Hope for Tomorrow
Page 4
The Chickadees were relaxing this week after their busy but successful Summer Bible Camp. It was a touching bible study that Tuesday. Minnie led the study on Proverbs 31:10-31 which always brought about a lot of discussion as the passage was very relatable for the ladies being homemakers. Even though some of them worked at an outside job, some were retired, and some stayed home, they were friends and neighbors who came to Hope Valley from all different parts of the world. Some traveled far, from South Africa, England, Australia, Austria, and the United States, while others were already citizens from Canada. No matter where, they appreciated each other and treasured their friendships! Most importantly, they all shared their love and that was what bonded them like sisters.
As they gathered at Minnie's Cafe, they talked casually about how well last week went. "I must tell you all that our Bible Camp was very much appreciated by not only the children, but also by their parents! At the potluck I heard nothing but praise and compliments," Minnie shared.
"Oh yes," Debbie giggled, "the children had so much fun with the skit of Noah's ark, that they want to perform it again!"
"Pastor Joseph was perfect acting as God!" Janice added.
"I really enjoyed the music Dee taught the children and the way she included the motions really got the children into the songs!" Joyce nodded as she looked around the room. Everyone had perked up and were so happy that one lady after another added a positive remark.
"We need to do something similar for our Summer Family Fest," Jane suggested.
"What's on the agenda already?" asked Teresa.
"Rosemary usually is on top of this, but lately she's had to deal with a bout of morning or afternoon or nighttime sickness," Dee spoke up. "As happy as she and Lee are about her pregnancy, she's not been up to par. That explains why she isn't here this morning."
"Then who all wants to oversee this?" Minnie asked while looking around the room. Since no one volunteered right away, she asked Anne Lipinski with her daughter Christy, and Mary O'Neill. They immediately began to shake their heads no, but the other ladies thought it would be a wonderful opportunity to get them more involved in the town activities and quickly spoke up encouraging them.
"You won't be alone. We're all here to help!" Catherine reassured them.
"Yes, we will be happy to work on this all together. It'll be fun!" Maryann said.
"All right," Mary O'Neill agreed, "As long as I have Christy and Anne working with me and help from the rest of you. It's time to show my appreciation for all the ways you've helped me feel welcomed and the prayers for my son, Rick. I will be happy to help our town enjoy a festival."
"Oh, tell Rick we are still praying for his quick and complete recovery." Minnie added. "Thank you for agreeing to help run this festival Mary. Don't worry, we all have your back."
Minnie asked if anyone wanted more tea, coffee, or juice before she proceeded. The ladies got up and helped themselves. Clara was bouncing Michael on her lap and Christy walked over to the sofa to nurse Timi Anne. After their break, they gathered together for the rest of their plans. Dr. Faith had asked Minnie if they would plan a bridal shower for Molly too.
"These upcoming next few months will be a whirlwind, so ladies be prepared for a hectic time. Not only do we have the end of summer family festival, but there will be the bridal shower, Molly and Bill's wedding, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas festivities. That means, we will need all hands-on deck!" Minnie advised.
Not knowing when Rosemary would be feeling up to her usual bubbly event planner self, it was important that the Chickadees pitched in. Dee told the group that she would be back teaching music at school, and with her pregnancy not to count much on her.
"I think we ladies can handle all of this. I have every confidence in you all!" Jane announced cheerfully. There were several affirmative nods around the room.
That's when Marie Landoch, who hardly ever said a word, raised her hand to speak.
"Yes Marie, you don't have to raise your hand, just speak up like the rest of us," Jane laughed.
"Well now, Bob and I will be bringing home our newly adopted son, Gary next week. We are so excited and hope that you will come to Billee's Saturday for a little party to welcome him to our family and to Hope Valley!" Marie was beaming.
"That's just wonderful! Is Karen excited to have a brother?" Elizabeth asked.
Marie smiled, "She wanted a sister, but she already knew Gary from the orphanage and they got along really well, so she's fine now."
With the lunch crowd starting to come, the ladies quickly cleaned up after themselves and left for their next stop. Minnie being a Proverbs 31 woman had already prepared her soup and a casserole that were ready for serving for lunch.
As Dee walked outside she saw Dottie outside of her apparel shop sweeping the porch and waved to her. The town looked so appealing with the flower boxes hanging from the store's porch overhangs. It seemed with all the new people the quiet town was sure bustling and not so quiet anymore. The Mercantile was busier than ever with new supplies and more food. Ned had put up a "Help Wanted" sign. The library had a new outdoor sign that Nathan had carved and painted with some extra lumber from his house which helped bring attention to it. There were a few outdoor tables and chairs on the second-floor balcony of Billees for the room renters to enjoy too. That's when Dee looked over at the RCMP office and thought it needed something to spruce it up. As she walked home, she had an idea!
