Chapter XXIX

Dear Olive,

It is November now, and so many things happened, it's hard to tell you all about them.

First of all, you ask about how my book is going. The answer is: very well, thank you. I write every single day (apart from Saturdays and Sundays of course) for about four hours and although it seems like a lot, it really isn't because then after I will write every chapter down, I will have to correct it and believe me it is not as easy as you might think it is.

But coming away from my book, I have some news about my Dad. Nothing very serious, don't worry. The thing is that my Dad has chest pains from time to time, which aren't serious, not unless he is over working himself and Olive, he is. He always was just like Grandfather Blythe did. That's why two weeks ago, Dad officially retired and my Mum couldn't be merrier. Now that they both have more time at home, they visited us last week and are going to visit again with Grandparents Blythe at the beginning of December.

Because of Dad's retirement, there is just one other doctor in Glen, Dr Drew, and he really needs someone to replace my Dad, as there is always a lot of work between Four Winds and Glen St Mary. Therefore, Marshall Douglas took the opportunity and he and his family (and so my dear Cilia and little Knox) will move back to Glen in a week's time! How wonderful is that, tell me Olive? Aunt Una and Uncle Shirley couldn't be any happier that now two of their daughter will be living near them in Glen and now I am certain that whenever I will visit Glen I will be able to see my Cilia every single time! How marvellous!

And of course I have to inform you about the newest addition to our family for you see, Nancy and Owen became parents! They have a little daughter whom they called Delilah Una Ford. When Owen called us, he described her as looking exactly like Nancy, so she has all the black curls, and shining brown eyes. I'm sure she will be a charmer just like her mother is.

There is no end to news, dearest Olive, but you know, with as big family as mine is, it is quite common to have all of the exciting things happening all at once. And so, prepare yourself for the brightest news I received this month: Cee will become a mother next May!

Oh, Olive, I never thought that I could picture my baby-sister as a mother, but I really can! She will be so lovely and so gentle and natural with a little bundle in her caring arms. And Patrick! You can imagine him dancing around the room, can't you? He is just as crazy as my own Blythe was each time he discovered that I was pregnant.

There, the "news-time" is almost finished. The other news is that Christmas this year will be held in Walt's house in Kingsport. I am positively thrilled as I have never visited his house (I feel so ashamed because of that, but you know how busy I was for those past five years of my life!). Lily is very excited about being the hostess of the Christmas Day but she knows that most of the food will be done by our grandmothers anyway, they wouldn't allow "dear Walter's Lily" to overwork in any way.

You also ask me about all of my girls from the "midwives-clan". So, Gladys is more than good, a smile never comes off her face and her baby Alberta is a real sweetie and a real "Daddy's girl" as Gladys calls her. Lake is doing just fine, and is very in love with her son Benji who looks so much like Jim it's almost unbelievable. She isn't in mourning anymore, and to be quite honest I'm not sure if she really was in a state of 'mourning' over Jim. I think she would be to this day if it wasn't for her trip to "Auntie Connie" in Nottingham. But she's not in love, and she told me that she's not planning on having any more love affair for a while. She's simply not ready and I can't blame her, her heart was broken twice because of her love for two men. First was Lucas who cheated on her, now Jim who was tragically killed in a car crash… I'm more than hopeful that she'll finally find a man who could make her happy! Eventually Roxanna; she is coming back to White Sands in January, for a month's vacation to visit us and her family in Avonlea. I am so excited to see her again and hear about everything she was doing for the past two years!

I had a letter from Faye, and Blythe had a letter from Gilly today. They are doing splendidly (or so I hear) and they sincerely apologise for not being able to come for Christmas this year but Gilly is working so very hard with all of his students and so we can't be nothing but just proud of him. They sent us the picture of their house in Surrey. Oh, this is exactly what I always pictured England to look like! They have a lovely cottage surrounded by the greens: grass and bushes and trees, and the door to their house is (Faye told me proudly) yellow! Oh, I really wish I could have enough time to visit them! And dear Eddie and Melia are growing up so fast! Eddie is Joy's age and Melia is Paris' age, so they are four and two respectively. Eddie looks just like Gil, with his black curls and grey eyes and pointy chin, but Melia looks just like Faye, with green eyes and thick black hair on her head.

