The skies were a deep blue, not a single cloud floated overhead. Lyle's house looked so forlorn as I pulled up into his driveway and parked. In the distance, I could hear the whistle of the morning train as it came roaring into town. The tires made their click click sound on the rails and then faded into the distance as it traveled past the main street and out into the country. I walked slowly to the door and turned the key. Tears rolled down my checks as I stepped into the empty living room. Oh the memories that flooded my mind and heart!
Last Saturday, Lyle had hooked his little trailer onto his blue hatchback car, loaded all his belongings back into their place in the trailer, and drove to our house to say goodbye. He was moving on. He wanted to visit the rest of his cousins and families. Then he would start the long trip back home to California. Would we ever see him again? Why does he have to leave? Oh well, he can't take away the memories.
The nights on the porch listening to him play the guitar. His jolly laugh. The saddles hang empty on the old board fence. There was only the three of us around the kitchen table these days. Well I was happy that he came to visit us, even if it was just for a little while.
I went to the car and got out the vacuum sweeper, the broom, and other cleaning things. I was giving the house a last clean up before we put the "For Rent" sign out in the front yard on Monday. It wasn't bad, but just a little lick and promise. Lyle had left his marks on it for sure. He had laid a new kitchen floor, painted the walls in the kitchen and living room, and repaired a few spots in the bathroom. This would always be "Lyle's house" in our minds.
I couldn't believe this was Kate's last year of school! Where does the time go so fast? I was seriously thinking of making this my last year working at the school also. Mark was starting to complain. He needed a full time "hired hand"! With the kids both in college, someone had to drive the tractors and help with the cattle. Really, I was ready to get out in the fresh air again! I LOVED my job and all my special friends and these little people, but the big outside was calling me. I would tell Mr G. soon.
"Hey Mrs Beck!" I heard from down the hall as I entered the school on Monday morning.
I turned around and there stood four cross country gals and two boys. "Oh hey...how are you kids?" I asked walking toward them.
"We wanted to let you know that we really miss you and Kate at the cross country meets," one of the girls said, smiling at me.
"Yeah we miss your big mouth. You don't know how much it means to hear you holler even if we don't see you! Thank you!" another girl piped in.
"Oh thank you! You're sweet! I'll tell you what, maybe I can get to one before the season is over! I'll try okay?" With that the bell rang for the first class and we said our goodbyes. Now that was sweet I thought to myself as I walked back through the elementary library and into the first grade room for another fun day at school.
"Well I took the pig checks to the bank this afternoon and put the "For Rent:" sign in the front yard on Maple Street," Mark announced at supper that night.
"Boy do I ever hope that we get lucky! It's a cute little house but pretty small," I said passing the spaghetti to Kate. "I sure do miss Lyle."
"Yeah he was a pleasant fellow to have around. I never heard him say a bad word about anyone," Mark answered. "You don't mind having that kind of person around."
"Yeah and he was always funny. Life was fun for him. I'll sure miss riding horses with him," Kate chimed in.
"Well we can all hold the memories," I said rolling a piece of spaghetti on my fork and putting it in my mouth.
"By the way," Kate changed the subject, "I start soccer practice Saturday."
"Do you have all the things you need?" I asked, praying that the answer would be yes.
"You sure that your leg is healed enough to play?" Mark added.
"Yes and yes. The specialist told me that if I rested it over summer that he thought I could do something different than run. I am really excited about this!" Kate answered.
"Well go for it I guess. But do be careful please!"
So with long phone calls to Peter, soccer practice and games, her homework, and many other extracurricular activities such as Forensics meet's, Kate was kept busy! She had been voted in as president of FCCLA also! If Kate did anything different than school activities, she would jump on her bike and head down the road.
It was a cool late April evening when I hopped in the car and headed to the school. Mark was still out in the farrowing shed working a couple of new litters of baby pigs. I hated to leave him with all the work and chores, but he didn't want to go to the style show with me, that's for sure. I gave a little honk of the horn as I pulled out of the driveway.
