Changing Seasons. Autumn IV, part 1

Autumn IV, part 1 Minnie had a phone signal at her home! Bess sat down thankfully in Minnie’s pretty garden and gathered her thoughts together before phoning her family. It had been a long, full and emotionally demanding day: she’d gone back to the old farm for the first time. Then she pulled out her phone and got ready to tell her son and daughter-in-law about her day. Artie was real concerned for me and wouldn’t let me go alone.
“You sure about this, Bess? You can see from the fields alone that it’s pretty much gone to rack and ruin here.”
“Artie Campbell, you know me well enough to know that when I’ve made up my mind to do something, I’m going to do it. And by now, I’ve learnt to think things through beforehand as well.” I must admit I was glad of his company. It’d have been lonely going there on my own, down that driveway once again. It didn’t look anything like the place your father and I inherited and cared for. But the farmhouse hadn’t fallen down: that had been well-built over the generations. The barns and outhouses though – they were really the worse for wear. “That range was one of the best stoves I ever cooked on. Took a bit of mastering, but once you knew how to use it, it cooked like a dream. Meals. Jams, jellies, preserves: you name it, I made it on that range. Joe put in a baking oven for me as well…They all need cleaning and blackleading, but I bet they’d cook just as well as ever. Nothing much to go wrong with them.” I looked in through as many windows as I could. Everywhere needs scrubbing, sanding, painting, cleaning… There’s holes in some of the floors and things growing up through the floorboards. She paused and listened to what her son was saying.
“Okay, Mum, what’s the ‘But…’ that’s coming next? I recognise this tone of voice. It’s your determined one.” “But the old well still works. And there’s a plum tree there that must be the grandson – or maybe great-grandson – of the ones Joe and I planted in the orchard. I told Artie about you two losing your jobs and home, and how we were going to have to move come what may. I’ll take some photos of the neighbourhood as well as these farm ones, so you’ve got a better idea of what we’ll be letting ourselves in for if we move back here. And I can hear you’re on speakerphone so, Richard and Janet, I’m going to talk to that schoolteacher as well, see what I think of her. I’m not having your education suffering – but you don’t have to be in a school with hundreds of other children to get a good one either.” This was the orchard once, the outhouses are falling down, the fences are all in need of repair – it’ll be a lot of work if we come here. But there’s a good little community growing here, and all the outdoors space Richard and Janet could possibly want… Okay, so here’s what I found out today. And I’ve sent you those town pictures: there’s not a lot yet, but what there is, is growing. And Minnie’s got more plans yet…Artie invited Miss Glaze round so I could meet her and we could talk uninterrupted. So I asked her… “How would you feel about having a couple of older children? Janet’s just turned seven, and Richard’s eight and a half – nine in February.” Well, her face lit up with a smile!
“Janet’s just two years older than Marianna’s four – they’re August birthdays as well. She’d be a big girl for them to look up to – and Richard would be a big boy too. I’d love to have a couple of older children to teach as well. And the plus of such a small school is that you can really tailor your teaching to the child. Tell me more about them…” Her interest in the children was so genuine, Molly. I don’t think we’d have to worry about them not thriving academically. I think they’d do way better here than in a lot of other places. She reminded me a bit of Miss Kirk – way sweeter and kinder! – but there was that same genuine passion and care for the child shining through. And the same love of teaching. So have a look at the pictures, and I’ll be back in a couple of days and we can talk this through together, all of us.
Bess hung up and then thought about the other things she’d learnt that day. After they had finished talking about the children, Bess said casually, “So I hear Maddie Portland’s moved back here too.” And watched Honey’s sensitive face change. Something wasn’t right there. And Artie’s fears were probably well-founded. “There you are – what do you think? Just that one last can of paint to put away from doing the touch-ups.”
“It looks so much better! We did a good job on the painting, you and I. Look, Artie, we’re going to need to think about some silks for me – I can’t ride in these in the competitions coming up. You’re going to have to design and register some. And I thought we could link the design to the ones Chas and I will need if we get the stud going.”
“You’re right. What colours shall we go for?”
“And what can’t we have? What’s already registered? We’re going to have to go into Newborough, aren’t we? Do you think we could borrow Marcus’s old truck?” “What do you think, Old Pete? Do you like our new colours? And are you ready for this?”
“He’s as ready as he’ll ever be, Artie said from his crouching position. “And so are you. Just go and get the experience you haven’t got yet. You can trust Old Pete – that horse knows his way around.” “Well, it’s looking a bit better where we’ve painted. Bit too like a hospital – we’ll have to find some cheap posters or something. What do you think?”
Honestly, Chas thought, Frank was so quiet! They’d been painting together all morning and he’d hardly volunteered anything. Surely it shouldn’t be the English guy who talked the most? Chas tried another topic of conversation.
“How’s the great telephone exchange experiment going?” That did get Frank talking. At some length and mostly about connections and electromagnets, and definitely incomprehensibly as far as Chas was concerned.
“Now I’m on checking all the telephone wires – we’re going to try connecting Marianna and Lachlan up to the art gallery first as they’re physically nearest. It’ll only be a local service though, if it works. We won’t have any connection with the outside world by phone until we’re halfway to Newborough.”
Frank paused, but the talk seemed to have broken his almost Trappist-like silence.
“Do we have a deadline for finishing in here?”
