The Healing Garden

Just a minute.

Mr. Nichols?

This is the place.

What in Sam Hill is going on?

We're here to help you move.

Is the furniture going?

No, just the boxes.

Wait, I didn't hire movers.

Someone tweeted that you needed help moving.

I don't Twitter.

Be careful with that.

Hey, are these yours?

They were my wife's.

Oh, I'm sorry.

Put them in back.

You sure you don't need help unloading?

I can handle it.

God loves you, man.

God, I need a miracle.

Hold your horses.

Hey, bro.

Ay.

Call me sir.

Right, sir.

I left a shoe box inside.

In my place?

It's my grandmother's place.

I stayed here until it rented.

Take this too.

Oh, you can keep that stuff.

I don't want it.

It's not going to fit in my car.

Because it's a little baby car.

Oh, hey, jarhead.

I was hoping I'd never get to see you again, homie.

Likewise.

I got something you're going to need for him.

Grandma Rose, she called this her blessing stick.

Blessing stick?

Yeah, she the blessed people over the head who were

trying to get in her house.

Hey, take your box.

Merry Christmas, homie.

It's not Christmas.

That figures.

Any time, Jesus.

Any time.

Hey, this guy's stealing your truck.

What?

What's going on?

Eddie Nichols?

Get out of my truck.

It's not your truck anymore, man.

The medical bills shouldn't be tied to the truck.

Can't we just...

Eh.

You have to talk to the bank, OK?

That sucks.

In my home, young lady, that was a swear word.

Merry Christmas to you too, Scrooge.

It's not Christmas!

Here we go again.

It's my fault again.

The night shift, the day shift...

Yeah, OK.

...the late shift.

Oh, yeah.

But I didn't do anything before.

No, no, yeah, that's what I've done my...

...six hours, and there's dishes ..

What, is there a camera here?

Do you even see what I'm...

the dishes.

It doesn't make...

Yeah?

Just seeing if everything is all right.

He won't do the dishes.

It's never about the dishes.

Get away from the door.

What are you looking at?

Your Jesus is missing.

Excuse me?

Your Jesus is gone.

You can say that again.

Your Jesus is gone.

I was just wondering if I could...

No.

You don't know what I was going to ask.

Uh, no.

Is that your final answer?

No.

Who's in charge here?

I see his name.

What's your name?

My name is No.

You don't... you're not perfect.

You don't do everything.

...and then you come home, and there's piles of laundry

everywhere.

OK, one day.

What about last week?

What did I do...

OK, just talk over me them.

Yeah, fine, talk over me.

What did I do last week?

Do I even get a "thank you," maybe?

every single day ..

Whatever!

Your parents know where you are?

Ramos is not my father.

Does he hurt you?

No, I'm a ghost to him.

You're not a ghost.

You are if nobody sees you.

I see you.

I knight thee a real, live kid.

What is that?

It's a blessing stick.

I was going to give Ramos a blessing.

He doesn't deserve a blessing.

Sometimes hurt people hurt people.

Who said that?

I saw it on a bumper sticker.

Rose used to light these up.

They don't work anymore.

I wish everyday was Christmas.

Why is that?

Christmas is about getting presents, and people are nicer.

Hope, get in here!

Can I tell you something?

Sure.

That stuff you're in smells really bad.

No.

Just this little spot, for a garden.

No.

Go plant the garden in the field out back.

That land is toxic.

Nothing will ever grow there.

I'm going to take that as a "yes."

What's this place?

It's where you hold your horses.

Does your mother know where you are?

She's old school.

She just says go play.

What are you doing?

Planting a garden.

Why?

Something to do.

Looks like work.

People not willing to work, shouldn't eat.

Says who?

The Bible says that.

Want to see something weird?

Always.

Of all the places in this field, the best soil

is under this dead tree.

Nothing that's died has ever come back to life.

That's not true.

My daddy died, and he's never coming back.

I'm sorry.

Mom says people shouldn't say sorry when

you find out someone's died.

You should ask what were they like.

OK.

What was he like, your dad?

He was good.

Kind of silly.

What was she like, your wife?

How do you know I lost my wife?

No one moves into my neighborhood

because they just started living.

She was kind of silly, probably like your dad.

She liked rock and roll and sushi.

Gross!

Come on, kid.

Give me a hand.

What was your wife's name?

Olivia, and she loved to work.

Did she work at a donut shop?

She was a horticulturist.

A horti-whatter-what?

She was a plant expert.

She taught me everything I know about gardening.

What did you teach her?

I taught her what I thought I knew about faith.

You a preacher?

No, just a guy who's read the Bible a lot.

My mom has a Bible.

She stopped reading it after my dad died.

Bible's got great stories in it.

Comics.

Great stories.

They're not true stories.

I used to tell Bible stories while working in our garden.

Say, what's your name?

Hope.

What's yours?

When I was a school teacher, they called me Mr. Nichols.

Are you gonna tell Bible stories while you plant this garden?

No.