As I parked, I saw Karen and Wanda making their way up to the entrance so I hopped out and pushed the lock and ran to catch up with them.
"Oh, hi Carrie," Wanda said coming over to me. "You couldn't get Mark to come either?" she said laughing.
"No...to be honest, I left him in the farrowing shed clipping teeth and giving iron shots to baby pigs," I laughed. "I don't think he is prone to liking style shows."
"Well, ours weren't interested either so why don't you sit with us?"
"That would be great," I said as we walked into the beautifully decorated theater.
We made our way down the aisle and slipped into our seats. There was chatter all around us as we sat there visiting. This would be a fun night for the ladies. Kate had been here since five. She helped with makeup and hair styling. That was what she loved to do. On the stage sat a couple huge bouquets of spring flowers. On the back drop, there was an outside scene of summer. The kids and Mrs Green sure had worked hard for this night.
The lights dimmed and music floated out and around us. The curtains pulled back and the stage lit up. Off to the left in the shadows stood a light wood podium, a soft light shining down on it. In front of the podium stood two huge pots of beautiful spring flowers, and to the right of the stage stood another pot. The back drop would put you in the mood of a summertime evening with its soft colors and green trees and lawns. In one corner sat a white lawn chair.
Mrs Green stepped from the back and walked to the podium. She looked out into the crowd and said, "Welcome to the SES Spring Fling. The girls will bring you the latest spring and summer fashions this evening. I first want to thank everyone who made this evening so special. The potted plants you see were donated by Petal's Flowers. The summer like back drop was donated by Design's of Wonder. The clothing the kids will be modeling this evening are from Maurice's in the mall. So set back and enjoy the wonders of spring."
Mrs Green then turned and looked to her right, paused a minute, and out walked the first model. "We have here a long flowing evening dress of blue satin, modeled by Heidi. You would be queen of the party anywhere in this soft blue easy flowing gown. Heidi's hair pulled back into a bun at the nape of her neck, adds to the look." Heidi walked gracefully across the stage to Mrs Green, turned around to show her back, then walked slowly back across the stage, paused and then descended the stairs On and on the girls came, dressed in colorful sundresses, evening gowns, shorts, and tops.
About half way through the show, Mrs, Green announced "Now we will watch as Kate models this short floral sundress. She is all ready for a day with friends in this summer attire. She will definitely catch the eyes of bystanders!"
I couldn't believe my eyes as our Kate entered the stage, a pleasant smile on her face. Her hair was hanging loose over one shoulder and she wore a bright floral short sundress. On her feet she wore a pair of white flip flops. I thought she had never looked so beautiful. She slowly and gracefully walked over to in front of Mrs Green.. turned around to show us the back of the dress, crossed over to the opposite side of the stage, paused and slowly descended the stairs. I was so proud of her. All of us mothers were proud of our beautiful daughter's who had grown up together from kindergarten clear through twelfth grade. It wouldn't be long until they would join their classmates for that final walk across the stage.
It was dark as Wanda, Karen and I made our way outside and to our cars. What a wonderful evening that had been. A gentle breeze was blowing as I unlocked the door and drove home. Kate would be late as she was staying to clean up. I pulled into the garage, closed the door, and walked into the house. Mark was sitting at the table eating supper and reading the newspaper.
"Have a good time?" he asked taking a bite of left over roast beef.
"Yes. It was a great evening. The type that leaves you in a happy, carefree mood. Kate looked beautiful," I said walking to him and placing a kiss on the top of his head.
"Where is she?"
"Oh it will be awhile because they had to clean up. Oh Mark, I can't believe she is a senior and this is the last of April already. She's going to be gone before we know it, just like Bret." I said taking a seat across for him.
"And am I going to get my tractor driver back?" he said looking at me out of the top of his eyes. I always liked it when he looked at me that way.
