Cecilia Rose Meredith was not going to cry. She just would not do it. That would only show everyone that she was sad and even a little scared. She couldn't do that. She had to be brave and strong and be a good example for Little Elizabeth.
Little Elizabeth Anne with her golden hair and sky blue eyes that twinkled with a liveliness that was all her own wasn't even aware of what was happening. She didn't know that their parents were abandoning them for two whole weeks while they had fun in Montreal. She didn't know that for two whole weeks there would be no Mother to sing them to sleep or Daddy to tell them wonderful bedtime stories of places far, far away. She could only smile her dimpled, baby smile and laugh her normally infectious baby laugh as Daddy tickled her feet while Mother held her in her lap. Cecilia had to bear the burden of abandonment all on her own.
She stared out the window of the train, resting her brown head in her hand. It was all too much to bear for one eight year old girl. "This must be similar to how Grandmother felt when she was left at Hopetown," she dully thought to herself.
Never in her eight years had Cecilia Rose Meredith spent a night without at least one of her parents. She had never known the fear of being separated by those who loved her most. She never had even gotten lost or wandered too far away before.
She had always been their miracle child; their only child for ever so long. She enjoyed having so much attention devoted just to her for so many years, but she never was envious of the attention Elizabeth received once she was born either.
It always seemed to her that there was something missing in their little family of three. It was always obvious to her that her parents had wanted a houseful of children, and it was nice to have a baby as sweet as Elizabeth following her everywhere. Sometimes she felt like there was still something missing. She mentioned it to Mummy just before they started packing for the trip, but she gave her such a sad look in return, that Cecilia never mentioned it to her again.
Perhaps Mummy wasn't happy with her, and she needed a vacation away from such a terrible daughter? Maybe that's why they were just dumping Cecilia and Elizabeth on the mercy of relatives.
Under normal circumstances, Cecilia would love a visit to The Glen. She would visit Ingleside, the House of Dreams, Grandpa's Manse, Hope's Cove, McGowan Farm, and even Douglas's Store. She would be thrilled at getting the chance to play with Hope, Gracie, Tenny, Gilly, Walt, John, and all the other children there. She had cousins to play with in Avonlea, but they were all so much younger that it wasn't nearly as fun as when she was with kids her own age.
Still yet, what would she do without her mother to tuck her into bed and her father to kiss her goodnight? It was all too much for such a young girl. She was so sad that she couldn't even draw, and that was her greatest hobby of all.
Cecilia was always drawing. Auntie Di had once mentioned that Cecilia must have been born with a crayon in hand rather than a silver spoon in her mouth. Even at the age of eight, she had long ago put away crayons and mostly drew with pencils. Daddy said that she wasn't really drawing anymore, but sketching and called her a wunderkind. That seemed wonderfully grownup, and made her enjoy it even more. She sketched everything from her dog, Divinity, asleep in a bed of June lilies to Elizabeth smiling at her through the porch window at the manse. One of her favorite sketches was of Mother tending her rose garden while Elizabeth slept curled up next to the ever protective Divinity. Of course she liked the one of Daddy at the pulpit, preaching with his "earnest face," but then she wasn't supposed to sketch in church.
Sketching held no allure for her now though. Her imagination wasn't free to see the beautiful things to draw when it was overcome with thoughts of being abandoned by her parents.
She could see the steeple of Grandpa's church rolling up in the window and knew that it was almost time. Her heart sank as she felt the train pull to a stop and Daddy grabbed her hand. She knew that he wouldn't be doing do for a long time, if ever again.
Suddenly she felt an even more overwhelming urge to cry, but was too stubborn to let people see her doing so. Instead she just held her head up high and tried to walk off the train with an air of confidence.
Mrs. Bertie Shakespeare Drew, formally Daisy Howard of Lowbridge, was picking up a parcel at the train station that day and saw the Meredith family of Avonlea leaving the train. All of them seemed to have their heads held up a little high for her taste, but then Nan Blythe had always been a proud one. No doubt it rubbed off on her husband and children as well. She was about to make some comment to the family when two pigs came tearing past her with Gilbert Ford and that bumpkin, Lucy McGowan, on their backs. She was absolutely shocked be what she saw next:
Jerry doubled over in laughter, "I can't believe that Gilly's doing what Walter and Faith did! Oh, poor Rilla's got her hands full."
Nan wasn't too sure about Jerry's approval of such actions. "Jerry, do you think that as a minister, you should approve of this?"
"Oh Nan-girl, you know that children will be children. If this is the worst thing Gil and Lucy do, then we're quite all right."
