Ray Gorham - Daunting Days of Winter

Monday, March 19 th

Deer Creek, MT

David opened the door and leaned outside. “Mom, Grace says that dinner is ready. You should come in now.”

Jennifer looked at David, her face betraying the mixture of emotions she was experiencing.

“No sign of dad?” he asked, knowing what was on her mind.

She shook her head. “Nothing. I’ve been watching for the last two hours, and still nothing.”

“He’ll be okay. He made it from Texas; he can make it from Idaho.”

Jennifer swallowed, though the lump in her throat made it difficult. “You’re sure dad told Frank he would be home on the sixteenth?”

“Yes, Mom. You’ve already asked me that multiple times. And I’m sure. He’ll probably be home tomorrow. He’s on horseback, so, you know, it’s tough to predict how long the trip will take.”

“Thanks, David,” Jennifer said with a half-hearted smile. “I should be the one reassuring you, not the other way around.”

“Let’s go eat. It’s spaghetti. Grace used some more of her food storage stuff. It looks like real food, but she says the sauce is from powder, and we don’t have mushrooms, or cheese,” he thought a couple seconds, “or real hamburger, or butter, or peppers, or…”

“I get it David. It’s not like real spaghetti.”

He nodded with a grin. “Well, it isn’t, but it still looks and smells pretty good, especially compared to all the wheat and bean stuff we eat most of the time.”

Jennifer stepped inside, and David followed her to the kitchen. A big pot on the table was filled with spaghetti and sauce that had been stirred together. Carol, Grace, Emma and Spencer were already seated, with Spencer eyeing the food ravenously.

“Looks good, doesn’t it, Spence?” Jennifer said as she sat down.

Spencer nodded, keeping his eyes locked on the food. “I love spaghetti,” he muttered.

Grace smiled. “I’m glad to hear that little Spencer,” she said. “I’ll have to make it more. I’ve been trying to pace our food use, but we’ll be able to start growing a garden again soon, so maybe I don’t have to hold back as much.”

“That would be nice, wouldn’t it?” Jennifer said.

Spencer nodded, still focused on the food.

Grace offered a blessing, then they began to eat. Jennifer watched as her children attacked the food and felt a pang of guilt cut through her as they devoured the meal, so obviously hungry, yet so rarely complaining. Jennifer picked at the food on her plate. She was as hungry as the rest, but her stomach was too tied in knots to eat much. “Slow down, David,” she said. “You should try tasting it a little bit before you swallow.”

“David swallowed and kept shoveling. “Sorry, but this is real good, and I’m pretty hungry.”

Jennifer returned the smile, but inwardly she wanted to cry. Her kids were all skinny and dirty, as well as smelly, if the truth was told. And their father was missing. It all tore at her heart every time she thought about it.

Jennifer had just taken a mouthful when Carol spoke up. “Did anyone hear the big news today?” she asked as she looked expectantly around the table. No one answered, so she went on. “I was checking on Craig Reider’s daughter this morning, she’s been sick, and anyways, she told me that her uncle is getting married.”

“Who’s her uncle,” Emma asked, looking up from her food.

“It’s Sean, from the militia, isn’t it?” David said, looking at Carol.

Carol nodded. “It is Sean, and he’s engaged.”

“Who’s he marrying?” Jennifer asked, only half listening to the conversation but still curious about the answer. “Someone from Clinton? I don’t think there’s anyone in Deer Creek, is there?”

Carol shook her head. “It’s not Clinton, and it’s not Deer Creek. She’s from Wyoming.”

Jennifer’s jaw dropped. “You mean he’s marrying Rose?”

Carol nodded and grinned widely. “That’s what I mean. Apparently he asked her last night, and she said yes.”

“I didn’t even know they were dating,” Jennifer said, before taking another forkful of food.

“How do you even date around here? It’s not like you can go to a movie, or a restaurant or anything.” David wiped the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand. “I did see them talking a few times. How long has she been here?”

“It’s been about a month,” Jennifer said, doing the math in her head. “She got here a couple of weeks after your dad left.”

“Don’t you have to know each other for a long time before you can get married?” Emma asked, scraping the last bit of food into her mouth.

“There aren’t any rules, Emma,” David said. “If you knew anything about love, you’d know that.”

“Like you know anything about it,” Emma shot back. “Or are you still in love with Amy?”

David went red in the face and stared daggers at his sister. “Just shut up, Emma,” he said as she laughed at him.

“Kids,” Jennifer said, raising her hands. “No fighting at the table, or anywhere else for that matter. Just cut it out. And David’s right. There aren’t any rules for falling in love.”

David gave Emma a smirk, which she just ignored. “So why do people get married, anyway?” Emma asked.

“Because they love each other,” Spencer said, joining the conversation.

“But they already love each other. They don’t need to be married to do that. Do they, Mom?”

Jennifer shook her head. “Of course not, sweetie. I love you and your brothers, and we’re not married.”

“So why do people get married?” Emma asked her mother, curious.

“Ahh, I guess, it’s just more of a tradition, than anything.” Jennifer stammered, looking around the table for help with the question. “It’s just what we do.”

Grace raised her hand. “Mind if I chime in?”

Jennifer nodded, grateful for the help.

Grace addressed Emma directly. “Do you plan to get married someday?”

Emma shrugged. “I suppose. That’s what we do, isn’t it?”

“It is, but marriage has been changed a lot since I was a little girl.” Grace looked around the table and smiled. “You probably don’t want me to bore you with my story…”

“Please, tell us,” Jennifer said. “It would be nice to hear about you and Chuck. Looking back, I wish we had spent more time with their grandparents, having them tell their stories. It’s a shame we found it so easy to just send the kids off to watch TV while the adults visited.”

Grace nodded in agreement. “You kids up for a story?”

David and Emma nodded. Spencer looked at his mom, hoping to be excused from the table. He was met with a stern look, so he closed his eyes and leaned back against his chair.

Grace laughed a little. “I’ll try not to drag it out too long, but maybe my story can help explain what I think about marriage. I grew up in a pretty small town in Southern Idaho, a town called Grace, just like me. It was almost as small as Deer Creek is, small enough that everyone knew everyone else. One summer in the early sixties, a boy shows up that I had never seen before, a Charles Turner from Cleveland, Ohio. In a little town, it’s pretty exciting when someone new comes around, especially when they’re as handsome as he was. I had just finished my junior year of high school, and back then, most girls thought about marriage instead of college, so I was pretty excited about Mr. Turner.”

“Was it love at first sight?” Emma asked, listening carefully.

“No,” Grace said, shaking her head slowly. “It wasn’t love at first sight. Love takes time to grow, but it was cute at first sight, at least for me.”