"Yes I decided that it's time to come back to the farm. I can see that you are going to need some help. I'll tell Mr Grant soon."
"That's my girl," Mark said reaching across the table for my hand. "I could use you for sure.
It was a busy spring. With Kate so busy with her things, I tried to keep up with Mark. The house showed it! After school and on Saturdays we fixed pasture fence, worked pigs, weaned sows, worked cattle and put them out to pasture, and if I could slip it in, worked in the garden. Kate was willing to mow the lawns which really helped.
It was the second Saturday in May. Kate was up early and headed to the school where she would ride with some other girls an hour south to their last soccer game of the season. Mark and I would love to go, but we just had to stay home and bale the alfalfa that was ready.
"Be careful and win for us, okay?" I told Kate as she grabbed the keys and walked out the door.
"Okay. It will be late when we get home," she said giving me a hug.
We worked all day out under the hot sun, thinking of Kate and her teammates trying to make their way to a victory. I was sure it would be hot. I was glad that we had plenty to keep us busy so the time would pass and she would come bouncing home soon.
Around 7:00, a strange car pulled into our driveway. "Hmm... I wonder who that would be?" I asked Mark coming out of the farrowing shed after doing the chores.
We watched as the driver got out of the car, ran around the front and opened the passenger door. To our horror Kate slowly made her way out, her arm thrown up over the ladies shoulder.
"Oh Mark, it's Kate. She's been hurt!" I hollered running toward the car, Mark right behind me.
"What happened?" I asked reaching them and grabbing Kate around the waist to help her up the steps.
"It appears that she blew out her knee. She was playing so good and then this! I'm so terribly sorry Kate!" Mrs Stone said as we slowly and gently let Kate down on the couch. Kate tried hard to be tough but I could tell she was in pain. I grabbed pillow and put it under her very swollen knee. It killed me to see it!
"The coach said you were to give her ibuprofen every four hours for pain, and apply ice packs at least three times a day. I guess you have to have them on for ten to twenty minutes and then off for a half hour. You need to get an appointment Monday if you can with a Dr H. Here is his phone number." Mrs Stone told me, handing the paper to me. This all seemed a dream. Kate couldn't be hurt again, and so close to graduation.
"Thanks so much for helping Kate," I said to Mrs. Stone walking her to the door.
"I have a girl playing too and know that you and Mark would do the same for her. Glad to help," And with that she went down the steps and out to the car.
As I entered the kitchen, Mark was breaking up some ice cubes with the handle of a kitchen knife and putting them in a zip lock bag. This was going to be a long night and another long tomorrow.
We turned the couch into a temporary bed that night, leaving the light over the kitchen sink on. Kate was being so brave. Really she had a very high pain tolerance, but this was about the limit.
Monday morning, Mark loaded Kate up and headed to Dr H. I stayed home to do chores and clean the farrowing shed. It was time to move a new group of mamas in. My mind was on Kate though as I went from one crate to the other spraying them down.
After about two long hours I heard them driving in. Mark parked by the back porch and went around to open Kate's door. The first thing I saw was the pair of crutches he got out of the back seat. I shut down the power washer and made my way up to the house. In the kitchen, Mark broke the news to me.
"Well they took an x-ray and found out that she stretched the ACL. He wrapped it and sent home these pain pills for her to take when needed. He said that we had two options. Surgery or exercise to strengthen the muscle around the knee, hoping that will hold the knee. He highly suggested surgery of course."
"Please dad...I don't want surgery. I really think I can get by without it. At least let's try, okay?"
"Well it's up to you. I would like to see if exercise would work before just going in with a knife. We will give it a few weeks and see how you are getting along. That will give us time to think about it too," Mark said going to the bedroom to change into his work jeans.