"I suppose you're right, dear. After all, Faith and Walter turned out fine, and those Drew pigs never again emerged from their pen. They were a nuisance," she said, slowly beginning to bust into uncontrolled laughter herself. She stopped herself though when she saw the look on Daisy Drew's face.
Daisy Drew was Howard and her mother had been a Pye. She could make all sorts of trouble for their entire family if she got angry enough. However all thoughts of Daisy Drew left her again once she saw the tiniest smile upon Cecilia's face. She knew that her eldest was troubled over their eventual separation.
Nan hated to leave her girls, but she knew that it was very important for her to accompany Jerry to the minister's conference. She could no more shirk her duties as a minister's wife than she could her duties as a mother, and she knew without a doubt that both girls would be well taken care of by their family. Still, it would be so much easier if Cecilia didn't feel so strongly about it.
Like her mother and grandmother, Cecilia Meredith felt things more than other people. When she was happy, she was the happiest child on Earth, but when she was sad, well the same circumstances applied.
Cecilia expected a crowd of relatives when they arrived at Hope's Cove but only found that house's inhabitants and Grandmother awaiting their arrival.
Aunt Una hugged Cecilia and apologetically told informed them, "We were going to have a jolly picnic for the children, but Walt and John caught cold and Rilla phoned that Gracie sprained her ankle."
Jerry laughed and cryptically told his sister, "Well, we saw Gilly in town taking a page out of Walter's childhood. He may not be allowed out of the House of Dreams for quite a while after today's escapade."
Grandmother was shocked at this since she had just seen Gilly when he delivered her newspaper. "Whatever could that precious boy have done? Why he was at Ingleside not two hours ago delivering our newspaper for Kenneth."
"Well Mother," Nan said as she sat Elizabeth down on the floor to toddle about, "we just saw young Gilbert riding a pig through town with Lucy McGowan."
Walter fell back in his armchair. "Oh all the things for that boy to copy, I'm most embarrassed by that!"
Anne thought back to the original pig-ride and remarked, "Those pigs never did leave their yard again though. There are worse things that a boy can do. Walter dear."
Jerry nodded his head, "That's just what I was telling Nan, Mother-Anne!"
Nan plopped down beside her brother, "Well, if the good reverend says that it isn't that bad, then I suppose it isn't. " She watched Cecilia slowly climb upstairs behind Hope to put her things away. "I'm a little worried about Cecilia. I think she's a little afraid to be away from us for so long, but is too stubborn to admit to it. You'll make sure that she's happy while she's here, won't you?" she asked of her brother, sister-in-law, and mother.
"Oh no, Nan!" Walter gave her a most serious look. "I plan to have her scrub the floors each morning with a toothbrush, cook all of our meals from scratch, and generally just watch while all of us have fun and she doesn't."
"Just as long as she's looked after," said Nan.
"Don't worry too much about the girl, Nan. It's normal for children to have some anxiety the first time they're separated from their parents for a long period of time. Walter went through the same thing when Rilla was born, and we sent him to visit with Dr. Parkers family," her mother told her.
"At least Cecilia's with family who love her. I was quartered with some of the most terrible children I have ever met," Walter assured her again.
Upstairs, Hope was showing Cecilia where she could put her things when she jumped into her bed. "We can share my bed, if you want to, Cecilia, and stay awake all night sharing secrets and telling stories. It'll be like we're sisters instead of just cousins. I've always wanted a sister even though Tenny's a good brother." She noticed her cousin's long face, "What's the matter, Cecilia?"
"Wh-where will Elizabeth sleep? Sometimes she gets scared at night and either sleeps with my parents or me. I worry about her being all alone in a big, different house without Mummy."
"Oh, Mum and Dad have set up a crib for her in their room so she won't ever be alone, and she can sleep with us some too. She's such a sweet baby. It must be nice to cuddle up with a cuddle-able baby."
Cecilia knew that Hope was trying her best to make her feel at home, so she climbed on the bed with her and told her, "It is nice, especially when she falls asleep with her chubby little hands wrapped around my fingers. Lately though, she's been wrapping her fingers all in my hair. It's nice at first, but it's really hard to move, and I like to wiggle some in my sleep."
They chattered on and on about nothing in particular but everything that they could think of when Tenny knocked on the door. "Cecilia, Aunt Nan wanted me to tell you to come downstairs because it's time for she and Uncle Jerry to meet their train."
She had been smiling, a genuine, sweet smile until poor Tenny had to be the one to break the news to her. The sweet smile disappeared, and an unmistakable frown took its place. Tenny didn't relish the thought of making his pretty cousin frown so. He liked her smile. When Cecilia smiled, he always felt like smiling as well.
The three bounded downstairs as Nan and Jerry were kissing Elizabeth goodbye. Still she was happy as ever, finding contentment in her Aunt Una's arms. Cecilia wished that she could be as ignorant and happy as her sister.
