Utopia
Joe could feel the lighted room, even before opening his eyes. He knew it was morning. Scotty's presence he felt next to him. Joe had the spot by the wall just under the window. Scotty into the room. Scotty didn't stir so he imagined him to be still sleeping. Joe lay still as to not disturb him and without so much as opening his eyes, not wanting to face the abrupt crudeness of the morning, he thought about his family. Where they were now. Had they met their 'break of day' timeline? If so, they would no longer be at the ranch house. But they wouldn't be too far away from it neither. They were still here, technically. Still on their land even. Making their way towards the west gate and the edge of Tahoe Lake. Still close. Close enough to touch, almost. If he needed them to, close enough to come back. His heart ached, just a little bit as he longed to touch them now. He wept in his own heart, then pushed down this pine with a definitive sigh. He couldn't touch them now. Five weeks seemed like such a long way away. Five weeks, that's all. He thought attempting to alter his outlook. He could do this.
He felt Scotty shift now and finally gave into opening his eyes. As he knew would happen, the strong images he had of his family slipped away to reflect their current distance. Their presence unable to retain.
Scotty's yellow room was made all the brighter by the morning sun shining through the east facing window, which no curtain had been placed to shield the effects. Joe had turned to check on the other boy, to see if he were in fact ready to wake up. He was unnerved to discover Tomlinson looking over them from the center of the room. When Scotty's eyes opened and met his pa's, his breath hitched. "You two planning on sleeping in the whole morning." Two pairs of boots were thrown down on top of the boys. "Get dressed." At their confusion he added. "Well, did I promise you fun or what?" Both boys were as equally perplexed.
After a hearty breakfast that incorporated dishes from the night before, they set out that morning.
"Are we going to take Mule?" Mule was the name of the one horse he kept from the journey east. Tom hadn't been the one to name him. His former owners must have had a funny side to them as Mule was about the largest horse there was, a Palomino Clydesdale. It was definitely worth its weight. The breed was great for pulling and hauling stuff. As far as Joe knew, since they've been here that horse has been stagnant. Tom kept him because he was going to use him to crop once it got established. For now though, he was just keeping it fed and happy.
"No. It's only about a mile's walk. I think we could make it."
They were headed in the direction of Rock Lake. Joe knew this area well. It used to be one of Hoss's favorite places to fish when they were younger. Joe liked to just swim, splash around which would be counteractive to Hoss who was trying to get some fish on his line.
"Are we going to the lake?" Joe asked.
"No. Right around. There's a spot up ahead, I was told about when I got into town. It's one of the reasons I bought this place." Was he talking about Swallow's Flat? That's the only thing Joe could think of that was over in this area. Joe's been up here twice before. Hearing of the same notoriety so many years before, he made his brothers take him up here when he was about six. He would discover then, that it wasn't much to look at. He and his brothers had bored quickly and decided to spend the rest of the day in the lake. They made this trip only one other time a few years later. It was even less to look at that second time around, as the mystery of the Flat was gone. It was just as they had remembered. That was the last time they had come up here.
Joe didn't mind making this trip again. He even found some enjoyment in it, showing it off to the new faces. They went around to the west bank. Trailing through the tall grass and shrubs that made up the vegetation between the large rock and the water. On account that this area was more familiar to Joe than to Tomlinson who was trying to show Joe something neat, Joe took the lead, following the thin walking path to the climbing rocks on the back side of the flat. Joe was too excited at showing off his climbing skills to think about reaching back to help the youngun' who didn't seem to have much experience in climbing. That was okay though because his pa was right behind him, helping him through each hurdle. It took about five minutes of scaling over these large boulders before they reached the top.
As far as birds go, they were about as plain as they come. Brown wings and back. Their neck and breast painted red. Their underbelly was a rusty tan. A white collar encircled the neck. A white speck adorned their crown. There were a lot of them. They claimed this rock as their own. Populating the pinion pines that made up the majority of the vegetation at the top of the rock.
The birds babbled back and forth, rising in excitement at the arrival of the visitors, warning each other of their presence. The trio didn't come to molest them. Just observe, which the Swallows were soon to come to terms with. They went back to their normal routine. Fighting and playing with each other. Chasing each other off the rock and back on again. Into the trees and back out. The trio kept their distance at the back of the rock, watching the birds at their play. The sun hung in position high in the sky shining almost overhead but more so to the front of the rock.
Joe discerned, the rock itself with the birds playing on top wasn't as beautiful unless you took the whole Nevada horizon into account. The tall Ponderosa Pines that made up the valley floor. The lake barely visible to their left. Small shimmers reflecting through the trees reminding the casual observer that it was still there.
Though the company was better the last time, this time maybe perhaps because Joe was a bit older and was able to comprehend the greater beauty or maybe perhaps it was because he saw something intriguing through the eyes of the newcomers, an innocent fascination, but this time as he stared out, he couldn't help but feel a sense of peace. Pride in his home and for all it had to offer. Yes, today was a good day.
~.~
"You think we can take a dip in the lake?" Joe asked nearly an hour later as they took the path back towards their house. Tomlinson snickered.
"You can't have too much fun in one day. You've got to spread it out some." The boy could accept this.
Taking Joe out like he had had worked. It hadn't exactly kept the boy from thinking of his family but Tomlinson had been able to distract Joe's mind enough that he didn't dwell at their absence. Whenever he thought of his family it was on good terms and in good spirits.
His first day was done. Lying in bed now, in the dark there were no distractions and Joe didn't want them. This was the time he could and would designate to them. He was okay with distracting his mind during the day. It would be for the better but the nights were his, to do with what he will. It was his time to conjure up images of his family and dwell in their mystic presence. His time to be with them.
He wondered where they were now. Pictured that they'd made it as far as the Truckee River. Crossed over it perhaps. Were they nearby? Camping along its bank? Or did they make it further on down? Hoss must be having one heck of a time. Oh, Hoss must be so proud. They might even let him have his first drink. Oh. not yet. Not while they were so fresh on the trail and barely starting out. Joe knew enough to know his pa didn't like drinking on the trail. Oh but after, after they'd gotten there and dropped off their load, that was something worth celebrating. Would they let Hoss drink then? He hoped his brother was doing well. Not disappointing no one or messing up. His brother was real eager to impress. He hoped he was doing it.
Joe fell asleep thinking of his family and letting those thoughts of them carry him away until he was off in his dream world.