Life had changed for Kate. It was surrounded with cold packs then hot packs. Pain pills, crutches, and doctor appointments. But determined Kate did not let it keep her down for long. She would flop her book bag over one shoulder, grab her crutches, and drive herself to school. There her friends helped her as they worked together to reach the day they would say good-bye to this school that had become their second home.
Last Saturday, Lyle had hooked his little trailer onto his blue hatchback car, loaded all his belongings back into their place in the trailer, and drove to our house to say goodbye. He was moving on. He wanted to visit the rest of his cousins and families. Then he would start the long trip back home to California. Would we ever see him again? Why does he have to leave? Oh well, he can't take away the memories.
The nights on the porch listening to him play the guitar. His jolly laugh. The saddles hang empty on the old board fence. There was only the three of us around the kitchen table these days. Well I was happy that he came to visit us, even if it was just for a little while.
I went to the car and got out the vacuum sweeper, the broom, and other cleaning things. I was giving the house a last clean up before we put the "For Rent" sign out in the front yard on Monday. It wasn't bad, but just a little lick and promise. Lyle had left his marks on it for sure. He had laid a new kitchen floor, painted the walls in the kitchen and living room, and repaired a few spots in the bathroom. This would always be "Lyle's house" in our minds.
I couldn't believe this was Kate's last year of school! Where does the time go so fast? I was seriously thinking of making this my last year working at the school also. Mark was starting to complain. He needed a full time "hired hand"! With the kids both in college, someone had to drive the tractors and help with the cattle. Really, I was ready to get out in the fresh air again! I LOVED my job and all my special friends and these little people, but the big outside was calling me. I would tell Mr G. soon.
"Hey Mrs Beck!" I heard from down the hall as I entered the school on Monday morning.
I turned around and there stood four cross country gals and two boys. "Oh hey...how are you kids?" I asked walking toward them.
"We wanted to let you know that we really miss you and Kate at the cross country meets," one of the girls said, smiling at me.
"Yeah we miss your big mouth. You don't know how much it means to hear you holler even if we don't see you! Thank you!" another girl piped in.
"Oh thank you! You're sweet! I'll tell you what, maybe I can get to one before the season is over! I'll try okay?" With that the bell rang for the first class and we said our goodbyes. Now that was sweet I thought to myself as I walked back through the elementary library and into the first grade room for another fun day at school.
"Well I took the pig checks to the bank this afternoon and put the "For Rent:" sign in the front yard on Maple Street," Mark announced at supper that night.
"Boy do I ever hope that we get lucky! It's a cute little house but pretty small," I said passing the spaghetti to Kate. "I sure do miss Lyle."
"Yeah he was a pleasant fellow to have around. I never heard him say a bad word about anyone," Mark answered. "You don't mind having that kind of person around."
"Yeah and he was always funny. Life was fun for him. I'll sure miss riding horses with him," Kate chimed in.
"Well we can all hold the memories," I said rolling a piece of spaghetti on my fork and putting it in my mouth.
"By the way," Kate changed the subject, "I start soccer practice Saturday."
"Do you have all the things you need?" I asked, praying that the answer would be yes.
"You sure that your leg is healed enough to play?" Mark added.
"Yes and yes. The specialist told me that if I rested it over summer that he thought I could do something different than run. I am really excited about this!" Kate answered.
"Well go for it I guess. But do be careful please!"
So with long phone calls to Peter, soccer practice and games, her homework, and many other extracurricular activities such as Forensics meet's, Kate was kept busy! She had been voted in as president of FCCLA also! If Kate did anything different than school activities, she would jump on her bike and head down the road.
It was a cool late April evening when I hopped in the car and headed to the school. Mark was still out in the farrowing shed working a couple of new litters of baby pigs. I hated to leave him with all the work and chores, but he didn't want to go to the style show with me, that's for sure. I gave a little honk of the horn as I pulled out of the driveway.
As I parked, I saw Karen and Wanda making their way up to the entrance so I hopped out and pushed the lock and ran to catch up with them.