She stiffened her back, held her head up high, and stilled her quivering lips as she told her parents goodbye. She didn't know how her cold farewell bothered her departing parents. They would never know how much it bothered her.
They were gone in a very short time, and everyone else seemed to go about life as usual. Cecilia, on the other hand, felt the sudden, cold emptiness of being separated from her parents. Thankfully she was surrounded by family who dearly loved her because they managed to fill at least some of the void left by her parents by lavishing her with attention and love.
As each day passed, Cecilia still missed her parents, but became accustomed to staying at Hope's Cove. It was rather difficult not to enjoy spending so much time with cousins like Tenny and Hope and Aunt Una and Uncle Walter.
About five days into her visit, everyone was well enough to finally have the long-awaited picnic at Hope's Cove. After finishing the delicious banquet that was prepared for them, the children decided to venture to the little shore at Hope's Cove, each to follow their own desires.
Most of the boys, Maddie McGowan, Hope, and Nell Douglas decided to play a game of baseball, and were having such a fun time that Mr. McGowan and Uncles Walter, Jem, and Ken couldn't help but join the fun. Gracie still couldn't do much on her ankle, so she sat on a little dune with John while they told each other silly stories. The other women folk watched and talked of all the goings on in the Glen.
Cecilia, for her part, found a grassy little spot with just the right amount of sunlight overhead and decided to sketch. She had been itching to have pencil and paper in hand all morning since she saw a certain rose that Uncle Walter had given Aunt Una in the morning light.
It was the most perfect rose that she had seen. It was white as newly fallen snow. There were no blemishes. No petals were out of place. It just struck her young mind as the epitome of everything that is beautiful, had she known what epitome was.
She concentrated so hard on drawing the rose exactly from memory, that she didn't notice when the game ended and many went their own way. She never noticed that she was alone or that Bryant Douglas when he was sent to find her.
Bryant Douglas was a cute little chap though he never thought of himself that way. He had inherited his father's brown complexion and sandy blonde hair from his mother and her "white eyes."
He tapped Cecilia gently on the shoulder, but she was so absorbed in what she was doing that she didn't notice. He tapped her again, albeit quite a bit harder, and this time she had little choice but to notice him. In fact, when she turned to face whomever was rude enough to disrupt her muse, she looked straight into his white eyes and was given a terrible fright.
She started to scream until she realized that it was Bryant behind her. Instead of screaming, she only through him her most Nan and Anne-like withering glare.
"What do you think you're doing, coming behind someone like that! I thought your were Death reaching out for me with your icy claw!"
Bryant sat down beside her and coolly said, "You've been listening to John and Hope's stories too much. Your Aunt Una wanted me to let you know that everyone else had gone to the house. She didn't want you to feel abandoned."
Cecilia sniffled a little, feeling overwhelmed by all of the emotions that she had experienced the past several days. "I suppose that she pities me because my parents have abandoned me."
Bryant was shocked to hear such an admission from a child of the Blythe / Meredith clan. "Your parents left you here for good?" Cecilia could only nod. Any other movement would surely cause her to lose all control and break out into sobs. "Why, I thought they were only leaving you here for a couple of weeks while the reverend's at conference!"
Cecilia bit the little lower lip that kept threatening to completely pucker, "Two weeks may as well be forever. They'll get used to not having any children around and will surely leave us here for good."
Bryant only said, "Nah," with a pass of his hand. "My ma has gone on lots of business trips and such, and she's always come home to us. She missed us all too much to stay away. Your ma and pa will come back for you and your little sister."
"You really think so?"
"Why of course! They're good people, not the sort that just abandons their kids. Say, what is that you've been drawing?" he asked peering over her shoulder.
She was a little afraid to show him her precious drawing, but then she was a little curious about what he thought of it as well. He certainly seemed nice enough not to make fun of it or her.
Gingerly, she passed the pad of paper over to him. He studied it with his queer yet handsome eyes for quite some time. She began to worry that he thought it very silly when finally he told her, "That's the prettiest picture of a rose that I've ever seen! It makes me want to go out and pick some until I find one like it."
He liked it! She never felt so good after hearing the praise of one of her drawings before. She played with her skirt a little as she told him, "That rose has already been picked. Uncle Walter gave it to Aunt Una this morning. It's so sweet and romantic."
"Do you like Roses, Cecilia?"
"Yes I do. My middle name is even Rose."
"Gee, that's such a pretty name, Cecilia Rose Meredith."
She smiled a genuine, lovely smile that graced her face. "I think that Bryant is a nice name too."
