“Yes, Mira. But there’s more. In 1846 Abraham Lincoln was elected to Congress and in 1946, exactly one hundred years later, so was Kennedy! Then in 1860 Lincoln was elected president and a hundred years later in 1960, Kennedy was too.”
Seth and Mira both inhale on cue. Aidan says, “Interesting.”
“That’s just the beginning,” I say. “Both were succeeded to office by Southerners named Johnson, and both of those Johnsons were born exactly one hundred years apart.”
More gasps and amazement. “Lincoln died on a Friday and so did—”
“Kennedy?” Mira says in disbelief.
“That’s right. More?”
Seth and Mira offer a loud, “Yes!” Aidan nods.
“Lincoln was shot while sitting next to his wife in a theater built by John Ford, and Kennedy was shot while sitting next to his wife in a car built by Henry Ford. Oh! And the type of car Kennedy rode in was a Lincoln!”
“Okay! Okay!” Aidan says. “Lots of strange similarities! It’s hard to explain.”
“Thank you, Aidan.” I turn back around in my seat. “That’s all I wanted to hear.”
“Hard, but not impossible,” he adds. “Coincidences happen all the time. And there’s the Law of Truly Large Numbers. Ever hear of that?”
I should have known that Aidan, of all people, would bring that up. “I’ve heard.”
“I haven’t,” Mira says.
Aidan clears his throat. “Given enough time and a large enough sample, any outrageous thing is likely to happen. The odds are actually in favor of it. That’s the theory.”
“There were only a hundred years and nineteen presidents from Lincoln to Kennedy,” I say. “That seems like a pretty small sample to me.”
“But overall, throughout all of time—”
“Right. I know. Give a million monkeys . . .”
“Give them what?” Mira asks.
I rub my temples. “Give them five minutes with Aidan and they’ll all have migraines.”
“I don’t know if Aidan getting to pee next to the president was completely random or if some force was at work, but either way, I’m glad it turned out the way it did,” Seth says. “He told the president something important.”
Mira leans forward so she is nearly speaking right into my ear. “And we’re all just once removed from Aidan’s claim to fame. That kind of makes us important too.”
The momentum. It is there again, in their voices, and I am suddenly ashamed that I didn’t just let Aidan have his moment of glory without having to hammer my point home with him. Everyone deserves a day. One day. Seth is right. For Aidan it doesn’t matter how or why it happened, only that it did. A kindergarten rebel redeemed. I relinquish the remainder of my nineteen miles. “It was important, Aidan. And also right that you were there to talk to him. However it happened.”
He is silent for a moment and then says thanks in a voice that is soft and humble and doesn’t sound like Aidan at all. And then, almost to himself, he adds, “Interesting, though, that the number nineteen came up again. Nineteen presidents from Lincoln to Kennedy. Yes. In
teresting.”
I settle back into my seat, silent. I hadn’t even thought of that.
13
AS WE TRAVEL NORTH, the hills even out and the vistas become more expansive. Mira becomes our spotter and points to the groves that are on fire with the golds, reds, and burgundies of autumn. We can see them easily without her help, but her enthusiasm sparks our own, and I find myself looking forward to her outbursts.
Lucky sleeps on the seat between Seth and me. He has finished the grass Seth brought along and taken a chunk out of the middle of the seat as well. I see Seth wince when he notices the hole and exposed foam and then his furtive glance at me to see if I noticed. I cannot feign horror as I should because it is only a car, and not even mine, so when I only shrug, I imagine that Seth chalks it up to my much-rumored miswired brain. Small actions can carry large interpretations.
We make good time, and I estimate we are only another half hour from Langdon. By now we have all missed two classes at Hedgebrook. Four absentee slips have arrived at the dean’s office. The infirmary has been checked, as well as our rooms. As a last measure, they are probably sweeping through the library, the dining hall, and behind the old carriage house, where occasional subversives carry on their expellable activities in the old livestock pen. Four missing students may even be cause to call the constable, but Mrs. Wicket will hold off on that as long as possible. She is not one to overreact, though the headmaster is. He is quick to remind all transgressors that there is a long waiting list to get into Hedgebrook and our spots can be filled at a moment’s notice. It is comforting to know we are so easily replaceable when so many things are not.
Seth spots a brook running close to the road and pulls over. He says he thinks Lucky may need a drink and that this would also be a good time for Lucky to do his duty before he unloads in the front seat. Not knowing the bathroom habits of lambs, we all agree, but I think it will be interesting to see just how Seth plans to coax Lucky to take care of his business.