“Gear should be arriving in a fortnight,” Chas said, grinning. “Then Sal’s really going to be getting down to some serious training.” “How’s she doing? I heard she’d been entering some competitions.”
“Nicely,” Chas said, beaming. “Artie started her off on the junior circuit because she’s young enough for that, and it’s an easier place to find your feet, and he wasn’t expecting much, but she’s been winning things. Her and Old Pete, they’re an amazing team. They’re going to be aiming higher way sooner than Artie thought. Hence the need for the gear. And getting these rooms painted and ready. Leo and Rafe are hunting for flooring for us.” “Check this place out! You guys found the perfect flooring.” Chas was enthusing to Rafe and an unusually animated Frank was talking to Leo. “And with the gear you bought as well, this is going to be a great place for us all to use.” “Is Sal happy with it?” Rafe asked, just as Leo said, “What does Honey think?” to Frank. “Sal’s really happy with it.” Chas and Rafe had gone into the other newly refurbished room.
“This is just what she needs. She said we could have your old team posters up in there , but she was having plants in here – and she’s right, they do look good.”
“So what are your plans for the future,” Rafe asked, curious.
“Long term? The stud. But it all starts with Sal – and probably Old Pete too. Sal needs me at the moment. She needs looking after – Dad getting cancer: it was hard for both of us, and it was horses that really helped her. Next five years, I’m putting Sal first and my plans second, and then we’ll see after that where we’ve go to.” Leo and Frank had headed upstairs.
“If Honey would like somewhere as a dance studio, maybe we could do this room over? And she’s right, it would be a nice thing to be able to teach the children. Lucie would like it too, though it’s not really Amber’s sort of thing. We could certainly paint in here, and sand and polish the floor. It’s sound enough.” “Better test this gear then, guys. What are the settings on this? Where’s the one that says “This will get you running faster than Frank”?
“In your dreams,” Frank said. “Bet I can do more chin-ups that you two as well.”
“In your dreams!” Rafe retorted, already half way to his first one. Leo was busy pretending to swoon at the sight of the modern technology on the table in front of him.
“Go on then. Try it and see.” Frank was still exuding quiet smugness at having beaten then both at the chin-up challenge, and this was four days later!
“Call someone. Well, actually, you can only call the Old Forge, but it’s a beginning.” “Do you want to do the honours or shall I?”
“Oh, go for it, big bro.” Rafe picked up the trumpet-shaped earpiece from the side of the phone and dialled the number.
“Hey, it works! Hello, Harper, can you hear me?”
“Yes. Mummy said I could be first because I tried so hard in school today and I was so good yesterday. Fletcher and Mason had a fight over who was the tallest and strongest boy in the school…”
This line worked, Frank thought, but he wasn’t too sure about linking up to the houses on the town side of the ridge. And that was where most of the people were. Bess Preston was planning to move back. This was not good news for Maddie, whatever she had said to Tom Tench. She was going to have to move fast. Get Tom to propose to her, and he’d not go back on his word, as long as she kept up her side of things. Get rid of Clara. That was the difficult bit. Once Clara was gone, then Tom’s house would be hers. And Tom’s pension. When she’d been married to Rick Wilson, she’d found out a lot about what people earned, what with him being the bank manager. Not directly from him, of course, but she’d had her ways and means. By her calculations, Tom must be pretty wealthy by now. He’d spent hardly anything over the past years. She went over to the table and picked up a chocolate. These were nice – she must ask Minnie to get some more in for her. If only she knew more about Clara’s background. She’d try that tiresome Blake again – pretend an interest in his pathetic attempt at a farm. Tomorrow. I was working on my irrigation system – I have so little time! Marcus is so busy, and with those twins, neither Annette nor Clara have much time to help at all – when I heard a welcome voice form the other side of the fence. “My, what a difference you’ve made here! Have you managed to make a start on rebuilding your home yet? I haven’t seen you around for so long. You haven’t been ill, have you?”
It was so nice to have someone taking an interest in me, being concerned. Not something I ever seemed to get from my mother or my father. “No, I’ve not been ill, just incredibly busy, helping Marcus. And no, I haven’t managed to start rebuilding my home yet.”
Lack of money, as well as lack of time, but I wasn’t going to tell Maddie that. I think Clara had guessed: she’d asked why didn’t I just make the barn into a good home instead of trying to build something new? But what did she know? I looked at Maddie more closely.
“I’ve been fine. But what about you?” It seemed to me that she looked – I don’t know. Worried? Unhappy? And the way she sighed confirmed my fears for her. “It’s kind of you to be concerned for me.” She looked into my eyes, and I felt like she was sharing her true self with me, and I was honoured.
“Age, you know. It takes its toll. The body, the mind, the memory…” “Talking of memory,” I said. “I do have something for you. I know how much it was worrying you, not being able to remember where Clara came from…”
“You’ve found out?” Her voice was suddenly sharp with excitement.
“Yes,” I said. “Grisburg. Does that ring any bells?”
There was no mistaking the happiness in her eyes.
“Grisburg. Yes. Thank you, Blake, thank you.”
“That’s all right. I’m just so happy to be able to help you.” And I went back to the task at hand, pleased to know that I had made such a difference in her day. Knights in days of yore must have felt like this when they helped the damsel in distress and rescued her from the dragon.