"Oh, hi Carrie," Wanda said coming over to me. "You couldn't get Mark to come either?" she said laughing.
"No...to be honest, I left him in the farrowing shed clipping teeth and giving iron shots to baby pigs," I laughed. "I don't think he is prone to liking style shows."
"Well, ours weren't interested either so why don't you sit with us?"
"That would be great," I said as we walked into the beautifully decorated theater.
We made our way down the aisle and slipped into our seats. There was chatter all around us as we sat there visiting. This would be a fun night for the ladies. Kate had been here since five. She helped with makeup and hair styling. That was what she loved to do. On the stage sat a couple huge bouquets of spring flowers. On the back drop, there was an outside scene of summer. The kids and Mrs Green sure had worked hard for this night.
The lights dimmed and music floated out and around us. The curtains pulled back and the stage lit up. Off to the left in the shadows stood a light wood podium, a soft light shining down on it. In front of the podium stood two huge pots of beautiful spring flowers, and to the right of the stage stood another pot. The back drop would put you in the mood of a summertime evening with its soft colors and green trees and lawns. In one corner sat a white lawn chair.
Mrs Green stepped from the back and walked to the podium. She looked out into the crowd and said, "Welcome to the SES Spring Fling. The girls will bring you the latest spring and summer fashions this evening. I first want to thank everyone who made this evening so special. The potted plants you see were donated by Petal's Flowers. The summer like back drop was donated by Design's of Wonder. The clothing the kids will be modeling this evening are from Maurice's in the mall. So set back and enjoy the wonders of spring."
Mrs Green then turned and looked to her right, paused a minute, and out walked the first model. "We have here a long flowing evening dress of blue satin, modeled by Heidi. You would be queen of the party anywhere in this soft blue easy flowing gown. Heidi's hair pulled back into a bun at the nape of her neck, adds to the look." Heidi walked gracefully across the stage to Mrs Green, turned around to show her back, then walked slowly back across the stage, paused and then descended the stairs On and on the girls came, dressed in colorful sundresses, evening gowns, shorts, and tops.
About half way through the show, Mrs, Green announced "Now we will watch as Kate models this short floral sundress. She is all ready for a day with friends in this summer attire. She will definitely catch the eyes of bystanders!"
I couldn't believe my eyes as our Kate entered the stage, a pleasant smile on her face. Her hair was hanging loose over one shoulder and she wore a bright floral short sundress. On her feet she wore a pair of white flip flops. I thought she had never looked so beautiful. She slowly and gracefully walked over to in front of Mrs Green.. turned around to show us the back of the dress, crossed over to the opposite side of the stage, paused and slowly descended the stairs. I was so proud of her. All of us mothers were proud of our beautiful daughter's who had grown up together from kindergarten clear through twelfth grade. It wouldn't be long until they would join their classmates for that final walk across the stage.
It was dark as Wanda, Karen and I made our way outside and to our cars. What a wonderful evening that had been. A gentle breeze was blowing as I unlocked the door and drove home. Kate would be late as she was staying to clean up. I pulled into the garage, closed the door, and walked into the house. Mark was sitting at the table eating supper and reading the newspaper.
"Have a good time?" he asked taking a bite of left over roast beef.
"Yes. It was a great evening. The type that leaves you in a happy, carefree mood. Kate looked beautiful," I said walking to him and placing a kiss on the top of his head.
"Where is she?"
"Oh it will be awhile because they had to clean up. Oh Mark, I can't believe she is a senior and this is the last of April already. She's going to be gone before we know it, just like Bret." I said taking a seat across for him.
"And am I going to get my tractor driver back?" he said looking at me out of the top of his eyes. I always liked it when he looked at me that way.
"Yes I decided that it's time to come back to the farm. I can see that you are going to need some help. I'll tell Mr Grant soon."
"That's my girl," Mark said reaching across the table for my hand. "I could use you for sure.
