There are these people that I know, but not really. They're the kind of people that you see from time-to-time and you greet them, make a little small talk, and maybe even sort of make plans to spend more time with them, but that time never arrives. They're the kind of people that you smile at every time you see them, but it takes you a second to place them if you see them away from their "assigned" spot.
I like them. They're nice people.
Sometimes I envy them.
They have a nice yard, a nice house, nice cars, and their deck? Man, I envy their deck. I envy every deck, for what it's worth, but their deck is especially nice.
They seem really happy, too.
Sometimes I hear laughter and I smile. I know it's the man and his teen daughter playing catch. She's at that age where she probably doesn't like anyone, but she likes her dad. At least, it looks like she does when they stand around with softball gloves and a ball, playing catch. They will play for hours on end, laughing and talking as the ball sails through the air.
Sometimes I hear laughter and barking. I know that's any or all of the family playing with their pup. It's an English Bulldog who is far past the playing age, but they try. The pup is way past senior citizen status in Bulldog years. It struggles to walk and has some other health challenges that some people would consider a reason to let it go. They don't, though. They love that dog and they keep it around.
I always think that's a sign of good people. It's hard to make that decision to let a dog go. Not being able to do it is every bit as much of a sign of love as being able to do it, y'know? It's just a different way of getting there.
They're really nice people.
I recently learned that one of the people's barely-an-adult kids passed away.
It was a heroin overdose.
The kid's passing was about as expected as any when the person dies of a heroin overdose, apparently. They kind of knew, but they didn't. They certainly weren't prepared for it.
The entire situation is a reminder that things aren't always what they seem. Those people with the nice decks and the tidy yards sometimes are fighting battles harder than your own.
The battles just take place behind closed doors.