Can you reach that air filter for me?
I had been in the basement working on the furnace.
I was stuck in the middle of the job, and all I needed was the air filter to put back into the furnace.
I heard footsteps behind, but I couldn’t turn around to see who it was. I yelled back that I would appreciate it if they were to hand me the air filter that was up on the shelf. I heard some grunts and groans, but there weren’t any sounds. I asked again, just hoping whoever was back there, would at least talk to me. I finally moved the right way and I was able to extricate myself from the tight place I was wedged into. There stood this four-year-old little boy. He said he couldn’t reach the air filter. I was a bit edgy and I told him he could have told me that. He said his mommy didn’t allow him to talk to strangers. He went back upstairs while I got up and retrieved the air filter. I finally finished with the servicing of the furnace. I went upstairs and the little boy sat at the table eating cookies. He had milk all over, from pouring a second glass of milk. He pushed it toward me, along with the cookie jar. He told me to sit. He began to ask questions about the furnace and what an air filter was for. I said I thought he didn’t talk to strangers. He grinned and said I wasn’t a stranger anymore. I spent fifteen minutes eating oreos and drinking milk, while explaining air filters to a lonely four-year-old..