Olive, I'm sending you my family picture that was taken a week ago, when my parents came for a visit. Don't you think that Joy looks positively adorable in this red coat that my Mother made for her? And Paris is wearing Grandmother Blythe's knitted hat which she was knitting for him this past month. And there's little Hope in Blythe's arms, she changed now, didn't she, since you last "saw" her on the picture I sent you. She was fivedays old on that picture and on this one, she's six months old!

I'm telling you Olive I know exactly what kind of people my children will grow into. Joyce will be a sweet charmer who knows her mind and isn't afraid to speak it outloud, Paris will be a handsome crazy dancer (whom he is even now), and Hope will be a darling caring girl one day. And "that you may tie to", Olive Harris!

With all my love for you and your family,

Julia Una Ford

P.S. It's never to early to wish each other a Merry Christmas and therefore: Merry Christmas, my dear friend!


Christmas really came quicker than anyone else expected it to come. Before Julia knew it, she was sitting in the passenger's seat in the car which Blythe was driving, with her three children on the back and millions of little presents packed up in the trunk, making her way to Kingsport.

Julia found Kingsport a very nice place to live in, it was surrounded by trees and several parks. Blythe talked about how nothing at all changed there, not since he was in Redmond College almost ten years earlier.

Walt's house was really big and spacious and could certainly accommodate all of the people belonging to the Blythe, Meredith, and Fords' clan. It was so nice inside as well, Julia could see what Walt meant by the "renovation" he did in his house just a year earlier. Everything seemed so modern, with all the walls painted in warm blue and grey, and the furniture shininhg in dark brown. Yes, she really liked how her brother decorated his house.

"And eventually you're here!" Walt exclaimed when they all sat down in the kitchen, to the tea and some chocolate cookies.

Julia grinned at him gladly "I know!" she chuckled "I am very happy to be here, Walt. And Goodness!" she gasped when she spotted a long shelf hanging on the wall in the hall "I see that you too collect all of our family photographs!" she laughed.

Lily brought in more cake and sat down by her husband "Oh, we both love collecting photographs, Walter and me." she said joyfully "And it's so nice to have friends coming over and then having something which allows us to show our family off."

Julia laughed "I agree." she said and then looked at the clock "When is everyobody else going to come?" she asked excitedly.

"We have no idea whatsoever." Walt replied "You know our family, they won't even call us to say that they're on their way." he rolled his eyes and everyone else chuckled.

"Yes, I suppose that's how our family works." Blythe agreed and then kissed Hope's cheek, as she was sitting on his lap and listening to every word their parents and auntie with uncle were saying.

"Hope is such a sweet young lady." Lily said and tickled her little nice who smiled at her shyly "I can't believe that that's the first time I see her, when she's already say, seven months old?"

"Eight." Julia and Blythe said in unison and the two of them laughed "But look at your children," Julia said "-they are all so big now! I can't believe that Julienne is five years old already, and Jem-Jem is three."

"Our children grow too fast I think." Walt added "But then it's so much fun to watch them grow, even if it's so fast." he smiled at little Hope, who started grinning at him.

"That's exactly right, dear brother o'mine." Julia agreed and before she or anyone else could say anything else, a knock on the kitchen window was heard and they all turned to the direction of where the sound was coming from. There was Jackie and Grandfather Blythe knocking happily on the window and waving at them like two little children. Walt, Lily, Julia and Blythe all laughed together and stood up at once, making their way out of the kitchen to the front door.

"Let the Christmas time begin." Walt whispered into Julia's ear and Julia quickly kissed his cheek, because that was exactly what he used to do each Christmas Day when they were small children themselves.


Dear Diary,

Yesterday, we came back from Kingsport and now we are counting days to the New Year of 1951. It's just four days left now.

Christmas this year was very magical, very homely and very warm and even refreshing I think. Maybe it was because the Christmas was held in Walt's house and not at the old Ingleside as it always had been before?

Everyone was so joyful, it was really one of the best Christmases I have ever experienced in my life so far. All of the children were running around and joking for all of those few days we all spent together under the same roof. No one was in the "depths of despair" of any kind, and the atmosphere was simply enchanting and very Christmasy indeed.

Jake was playing Christmas carols on his violin for kids, and Rose and I started dancing and singing togther just as we used to when we were little. Lily, Cilia, Leslie, Luna, Rose and me joked with Lily's father William, who we all found incredibly funny, especially because of his orange bow hanging around his neck.

