"I hope these cookies will do for the church picnic tomorrow!" Frances said, stirring in the ingredients for the batch she was making.

"Frances, they'll have too!" Melania joked. "Besides! You're a wonderful cook! I'll bet they'll go crazy over them!...No one can turn down one of these!"

Frances chuckled. "Well, we sure do love to eat, don't we?...Plus, I don't think I could turn down a coconut cookie! Or the coconut itself for that matter!" She laughed. "….Did you save the coconut milk?"

"Oh yes! Half into a jar for your family….and some for mine. James loves it!...I can't get that boy away from it!" Melania laughed.

"Speaking of one of your children….where is Mary Jane? You think she'd be helping us right now!" Frances chuckled.

"The girl's always up in her room now….Will barely eat and keeps to herself…I've tried to talk with her, but she won't let me….."

"Do you know what's wrong?"

"I have a feeling…..boy troubles."

"Ever since Sam moved away last year…." Frances stated.

Melania nodded.

"Mind if I go up to her room and talk to her?"

"I think that would be good…oh, and give this to her….I stopped at the post office this morning. Look what came for her."

Frances read the address. "It's from Sam!...Oh, this will brighten her mood!"

"I sure hope so…" Melania said.

Frances went upstairs and knocked on Mary Jane's bedroom door.

"Come in…its open."

"Hey, Mary Jane….Just thought I'd come up and talk a little bit." Frances said, sitting down on the bed. "Come on, girl….talk to me!" She smiled, nudging her a little. "I bet you I can help you if you tell me what's going on."

"It's nothing Aunt Frances…." She said quietly.

"I don't think so…Your Ma says you haven't been eating as much…you've lost weight. You know that's not good for you! You're as skinny as a rail as it was!" Frances laughed. "Come on, tell your favorite Aunt what your problem is."

"It's over for Sam and I. I tried to tell myself otherwise…but now I know. He's moved away and I'll never see him again." Mary Jane sighed, feeling tears well up in her eyes, and she laid her head on her Aunt's shoulder.

"Now, don't say that…You don't know that, Mary Jane."

"I'm 18 years old and I'm going to grow up to be an old maid!"

"Mary Jane…you will not!" Frances laughed a little.

"We were barely anything to begin with! All it was…smiles….small talk…joking with each other…And just when I want it to be more, he moves away!"

"Mary Jane, Mary Jane, Mary Jane…." Frances said and then sighed. "Look back on those little things and smile! Remember those cute little moments with him! Enjoy them!"

"Why should I?"

"Because they happened in the first place…." She smiled and then spoke again. "Have you ever heard the term, big things come in small packages?"

"What are you getting at?" Mary Jane asked, wiping a tear from her cheek.

"Let me tell you a story…all right?" Frances smiled, wrapping an arm around her niece.

"All right…."

"Once upon a time, there was a young, 16 year old girl. Every summer, she would take her family's two cows to their grazing spot. It was usually fenced in, but the place where this girl was leading them instead, due to the drought, was all open country….It was a job she didn't care much about, but on this particular day, the bossies gave her no trouble at all, for which she was grateful. On that warm summer afternoon, this girl saw a young man coming up the road. Tall, about 23 or 24 years old. He was wearing a hat…and had a newspaper tucked up under his arm. He greeted her with a hello, but the girl didn't return his greeting. He made her a little nervous, him being a total stranger….and she was very glad the little creek was between them. The young man passed by and went up a little hill, sat down by a tree and read his newspaper. She glanced at him and was watching him out of the corner of her eye….and thought he had smiled at her, but she soon went back to her magazine, and him to his newspaper….The girl thought she should head home, and so she started leading the cows back the way she came, when passing by, the young man said hello to her again…and again, she didn't say a word….."

"What is your point to this loooong story?" Mary Jane sighed.

