His was my second call of the day. He told me that he was looking for feathers to make the floral arrangements that magicians use. Did I know what he was talking about? Since I had just gotten off the telephone with another magician, I told him that 'yes, I knew exactly what he wanted'.
I had taken this job with a feather importer/exporter/jobber just a few weeks earlier, and I was quick to learn the hundreds of uses for thousands of different types of feathers. One would immediately think of comforters and pillows when you say the word feather. The feathers we sold weren't even used for those purposes. Marching bands, fly tying fishermen, Native Americans, showgirls, milliners, Hawaiians, crafters, magicians and more used the feathers we sold.
He told me that he had been calling all over the country looking for someone to help him, and that the call to us was to be his last. Finally, someone who knew what they were talking about!!! We discussed his various options, and he placed his first order. A few weeks later, he was back on the phone, needing more of our beautiful feathers. We talked at length, and he told me that his 'day job' was as an assistant attorney general for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. He spent his weekends performing magic at parties, hotels, and on stage. This was, he said, his way of easing the stress of his job.
We quickly became friends, and I sold him a lot of feathers. When he told me that he would be coming to New York to meet me, we made arrangements for him to come into the warehouse, and we would then have lunch. He and his wife arrived, and they presented me with a magician's bouquet. My boss, the jealous type, quickly determined that the bouquet should grace the office. Joe told him that it was mine, to take home and adorn my dining room table. Lunch was a two-hour affair, and we talked about my upcoming move to Arizona. He was disappointed that I would be leaving, but promised to stay in touch.
About two years later, he called me to let me know that he was attending a magician's convention in Las Vegas, and would like to drive down from there to see me. We talked about his schedule, and determined that it would be best if he came down late in the afternoon. This would bring him into Kingman at about 6:30, and I would stay at the shop until he arrived. During his visit, and our subsequent dinner, he told me that he was considering going out on his own, and opening a practice in his hometown. This would be a major decision for him, but was one that he had to make. He would, he told me, limit his practice to real estate law. It would mean that he would leave the security of working for the state, but give him his dream of having his own law office. I had given him a tape from the shop, R. Carlos Nakai's 'Canyon Trilogy'. I told him that when he had driven 20 miles past the turnoff for Dolan Springs, he should stop his car, put in the tape, lay on the hood of the car to look at the night sky, and listen for the coyotes call. Then, and only then, would he be able to make his decision.
He called again about four months later, wondering if I still had a painting he had seen on his visit. I told him it was still available, and he asked that I ship it to him. It would hang prominently behind his desk in his new office. I told him how proud, and excited, I was for him.
We have spoken many, many times during the following years. He worried about me through my broken marriage, and many illnesses. I would call him to get legal advice, and to let him know how things were going for me. Our friendship has grown over the years, and he continues to make me proud. His law office is one of the largest in the state of Pennsylvania. And the painting that hangs so prominently in his office? It is a winter scene in Yellowstone. There is a small herd of buffalo and, laying just off center, is a newborn calf -- a white one.
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