the back.” Max could see his dad through the ruffled blue shades partially covering the side windows as he walked around towards the back of the van. He pulled the heavy chrome handle and swung both back doors open wide. Then he pulled himself into the back of the van and grabbed two fishing rods out from under the bed and a beige tackle box from behind the shirts hanging on the closet bar. He placed them near the doors and climbed down, turning around just in time to catch Max as he leapt out. Max’s dad placed him gently on the ground and started messing around inside the tackle box. When he was satisfied, they walked down to the river bank and found a comfortable spot in the shade of a big oak tree. They each took a fishing rod and made a cast upstream. Max was thinking about the cards again as the red and white bobbers floated slowly with the current.

“Do you think you’ll ever be a King dad?” Max asked. His dad thought silently for a few minutes and Max knew from experience that he wasn’t being ignored.

“That is a really good question, son” Max’s dad said after awhile. “Maybe. Most of the Kings in life didn’t set out to be that way and I don’t know that I’ll ever get the chance. But I would welcome the opportunity if it came and hope that I had the courage and strength to be equal to the situation.”

“What do you mean, equal to the situation?” Max pressed him.

His dad thought for a minute before responding. “I remember reading once that ‘A King is just a man, and so he does what all men do, which is the best he can.’ I just meant that I would hope that my best was good enough to help the people who were counting on me.”

Max let his mind chew on that for a minute and then asked “Don’t you hope that anyways?”

His dad chuckled and grinned. “Yeah, I guess I do.”

Max and his dad sat in a comfortable silence on the river bank for a while, each of them occasionally getting up to make a fresh cast. Max eventually broke the peaceful silence. “What kind of King is the strongest?”

As was customary, Max’s dad considered for a few minutes before responding. “Most Kings don’t stay in power for very long and are quickly forgotten in the grand scheme of things. A King of Clubs is only loved until the next big thing comes along, a King of Spades can have everything taken from them by someone who is stronger, and a King of Diamonds will lose his command to someone wealthier or be abandoned if he runs out of resources. They gain their influence by doing things for themselves and so their kingdoms often die along with them. A King of Hearts is different from the others because he constructs his kingdom by doing things for others and so his influence is timeless. Other Kings may be abandoned but not the King of Hearts. That person is surrounded by people who care for them until the end of their days and the difference they make in the world ripples throughout time in the thoughts, hearts and actions of the people they inspire to act in similar ways. Do you understand, Son?”

Max thought for few moments. “I think so” he finally said but he wasn’t really sure.

Max’s dad packed the beige tackle box, stood up and stretched his back. “Why don’t you reel it in there, Big Guy, and we’ll get this show on the road.” Max did as his dad suggested and stood up and stretched his back as well. They walked back to the van, slid the side door open and climbed in. Max’s dad closed the door and buckled him into his seat before dragging over the red igloo cooler and offering him a soda for the ride. Max selected an orange flavored one and laughed when he got sprayed in the face as he cracked it open all by himself. He took a big sip and set it down in the handcrafted mahogany wood cup holders his dad had bolted to the wall of the van next to his seat. Max’s dad got into the front seat and strapped himself in before shifting the wooden handle down into drive. They turned back onto the pavement and headed over the bridge as Max stared out the window and imagined himself riding his bike on the side of the road as fast as the car was travelling.

After a little while, the blue van turned down a long driveway with white picket fences on either side and dark green grass dotted with oscillating sprinklers. They parked in the corner of a large, mostly full parking lot next to a large pond. Max’s dad unbuckled his seatbelt, walked to the back of the van, pulled a black hanging suitcase out from under the bed and spread it open on the twin size mattress. He pulled two dark suits with white, button down collared shirts and proceeded to get them both dressed. He trimmed his mustache and combed his hair using an unframed round mirror attached to the top of the dresser and then gargled some green mouthwash and spit the remainder into an empty soda can. Max combed his hair and tried to gargle the mouthwash like his dad had done but coughed and ended up spitting it all over the side window of the van. His dad quietly cleaned up the mess and helped him put his shoes and tie on. Max’s dad slid the side door open and climbed out of the van and then picked Max up and placed him gently on the ground. He opened the front door and reached inside, pulling out two pairs of dark sunglasses that Max had never seen before. His dad put his glasses on and then put the smaller pair on Max. Standing side by side, they could see their reflections in the side of the van. Max’s dad stared for a moment, enjoying how much his son looked like a miniature version of himself.

The sun was shining brightly overhead as they walked through the parking lot hand-in-hand towards a large, white, two-story building with graceful columns flanking the wooden, arch-shaped front doors. As they approached the building, a young woman in a black dress hurried towards them and gave Max’s dad a hug and a peck on the cheek. She turned her attention to Max and commented on how much they looked alike while fixing his hair and straightening his clothes. Before he could say something to his father Max was whisked off by an aunt he hadn’t seen for a few years to a round table with a white table cloth and a tennis themed center piece in front of a small stage. His aunt disappeared and a middle-aged man with a bald head and a grey goatee approached him with a smile.

“You don’t know me,” the man began “but I’ve seen your picture plenty of times and I’d recognize you anywhere. Your grandfather is an incredible person” he continued. “He helped me when my mother got sick and I couldn’t afford her medicine, even though I already owed him a lot of money. If there is anything, and I mean anything you ever need, I want you to call me right away.” The man with the goatee handed him a heavy black business card and vanished back into the crowd. He was immediately replaced by a large man with curly hair and glasses in a checkered grey and white dinner jacket.

“Your grandfather is a an amazing man,” he started “he gave me a job and an opportunity when no one else would and it changed my life. Please tell him I asked about him.” I nodded and smiled, not quite sure what to say or make of all the attention I wasn’t used to getting. Again the man was quickly replaced. This time it was a young woman. She had on a crisp, bright red, knee length dress and not one strand of her shoulder length blonde hair was out of place.

“I love your grandpa” she stated matter-of-factly. “I work for a camp for sick children that he started. Every summer hundreds of children stricken with cancer are able to enjoy a normal camp experience because of his generosity. He is truly an angel. Please give him my best.” She kissed Max on the forehead and walked away, instantly replaced by the next grateful well-wisher.

This time it was a younger, serious looking man with glasses dressed professionally in a darkly colored suit. “Your grandfather changed my life. I wouldn’t be the person who I am today if it wasn’t for him” he said. “With his assistance and encouragement, I was able to branch off and start my own firm. I can now support and spend time with my own family because he believed in me. Please tell him I said thank you and call me if you ever need an attorney.” He clapped Max on the shoulder, handed him a business card and walked away.

Next in line was the young woman in a black dress who had greeted them when they arrived. “I run the soup kitchen that your grandfather started and I just wanted to tell you how much we appreciate his support all these years. He helps so many people who never get a chance to thank him, please tell him how grateful we are.”

And so it went for the next fifteen minutes, one after another people lined up just to tell Max their story about his grandfather and give him a message to pass along. Max had no idea before today that his grandfather had such an impact on so many people’s lives. The overhead lights dimmed and Max noticed his dad sitting on the stage in between two other people with a projector screen behind them. The lights dimmed and an image appeared on the screen of his grandfather, dressed smartly in a jacket and tie, imposed on an oversized playing card. It was the King of Hearts.

Max’s dad approached the podium and began to speak. “My father always said that it is nice to be important, but it’s more important to be nice….”