"There's a little more! Be patient…" Frances chuckled. "Well, that summer had passed…and one day, the girl was about to go to a 'picture show' with her best friend, but she heard some voices coming from downstairs, which was nothing new to her, because they would sometimes have visitors over…..and anyway, it turned out one of her brothers had a few friends over, one of which was the young man she saw that past summer. The young man came right over to her, shook her hand and they started talking. She apologized for not returning his greeting. He said he understood, that it was all right, because in his country, everyone greets each other, even if they don't know each other….

"Are you finished yet?"

"Almost…." Frances smiled. "Do you know what happened?"

Mary Jane shook her head.

Frances smiled a little. "They got married,…and their start was simple, Mary Jane!"

Mary Jane was silent a few moments.

"Do you know who this young girl was?"

"Who?" She asked.

"You're looking at her…." Frances smiled. "And of course that young man, was your Uncle Fred….Mary Jane, our start was the most simple I think simple can get." She laughed. "Me not saying hello…we still joke about it years later...saying I snubbed him." Frances smiled and chuckled a little bit. "Our start was small, but it turned out to be an even greater thing!...I'm not saying you'll grow up and marry Sam someday…but there's always hope, so don't just give up!"

Mary Jane smiled at her aunt. "You're right, Aunt Frances…"

"Your mother wanted me to give this letter to you…." Frances smiled.

Mary Jane took it from her and glanced at it. Her brown eyes lit up. "It's from Sam!"

"I'll leave you alone so you can read it." Frances smiled, and walked out of the room and back downstairs.

"Problem fixed?" Melania asked.

"I sure think so…" Frances smiled. "I know that letter lifted her spirits."

Mary Jane came rushing downstairs in a giddy frenzy. "Sam wrote me a letter! He's here in Dubuque!...This letter said he'd be in by the 26th! That was last week. You know how slow the mail is…He's staying at the boarding house on Iowa Street . He wrote he wants to see me!"

"You think he's still there?" Her mother asked.

"Yes!" She smiled excitedly. "Says he'd be staying for two, three weeks…then he has to go back home….Can I go see him, Ma?...Please?"

"I'll have Paul drive you there…."

"Thank you, Ma!" Mary Jane smiled and hugged her neck…."Thank you, thank you, thank you! I love you so, SO much!" The 18 year old couldn't stop smiling as tears came to her eyes. She rushed out the door with her 20 year old brother, who brought her to 428 Iowa Street, Mrs. Matthews' Boarding House.

"Your girl's in love…." Frances smiled, as they saw her run out.

"I know…." Melania smiled, tears welling up in her eyes. "I hope she marries a wonderful man one of these days…"

"She will…don't worry, she will." Frances smiled.

(

"Hello, Mrs. Matthews…"

"Hello, child….what a nice surprise. It's good to see you!"

"It's great to see you too…Is Sam Zust here?" Mary Jane smiled. "He wrote me a letter and said he was here…." She beamed.

"Room 12…." The lady smiled.

"Thank you, Mrs. Matthews!" She grinned, running up to the room. Mary Jane stood there outside the door, smiled, took a breath, and knocked on the door. The door was opened , and there he stood, tall, handsome, 18 year old, Sam Zust.

"Mary Jane!" He exclaimed, wrapping her in an embrace. "I didn't think you'd come!"

"Didn't think I'd come?...Sam, are you crazy?" She asked, her head pressed against his chest. "I've missed you!" They both said at once. Her head snapped up to meet his and they smiled at each other.

"I couldn't stop thinking about you, Mary Jane." He grinned at her. "I love you."

"I love you too, Sam…." Mary Jane smiled up at him, her brown eyes shining. "Let's go downstairs….you can tell me all you've been up to." She giggled.

"All right…" Sam laughed. They walked downstairs together and sat at Mrs. Matthew's kitchen table. They talked for hours, catching up with each other. Then Mary Jane felt she should head home.

"I hear your church is having a 4th of July picnic tomorrow." Sam smiled. "All right if I go with you?"

"Of course, Sam…." She smiled, and went out the door.

"She's a sweet girl, Mr. Zust…." Mrs. Matthews smiled at the young man.

"Gee, Mrs. Matthews….you don't have to call me that. Mr. Zust is my Paw…." He chuckled. "You can call me Sam…."

