Pages 122-123

Soon though we headed Beauty back up the hill and was on our way home.  Eventide was just beginning to fall, the air much cooler and somewhat cloudy, the mountain peaks were shrouded in fog.  Evidently it was snowing hard up there, for a few flakes were beginning to fall on us.  We were so excited I had forgotten all about the letters I held in my hand until we drove up in the yard.  I held them up and said, “We forgot all about the mail we went for.”  “Well,” he said, “we’ll read them in the house “  After unhitching Beauty, he put the blanket on before he watered, and put her in the barn, while I was in the house warming by a good hot quaking aspen fire in the living room.

                Jim came running in saying, “it’s really snowing now.” “What is you get snowed in, out here?” I laughed.  “Oh, that would be fine.”  He commented, moving close to the fire. 

                My sister’s friend had gone home, and she was playing on the piano.  Mother was sitting in her favorite chair as was Father.  Jim sat down close to him and they began talking of plans for our house.  Father said  he and Harry, my brother, might go to Portland sometime this winter and if so, they could get him a carload of lumber much more reasonable through a lumber firm there, that they had bought their lumber from when they contracted and built houses.  The man they had built for wanted them to come and put up more houses.  Then, too, my sister and husband and sons were still living there.  Jim and I both thought that would be the thing to do. 

                All seemed tired, and we retired a bit early that night.  My sister was already asleep when I got in bed.  I lay awake for some hours while my sister slept soundly; and just as I was slipping off to sleep, a coyote somewhere off on  a distant hill put up the most supernatural howling and kept it up at intervals a regular as clock work.  I lay there listening , wondering when he would cease this incessant wailing.  A storm always seemed to cause this.  I got up and cupped my hands against the window, peering into the night.  It was a cloudy like moonlight night, and I barely could discern a moving dog-like figure prowling around in the yard.  He seemed to go over by the chicken house, stand there a while, then started off on a trot, disappearing into the night.  And with that, I crept back to bed feeling that was the last of him.  But, not so.  Some several hundred yards away, he gave his last serenading cry that seemed to die on the night air, and I in some way, had drifted off to dreamland, not awaking until I heard Jim calling from the foot of the stairs.

                He had slept well and awakened early.  Hearing cooking things rattling in the kitchen and Jim’s calling, I rubbed my eyes, looking around found my sister was dressed also, going to the window, could see a heavy blanket of snow had covered the valley during the night.  In the snow were the coyote’s tracks, plainly visible ,

                That morning, the grandchildren with their sleds came trudging through the snow to Grandma’s and Grandpa’s, happy but cold.  Their Grandma swept them off and took them in to the fire, first dipping their hands in cold water so the warmth would not make them sting.

                Santa had been quite good to them. Mary had a doll tucked under her coat, pulling it out and proudly showing it.  Harry had a toy truck that he played and played with.  Soon they wanted to go back, so their grandma bundled them up while their Grandpa went ahead, clearing a apath so they would not get too cold on the return trip. 

                The letter Jim and I had gotten from the Post Office were for my father.  We looked them through twice.  “There should have been a letter from me, “ Jim said.

                “Well, we won’t worry about that,”  I said, “It’s much better to have you than a letter,” I commented.

                “But I know I sent one,” he finished.

                Grabbing my hand and once again looking at the diamond, he “Do you know what’s inside the ring?” Being curious, I took it off and looked for a while while he stood laughing at me.  “Oh! I see you have our initials.  It’s engraved J.T. to A. B.”

                 “You know, I forgot all about that, I was so happy when I could put it on your finger.”  Still holding my hand, we went out into the snow and over by the buggy.  Jim took a broom, sweeping it off and brushing off the seat, and out flew the letter into the snow.  I jumped to pick it up.  Sure enough, there was Jim’s letter.  It had slipped from among the letters I held in my hand.

                “Maybe you had better keep it and read it after I’m gone,” he said.

                “If it starts to snow again, you may not get to the post office to get my next letter very soon. “  So I put it on the piano and put temptation behind me.

                Sitting down to the piano, I began to play and we both sang several numbers.  When Mother called and said we could eat dinner, Father said, “Dinner! Seems like we have just finished eating.” None of us were very hungry, for Mother always fixed such a good hearty breakfast.’         “it’s only a lunch,” she said, so all sat down and went through the motions.  After that, Jim went out to water and feed Beauty.  He took her blanket off to curry and brush off any dust or mud on her legs and sides.

                The afternoon and evening went by in much the same manner as other evenings.

                The next morning we found a few more inches of snow had fallen in the night, but the sun came out from behind the clouds as though it would be a good day after all.

                Breakfast over, Jim prepared to leave, saying he didn’t know when I would see him again, but he would come as soon as he could.  Putting his suitcase in the buggy and stepping in, Beauty was ready to be off.  She seemed to want to get out of this snowy valley.  Leaning over, he gave me one last kiss and was off.  I watched him from the front window with the spyglasses.  In no time, he had left the valley behind and was on top of the hill.  I knew he waved and so did I, but the spy glasses only dimly picked it up.  He was out of the canyon now and onto the flats where there would be very little snow, and  he could travel much faster.