He was created by Thea’s sister and her friend in late 2008 from my brother-in-law’s best broken shovel and assorted found items. He was gifted to me as a Christmas/Birthday gift. I set him by our front entry and dubbed him Carlton, the door monster (an homage to a 70’s TV character from Rhoda who was often heard but never seen.) After a short time, I built him a platform from discarded bricks and put some night lights around him to keep him visible to anyone passing by. He maintained at his vigil on our stoop through rain, sleet, hail, ice, snow and tornado. Never once abandoning his watch on our front door.
On Thursday, March 9th, I came home from work and he was gone. Although foul play is suspected, nothing can be proven. No suspects have been uncovered. He was a monster of the first order, nevertheless, no one known ever had a bad word to say about him. And even as we scoured the neighborhood and enlisted the aid of neighborhood children, no sign of his remains were discovered.
If he is whole and has new owners, so be it. If he is on a voyage of discovery, so be it again. If you say he has truly departed from us then I say it isn’t so. There will always be a ghost of Carlton guarding the entry to our home. Let all who approach know this and beware.
Well that sucks.
Hopefully, he is — as you say — on a voyage of discovery.