Hope for Tomorrow
Page 5
Gunther went to the library and greeted the cute redhead librarian, Rosaleen, asking where the baseball books were. She looked around eyeing the nonfiction section and spotted just the area she was looking for. Gunther was looking at Rosaleen and eyeing her. As she pulled the book from the shelf, she turned to him and met his gaze. Blushing, she handed him the book and asked if that was what he wanted.
Without looking at the book, he smiled broadly never breaking his gaze, answering, "Yes, that will be perfect, I'm sure."
Rosaleen looked away hoping to stop blushing, instead focusing on straightening up the books. Gunther didn't move he just opened the book and pretended to read but his heart was beating fast, and he knew why. Giving in to the feeling, he asked Rosaleen if she would like to go to dinner with him at Billees after the game on Saturday night.
Rosaleen was pleasantly surprised and shyly told him that most of the Hopefuls usually planned on meeting together after the game. Knowing that he would need to get cleaned up after the game, Gunther just nodded and said, "That's good. I'll see you there," he replied disappointed but not giving up he suggested, "maybe we can go for a walk after church Sunday."
Rosaleen smiled demurely, "I'd like that."
"Great, well, I'll see you soon. Have a good day, Rosaleen!" Gunther called as he walked out the door. Rosaleen watched him cross the street to the RCMP office and giggled to herself as she sat back down at her desk returning to her work.
When Gunther entered the office, Nathan was writing up commendations for the Mounties who had helped him with the arrest of Harvey Toliver, Constables Callahan, Meyer, and Palmer. "Hey, Gunther, what's in your hand?"
"A book on baseball. I'm updating myself on the rules of the game. I've been asked to be the umpire and I need to review them. Rosaleen helped me and found the book I need," Gunther smiled broadly.
Nathan noticed Gunther's excitement and recognized it wasn't just about baseball. "So, Rosaleen helped you find what you wanted, huh?"
"Yes sir. I will get busy reading this during our slow time, if that's all right with you."
"Of course, you don't need my permission. But I think you found more of what you wanted than a book," Nathan teased.
Gunther laughed and agreed, then he settled down and got comfortable in a chair and began reading all the rules of baseball making sure he knew them for the upcoming game Saturday between Hope Valley Stallions and Brookfield Broncos.
Allie was out at the Peterson Farm working with Penny. She was thrilled that she was now able to mount her and ride her around the ring. Today though, was the day that Lana Peterson was going to take her out for a ride in the country to see how Allie and Penny would do outside. Penny had never been in the country, so Allie was anxious.
Lana rode her horse, Shiloh and Allie rode Penny. They went slowly out of the fence and carefully watched how Penny reacted. She was very curious and a bit hesitant, but once she watched Shiloh walk confidently, she followed her example. Taking it easy they strolled down the driveway and down the road.
"So far, so good!" Allie patted Penny.
"We barely left the farm Allie," Lana smiled, "let's keep going a little faster now."
The girls clicked for the horses would speed up to a trot and Allie felt her horse moving underneath in time with Shiloh. The two horses seemed to be happy to be out in the country. They went past a few farms, and then a few rabbits came scurrying across the road and Penny started to whinny. The next thing Allie knew Penny was cantering down the road! Lana came cantering up on Shiloh and grabbed Allie's reins to slow down Penny until both of them came to an abrupt stop.
"Whew!" Allie was relieved as she let out a big sigh, "I thought she'd never stop!"
"Allie don't be afraid to use the reins and say loudly and firmly commands. Penny needs to know you are the boss, remember?"
"Yea, I do. I was just startled and forgot to take control. I'm sorry," Allie looked down feeling embarrassed.
"Not to worry Allie, it takes practice, and you will get more confident the more we go out. Let's just turn around now, and slowly trot back to the farm for now," Lana suggested.
When Allie finished grooming and feeding Penny, she asked Lana why the rabbits would cause Penny to take off on her. "She's not used to other animals yet. Being in the farm, she hasn't seen much else. When we go out tomorrow, she might see foxes or raccoons, so you'll need to be ready next time. Don't worry, you'll do fine," she smiled reassuringly.
When Allie got home, she told her Oma all about Penny cantering and how Lana helped her. "I felt embarrassed, Oma."
Oma put her arm around Allie and told her, "I've never been good at riding. Your mom and dad were always on horses, but they scared me. I stuck with cows, chickens, cats, and dogs. I can handle them."
"Did you ever ride a horse, Oma?"
"Yes, I did, being a farm wife, it was part of my life, but I'm afraid of heights and being on such a tall animal made me nervous, so I'd rather keep my feet on the ground, ya?" Oma laughed. "You'll do just great; you've got the spirit of adventure in your blood. I see your mom in you, so don't forget she's watching over you just like a guardian angel."