Nancy's little girl Delilah is simply beautiful and surprisingly, she's a very quiet baby. Owen's eyes were always on both his wife and his small daughter, and Blythe couldn't hide a small smile coming up to his lips. They were always so close, Blythe and Owen, and they could always understand each other. How many times I've heard Blythe saying that he missed their long conversations about stars? And so Blythe and Owen talked together for most of the Christmas Day, and I could hear them talking about their children, which to be honest was a weird thing for me to realise. To think that now both Blythe and Owen are fathers (and husbands!), a thought like that would be considered extremely funny for our clan, just ten years earlier.

It was such a shame that Cee and Patrick with Gilly and Faye couldn't come for Christmas this year... But I understand why Patrick decided it would be better for his little pregnant wife to stay at home, and not travel from the very States just for a few days all the way to our Prince Edward Island.

But Leslie, was beaming with her growing stomach and was simply annoying by not being able to talk about anything else but her future "baby-boy-boy" as she called the child growing inside her. I swear, I hope that she will have a little girl, just to prove her wrong!

It was really all so nice, those past three days we were in Kingsport. Blythe, my children and I all slept together in the living room on the gigantic sofa-bed, squeezed with Rose and her children. Rose and I talked till midnight each night and I felt like a fourteen-year old girl again! I don't know how this darling house of Walt's managed to squeeze all of us under the same roof for those three full days, but oh that was the very fun about it!

Now we are all impatiently waiting for this new year, as we are all extremely excited about what it will bring for us!

Yours Julia Una Ford


January 1951 came and it ended with a real blast.

Roxanna came back from Africa as planned and by God, if anyone had ever thought that this angel-girl could never shock anyone, they were wrong. Roxanna came back to White Sands and she looked as if she was given a new life. Her skin was light brown because of the African sun, her eyes were radiating with joyfulness and in her arms… in her arms! Julia, Gladys, Lake and all the Sisters jumped from shock. Roxanna was holding a small boy of one year of age, whose skin was all velvety black and his brown eyes were twinkling whenever he looked at his "mama" and therefore, Roxanna.

"Roxanna adopted the small Ebo just a few days after his birth." Julia explained to Blythe that afternoon, when he came back from work "His mother died at childbirth and Roxanna promised her that she would take care of him after she's gone. She didn't want to tell anyone about Ebo, and wanted to surprise everyone and she surely did!" Julia chuckled.

"So what is she planning to do now?" Blythe asked Julia curiously, and sat down by her on the sofa.

"She and Ebo are heading to Avonlea right now, on the train," Julia replied "-to Roxanna's parents, and Roxanna said that she will stay there with them for a while, to get some space and to show her boy every place she loved so much when she was a child herself." she sighed contentedly "And then she thinks that she will come back here to White Sands and work in St Gerard Majella's House again." she clasped her hands together happily.

Blythe smiled at his wife "It's good that she found love, although not in a way you thought she would." he said to her, a little smirk crossing his face.

Julia chuckled "I agree, I'm really happy for her." she said and suddenly, their telephone started ringing furiously. Blythe and Julia looked at each other with confusion, it was so late in the evening! Who, in Heaven's name, could be calling them?

Blythe stood up quickly from the sofa and picked up the 'phone "Hello?" he said "Oh hello, Roland." Blythe looked meaningfully at Julia who stood up to her husband immediately and her lips formed into a smile as she waited for Blythe to share the happy news she and her entire family was waiting for so long. Eventually Blythe finished the conversation and turned to Julia, who squeaked in joy as he kissed her both cheeks "It's a girl! Leslie has a little daughter." Blythe announced proudly, as he just became an uncle.

Julia gasped and put her hands on his cheeks "I knew that Leslie was wrong about having a boy!" she laughed "How is she doing and how did they call their baby?" she asked him excitedly.

"Leslie and the baby are more than fine." Blythe answered joyfully "And the name they chose for this little girl is 'Bertha Marilla'." he grinned "Eventually there really is a "Bertha" in our family."

"Oh, Blythe!" Julia sighed with delight and with a warm feeling spreading across her chest, she snuggled into his strong arms "I sometimes doubted that God really is there, but now I know, oh, I'm certain, that He really is there!" she said.