"Well then….she's a sweet young lady….SAM." Mrs. Matthews laughed. "When are you going to ask for her hand in marriage?" She smiled.

Sam grinned. "Planning on asking her the night of the pinic."

"Well, good luck…." Mrs. Matthews smiled. "And if you're in need of a room for say….a honeymoon night….you're welcome to one here." She chuckled.

Sam grinned at the thought of a honeymoon night with Mary Jane. Yet, he managed to snap out of it…a little. "Thanks, Mrs. Matthews…"

"You're welcome, Sam…"

(

Four months later…..

"Well, this is nice….seems like now a days, we barely have time to ourselves anymore." Fred grinned, with Frances sitting on his lap, enjoying the warmth from the fire in the hearth on one cool November evening. The 12th to be exact.

"I know…." She sighed, her head pressed against his chest. "…but we can fix that." Frances grinned and titled her head up so she could kiss her man. She wrapped her arms around him and rubbed his back.

"Oh, that hurt…." He moaned.

"I'm sorry, I forgot you hurt your back!" She winced. "I'm so sorry!"

"It's all right, honey…." Fred said. "I just gotta watch it when I'm chopping wood from now on….Been working too hard, I guess." He chuckled a little.

"Freddy can help you more….."

"Nah, don't wanna push him too hard…He's only 8." Fred covered her lips with his. "Let's get back on track, huh?"

"All right…." Frances giggled in a low pitch. Fred had placed his hands up her skirt and she felt his hands brush against her thigh. He was about to say something when they heard a loud, hurried knock on the door…they bolted up out the chair and went into the next room, the noise waking up Freddy and Helen as well, and so they came out of their rooms…

"Kids, go back to bed." Fred chuckled. "It's all right, you have nothin' to worry about!"

"But we wanna see who's here, Papa!" Freddy said excitedly.

"Fine, but then you go back to sleep!" Frances said. "You have school tomorrow." She went with the three of them following her into the kitchen and she opened the back door.

"Grandma!" The eight and six year olds exclaimed.

"Hello sweethearts!" She said, giving both of them a kiss on the cheek.

"Ma…what are you doing here this late at night?" Frances chuckled.

"I wanted to tell you the good news!" Franziska beamed. "Nona just had her baby! A girl, Frances Josephine! You have a little namesake!"

"How wonderful…." Frances smiled. "Congratulate Joe and Nona for us!"

"Six grandchildren!...Six beautiful grandchildren!" Franziska beamed. "Paul, Mary Jane, James, Fred Jr., Helen, and now Frances Josephine!" She smiled at saying the newest grandchild's name.

"Wonder when a seventh will show up!" Fred said, nudging his wife.

"Fred John!" Frances exclaimed and was about to slap him!

"Do you two have something to tell me?" Franziska grinned.

"No we don't!" Frances said, and began to chuckle. "He's only joking…right honey!" She said, looking at him.

"Well…." Fred began to say.

"Fred!" Frances exclaimed. "No….no, no, no, no…not right now! Freddy and Helen are enough!" She laughed a little.

"In a few years?" Fred grinned.

"Maybe…." Frances smiled at her husband.

"Well, I best be getting back home…Just thought I'd let you all know!" She smiled.

"Thanks for telling us, Ma…Goodnight." Frances smiled, and shut the door after her mother left. "Now, off to bed, children!" Frances smiled, and gave both of them a kiss and a hug goodnight. "You have school tomorrow…."

"Goodnight, Mama." Helen smiled.

"Yeah, 'night Mama!" Freddy said, going off to his room.

Six year old Helen looked up at her mother. "I'd like a little brother or sister!"

"Helen…get to bed!"

"Yes Mama…." She said, and walked into her little room.

A/N: Mrs. Matthew's Boarding House was found on 428 Iowa Street in Dubuque. She catered to many railroad employee's, since she was less than three blocks away from three different railroads.

Frances Josephine Gruber was born to Joseph and Nona Gruber on November 12th, 1921.