Welcoming Wooton

Connie waits impatiently at Whit's End for Nick to relieve her so she can leave for the Timothy Center. He is already fifteen minutes late, and Whit cannot be reached on his cell phone. Wooton Bassett arrives on his mail route and offers to watch the shop until Nick comes. Connie hesitates, but Wooton assures her that the government trusts him with the mail. With no better solution, she leaves him in charge.

Wooton and the boys quickly turn the soda shop into a lively gathering. He cranks up music, plays games, and discusses the adventures of Power Boy with surprising seriousness. He explains that one comic-book story resembles the Christian life: people sometimes ignore a warning, get hurt by their own choice, and then blame someone else or even God. A moment later, he challenges Alex to make him a milkshake in under a minute so Wooton can boast that it was prepared without his own hands.

Whit returns and is startled to find the mail carrier behind the counter, but he sees that the busy shop is doing well and the children enjoy Wooton's company. The cheerful substitute has helped Connie, served customers, and created an atmosphere where the kids want to stay.

Wooton's generous detour has a serious cost. At the end of the day, his supervisor, Mr. Rose, confronts him with a list of delays from the past month. Wooton has stopped during his route to mow Mrs. Mashinsky's lawn and to help Mr. Aiken wash dogs after delivering more coupons than the shop could handle. Remaining at Whit's End is his fourth violation after three written warnings, so Mr. Rose fires him. Even then, Wooton asks whether he should still come repair Mr. Rose's car as promised.

The next morning, Connie and Whit learn what happened. Connie blames herself because she asked Wooton to stay, and Whit visits Mr. Rose to explain. The supervisor refuses to reverse the decision because Wooton's repeated delays, not one isolated favor, caused the dismissal.

Whit then goes to Wooton's unusually decorated home. Entry requires a secret knock, and departure requires a trip down an indoor slide. Toys fill the rooms in neat displays, while glitter-covered records hang from the ceiling. Wooton explains only that he received no toys as a child and spent a great deal of time alone. Now neighborhood children help him decorate, and his house reflects both his playfulness and his desire for company.

Wooton takes the firing calmly and does not blame Connie. He recognizes that another act of helpfulness would eventually have delayed him even if Whit's End had not. Whit has already found another opportunity for him: delivering parcels for Speedy Package Express. Wooton happily accepts, delighted by both the job and the Power Boy toy Connie sends as a thank-you.

At Speedy Package Express, Wooton's trainer emphasizes that speed matters above everything else. Wooton understands the instruction but immediately becomes interested in the people behind the parcels. He recognizes a decorated package as a birthday gift from Mrs. Randolph's granddaughter in Kansas and looks forward to her happiness.

Mrs. Randolph's delivery proves why speed and Wooton make a poor match. She misses his daily visits, searches for her glasses and special pen, and asks him to come inside. Although Wooton tries to hurry the required signature, he cannot refuse her request for his special birthday song and dance. The visit takes time and causes an embarrassing tear in his pants, but it also gives a lonely eighty-two-year-old friend the personal attention she treasures.

Wooton quits the package service almost immediately. He tells Whit that the company wants parcels delivered on time, while he wants to spend time with the people receiving them. He does not particularly need the money, but after his lonely childhood he does need relationships. Recognizing that Wooton's warmth draws children and customers, Whit offers him a job at Whit's End.

Before Wooton settles that possibility, he keeps his promise to repair Mr. Rose's alternator. He accepts responsibility for ignoring the warnings and explains that his delays come from caring about the people along his route. Mr. Rose reveals that every one of those people has complained about Wooton's dismissal after Mrs. Randolph organized them with a chain letter. The mail service needs efficiency, but it has also discovered how much Wooton's personal kindness means to its customers. Mr. Rose offers him his original route again, and Wooton gladly accepts.

Soon Nick is late once more, leaving Connie in danger of missing another meeting. Wooton volunteers to cover the soda shop again and explains that he and his boss now understand each other. Connie leaves without fear, and Wooton resumes the music, games, and odd facts with Alex and Cal. The boys are amazed to learn that he has lived in Alaska and claims to have carried bottle rockets to frighten away moose. His new friends have only begun discovering the surprising stories behind Odyssey's most unusual mailman.