Allie hugged her Oma and felt comforted immediately. The floral fragrance from tending to her flower garden clung to Oma's apron and it soothed Allie to her core.
Hope for Tomorrow
Page 6
Elizabeth helped dress Jack after she allowed him to pick out his own clothes. Jack felt like a big boy when he was able to choose what to wear. His choices were comical sometimes, but she learned to let him pick out the clothes in order to get him dressed in a reasonable amount of time.
Coming out of the terrible twos, and now being more cooperative, Elizabeth had relaxed and enjoyed her little boy. It was just him and her now and she could focus on being a better mother.
Being a teacher, she found all sorts of fun ways to teach him his colors and shapes. The two of them would point out shapes of things around the house, outside or while in town. Colors were fun too and she really enjoyed his antics which made her laugh as he pretended to be an elephant or monkey. During the Summer Bible School, he was the funniest and cutest monkey in the ark.
Just like his mother, he looked forward to going to the library to look for new books for Elizabeth to read him. Rosaleen was so fun to talk to that when she had helped Jack pick out a book, Elizabeth suggested she host a library story time for any little ones to come. Rosaleen thought that would be fun, "Elizabeth, I think that's a grand idea. I'll have to put a poster on the door window and ask Rosemary to write it up for the Valley Voice."
"If I were you," Elizabeth suggested, "I would write up your own article. Rosemary has been feeling good off and on so it would help if you just handed her the article."
"Sure, if you think so, I'd be happy to." Rosaleen smiled.
"Look, I have to stop at the Mercantile before I head home. When I get back home, I can run next door and call on Rosemary to see how she's doing and give her your article. So, we'll stop back in a little while. All right?"
"Great, see you then." Rosaleen nodded.
Nathan walked over to Bill's office and found him sitting at his desk, pouring over more legal papers concerning all the purchases of land and building permits, checking them off in a ledger and checking that they had the proper information and were completed legitimately. When he looked up and saw his buddy he said, "Nathan to the rescue!" as he threw his pen down. He sighed, pushed his desk back and stood up. "Paperwork! I've buried in all these legal documents and haven't seen the light of day!"
"I am here to take you away," Nathan laughed, "how do you feel about taking a ride to Clearwater with me to check out the automobiles I saw?"
"Fresh air sounds wonderful. Lee lending you his car again?" Bill questioned.
"Yes, are you going to trust me?" Nathan joked.
"Sounds good to me, I'll buy lunch." Bill said as he locked the door behind them.
Nathan popped his head in and told Gunther he was going to Clearwater since it was a slow day. Gunther just nodded and buried his face back in the baseball rules book.
Bill and Nathan both liked the automobiles that were for sale. Bill thought he'd go for a 2-seat automobile for Molly and himself, but Nathan knew with his growing family he would definitely need a 4-seat one. Both of them took their picks out for a ride together.
"How does it feel to be behind the wheel?" Nathan asked Bill.
"It's been awhile, but it's just like riding a bicycle. It all comes back to you. I'll need to practice a bit more before I take Molly out, but I'm sure she'll want to learn to drive herself. I can just see the flash of red hair blowing in the wind!" Bill laughed.
When they went back to the automobile dealer, they both negotiated a price and decided to take the plunge. Agreeing to return after talking to their banker for a loan, they returned to Hope Valley very enthusiastic. Bill and Nathan both walked over to the bank as soon as they arrived to apply for their loans.
Nathan popped in to check with Gunther and asked if he wanted to have lunch with them at Billees. Gunther was more than happy as he looked up from his book to join them. "I thought you'd be hungry. Besides, Bill is providing lunch," Nathan smiled.
Over at Billees, the two Mounties waited while Bill grabbed their lunches from the kitchen. Several guys from the lumber and oil companies came in for lunch too. Maggie and Sam were busy, so Bill helped them out for a while. Gunther recognized some of them from the Hopefuls social club. Gunther saw Katie Yost and Rosaleen walk in for lunch too. That brought a big smile to Gunther's face, but it was quickly lost when he saw Katie and Rosaleen joined by several of the guys from Hopefuls.
Nathan noticed Gunther's disappointment and quickly started talking about the automobiles that he and Bill had driven. As Nathan described them, Gunther's eyes were still on Rosaleen, but Nathan finally got Gunther to perk up as he hadn't learned to drive yet and he promised to teach him once he brought home his automobile.
Rosaleen saw Gunther and waved, but went right back to talking and laughing with Katie and the other guys.
"Hey, Gunther, she's allowed to be with others. You just asked her out, and she's been here longer than you. She grew up here and knows a lot of people, so don't let it get to you." Nathan patted his back as they walked back to the RCMP office.