It was a busy spring. With Kate so busy with her things, I tried to keep up with Mark. The house showed it! After school and on Saturdays we fixed pasture fence, worked pigs, weaned sows, worked cattle and put them out to pasture, and if I could slip it in, worked in the garden. Kate was willing to mow the lawns which really helped.
It was the second Saturday in May. Kate was up early and headed to the school where she would ride with some other girls an hour south to their last soccer game of the season. Mark and I would love to go, but we just had to stay home and bale the alfalfa that was ready.
"Be careful and win for us, okay?" I told Kate as she grabbed the keys and walked out the door.
"Okay. It will be late when we get home," she said giving me a hug.
We worked all day out under the hot sun, thinking of Kate and her teammates trying to make their way to a victory. I was sure it would be hot. I was glad that we had plenty to keep us busy so the time would pass and she would come bouncing home soon.
Around 7:00, a strange car pulled into our driveway. "Hmm... I wonder who that would be?" I asked Mark coming out of the farrowing shed after doing the chores.
We watched as the driver got out of the car, ran around the front and opened the passenger door. To our horror Kate slowly made her way out, her arm thrown up over the ladies shoulder.
"Oh Mark, it's Kate. She's been hurt!" I hollered running toward the car, Mark right behind me.
"What happened?" I asked reaching them and grabbing Kate around the waist to help her up the steps.
"It appears that she blew out her knee. She was playing so good and then this! I'm so terribly sorry Kate!" Mrs Stone said as we slowly and gently let Kate down on the couch. Kate tried hard to be tough but I could tell she was in pain. I grabbed pillow and put it under her very swollen knee. It killed me to see it!
"The coach said you were to give her ibuprofen every four hours for pain, and apply ice packs at least three times a day. I guess you have to have them on for ten to twenty minutes and then off for a half hour. You need to get an appointment Monday if you can with a Dr H. Here is his phone number." Mrs Stone told me, handing the paper to me. This all seemed a dream. Kate couldn't be hurt again, and so close to graduation.
"Thanks so much for helping Kate," I said to Mrs. Stone walking her to the door.
"I have a girl playing too and know that you and Mark would do the same for her. Glad to help," And with that she went down the steps and out to the car.
As I entered the kitchen, Mark was breaking up some ice cubes with the handle of a kitchen knife and putting them in a zip lock bag. This was going to be a long night and another long tomorrow.
We turned the couch into a temporary bed that night, leaving the light over the kitchen sink on. Kate was being so brave. Really she had a very high pain tolerance, but this was about the limit.
Monday morning, Mark loaded Kate up and headed to Dr H. I stayed home to do chores and clean the farrowing shed. It was time to move a new group of mamas in. My mind was on Kate though as I went from one crate to the other spraying them down.
After about two long hours I heard them driving in. Mark parked by the back porch and went around to open Kate's door. The first thing I saw was the pair of crutches he got out of the back seat. I shut down the power washer and made my way up to the house. In the kitchen, Mark broke the news to me.
"Well they took an x-ray and found out that she stretched the ACL. He wrapped it and sent home these pain pills for her to take when needed. He said that we had two options. Surgery or exercise to strengthen the muscle around the knee, hoping that will hold the knee. He highly suggested surgery of course."
"Please dad...I don't want surgery. I really think I can get by without it. At least let's try, okay?"
"Well it's up to you. I would like to see if exercise would work before just going in with a knife. We will give it a few weeks and see how you are getting along. That will give us time to think about it too," Mark said going to the bedroom to change into his work jeans.
Life had changed for Kate. It was surrounded with cold packs then hot packs. Pain pills, crutches, and doctor appointments. But determined Kate did not let it keep her down for long. She would flop her book bag over one shoulder, grab her crutches, and drive herself to school. There her friends helped her as they worked together to reach the day they would say good-bye to this school that had become their second home.
Comments
Post a Comment