He smiled back at her, but informed her, "My Christian name is Robert. I was named for my pa's pa. It's an old Miller family name."
"Robert's a nice name too. It fits you."
The two soon found their way back to Hope's Cove and busied themselves playing with the other children. However later that evening, Cecilia found a pretty yellow rose with a red tip with a little handmade tag that just said, "Cecilia's Rose."
Uncle Jem saw it and decided to tease her mercilessly. "Oh you know what that means, Cec. You've got an admirer. Pretty soon you'll be talking about getting married."
Cecilia's brow furrowed, but her eyes grew larger and larger until they were two brown saucers on her face. She wanted to get married, but not anytime in the near future. Why, she wasn't finished with grade school yet, her mother was only just beginning to teach her to cook, and she couldn't sew a stitch to save her life! She decided that she could not get married for at least a year or so.
Thankfully Aunt Faith was nearby and heard Jem's teasing. Ever so swiftly, she came to Cecilia's rescue, "Cec, don't listen to your crazy Uncle Jem. He's just teasing you."
Cecilia let out an obvious sigh of relief that made every adult watching have to hold back their laughter. Aunt Rilla asked to see Cecilia's rose and admired it thoughtfully, "Cecilia, do you know who left such a beautiful rose for you?"
"No," she answered. She had her suspicions, but couldn't be positive. None of the other children were near just then, so she couldn't judge their reactions. The adults had their own reactions though. Cecilia's rose seemed to bring out a nostalgic air in all of them, and they started reminiscing aloud.
Aunt Faith remembered, "I gave Jem a rose the night before he went away to the war. He carried that rose in his pocket all through the war. He came home before I did, but when I did return, he met me in Rainbow Valley one night to return it to me and place his mother's circlet of pearls upon my finger. It was the single most romantic thing that has ever happened in my life. The rose is still in my Bible, and I look upon it every day when I read my scriptures."
Aunt Una remembered, "When I was about fifteen, I was set to attend my first dance. Now, I knew that I couldn't dance because I was the minister's daughter and I was so horribly shy that I wouldn't have talked to many people, but I still longed to attend. I imagined how beautiful all the girls would look, how handsome the young men would be, how everything would just sparkle under the moonlight. Unfortunately I caught cold the night before, reading poetry in the Methodist graveyard far too late in the evening. But someone knew how I long to see everything and longed to smell the lovely flowers, so he brought me a single yellow rose bud home from the dance. I think that was when I knew that I would Walter all my life."
Grandmother remembered, "Every time Gilbert was called away from the House of Dreams that first year we were married, he would return with a single red rose. I don't know where or how he got them in the winter, but he did. I kept and pressed them all, they have their own special chest in our bedroom at Ingleside. I can't believe that I once thought he wasn't romantic enough for me. He's made every day of our marriage a romance in his own sweet, sublet way."
Aunt Rilla looked at Cecilia's rose and absentmindedly said, "A yellow rose with a red tip means a deep friendship on its way to being love. I think it's very special that you were given this rose, Cecilia. Do you plan to press it and keep it?"
"I don't know how, or I would."
Aunt Una smiled, took her hand, and told her, "Come with me, Cecilia. We'll go into Uncle Walter's study and I'll show you how to press it perfectly."
The next Sunday, Cecilia was sitting in the family pew at church, listening reverently to Grandpa Meredith preach when she felt a pair of white eyes upon her. Inside her Bible, she kept her little rose and the sketch she drew that day. The fingered both of them throughout the sermon a little nervously. As they were piling out the church, she noticed a Bible was left on the Douglas pew.
Cecilia tried to be sly as she opened up the text, but no one would have mistaken the smile upon her face when she saw that it was Bryant's. She was still smiling when Bryant ran in to retrieve his Bible.
"Here you go, Bryant. I saw that you left it, and was bringing out to you," Cecilia told him as she handed him his Bible.
"Thank you. Cecilia. Ma would've made me write a hundred verses if I had lost my Bible. Cornelia gave this to me the last Christmas she was alive."
They didn't really know what else to say to each other, so Cecilia blurted, "My parents are coming home tomorrow. We're to return to Avonlea in time for prayer meeting Wednesday."
Bryant's eyes grew somewhat sheepish, "I-I'm really glad you came to the Glen, Cecilia. You'll have to come again soon."
Then something just came over Cecilia. She leaned to Bryant and quickly kissed his cheek before running out the door. She stopped at the doorway just long enough to share one last smile with Bryant before disappearing into the bright sunlight. It wasn't until the next day that Bryant found the sketch of the perfect rose, Cecilia's rose in his Bible.
I needed a little break from C&J, and this little bit just came to me. Don't forget to review! Reviews are the best inspiration that exists.
