I have nothing to say...weird.

The Christmas Box

It was the first week of December and Ethan had been thinking about Christmas. He had already given the boys and Katie their gifts from Dodge. He supposed that he should have kept them for Christmas but he didn't. So he had made his Christmas gifts as he did every year. For his father he had did some repairing on things in the barn and wood shop. For Caleb he had made a wagon and whittled out two little horses and for Will he had made a train. For Katie he had made a little doll cradle for her new dolly. For his mother he made a spice rack. She had been saying that she wanted one for quite a while so he had built it. Then he had spent some time thinking about what he wanted to make for Emily.

(Ethan's POV)

I have been struggling to come up with an idea as to what make Emily for Christmas. Until I was working one day out in the wood shop with my little brother Caleb. It was just the two of us at home today. Ma and Pa along with Will and Katie had gone into town for supplies. "Caleb can you give me some help?" I ask.

"Sure." Caleb said.

I smile to myself, Caleb has always been the helpful one of the two twins. "I have to think of something to make for Emily's Christmas gift."

Caleb gives me a gap toothed grin. "Why would you want to give a gift to a silly girl?" he ask.

I pick him up and set him on the work bench. "Caleb, when your my age you'll understand." I rub his head and set his cap on crooked.

He laughs and I set him down on the ground again. "Well, you could make her a box." Caleb offers to me.

"That's it! Caleb, good job! I'll make Emily a jewlery box." I say and set to work.

Caleb hangs around the work shop and is quiet for quite some time. "Ethan, is Emily your gal?"

"No." I say. "I wish she was though."

"Why?'

"Because." I say. The twins have been on a why kick lately, I don't know why but they sure like to use that word so I change the subject. It isn't hard to bungle up a six year old. "How is school going?"

"Good." he says. "Will doesn't like it though."

"I don't suspect that Will will ever like school."

"Prolly not. He says he doesn't like the teacher, Miss Miller."

"Why not?"

"I don't know. I suppose cause she is a girl." Caleb says.

"You two sure have a thing against girls. What about Ma she's a girl."

"No. She's a Ma." Caleb tells me.

I laugh and look at Caleb. "No she's a girl or well a woman. Like I said, you guys will understand in a few years."

"Ethan?'

"What?"

"When did you start likin' girls?"

"I don't know. I suppose when I was bout 12 or 13."

"Have you had lots of gals?" Caleb ask me. I know that the little boys still talk about girls on the playground. They did it when he was in school and he was sure that nothing had changed.

"No. I've never had a gal Caleb." I admitt for the first time to anyone.

"Why not?" my brother ask.

"I don't know, I guess the right one has never come along."

By the end of the afternoon I had the box finished and was just putting some oil on it to protect it. I had sent Caleb into the house to dig through their Ma's scrap bag and find him something to line the box with. He came back a short while later with the nicest blue velvet I had ever seen. I ask him, "Caleb, where did you get this?"

"Outta Ma's scrap bag. Member she made that dress for Katie last Christmas." Caleb told me.

I did remember after he jogged my memory so I used the blue velvet to line the box. There it was finished. I tell Caleb that it is time to do the chores and take the box up to my room.

Ma and Pa and the other kids return just as Caleb and I are finishing up the chores. Katie comes running through the snow to me. "Etan! Etan!"

'What Miss Katie?" I say bending down to pick her up. She was getting the hem of her dress all wet.

"Wu got a letter Etan." she said, holding the envelope out to me. I knew it was from Emily. I could tell that it was from Emily just from the writing on it. She had always liked to write anyway. She though that it was fun.

I carry Katie into the house and thank my mother with a kiss for bringing the letter. Then I say to Pa, "Don't worry about anything in the barn Pa, Caleb and I did all the chores."

"Oh?" my father says. "Well thank you boys."

"Ma, I'm going upstairs for a while, will you call me for supper?"

"Yes sweetheart." Ma says.

I take the stairs two at a time and go up into my room and shut the door. Then I quickly tear open the envelope and take out the letter and read.

Dear Ethan,

Thank you so much for the beautiful locket. I love it and I haven't taken it off since I recieved it. I must admitt that I was a little suprised to be recieving such a beautiful gift from you. I figured by now you would have a girl and she would be taking all your time and attention.

Things have been going well here. Louise is continuing in her pregnancy, she is five months along now! It is hard to believe that in another few short months that she will be having a baby and we will have it here with us. Things at the dress shop have been fine. We have been very busy as it is the holiday season and people here always like to look nice.

Oh my other exciting news! I am going to a Christmas ball! My aunt would like for me to meet a few more people here in Philadelphia and I have taken heed to her wishes. I would love for Louise to go with me but she does not feel comfortable going in her condition, so I am going alone. Oh how I wish I could see you! I miss you so much Ethan!

Also how are the little ones, Caleb, Will and Katie? I miss them as well, especially Katie. What a sweetheart she has always been. Well I must leave you for now. Again thank you for your generous gift.

Always,

Emily

I laid the letter on my bed and put my head in my hands. Why oh why couldn't this deal just work out? Just once I wish that Emily would end her letter love Emily or that she would tell him that she cared for him, something! Well at least he knew that she liked the locket. That was a good thing, wasn't it? He went to his dresser drawer and pulled out the picture that lay there. It was of Emily. Gosh she was pretty. He looked at her curls. Pretty, beautiful.

I hear footsteps on the stairs so I quickly put the picture back in my drawer and then wipe a hand across my eyes. I hear a soft knock and then my mother's voice. "Ethan?" she says.

"Come on in, Ma." I say.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"Well you've just seemed so sad." Ma says to me.

"I might as well tell you Ma." I say. I had to unburden myself to someone other than Pa.

"I already know."

"You do?"

"Yes." My mother says. "I also know that you sent her that locket that you bought in Dodge and that she is going to a Christmas ball."

"Wow, how do you know all that Ma?" I ask, amazed.

"I saw Casey in town today."

"Oh. She told her mother huh?"

"No. Her aunt told her mother and her aunt also told her mother that she should be here in Rock Springs so that she can be close to you." My mother says, taking my hands in hers.

"Really?"

"Yes. Ethan, I think after the new year there are a few things you need to sit down with your father and I and talk about a few things ok."

"Alright Ma." I say. I wonder what is so important that I need to talk to both Ma and Pa.

The next day I take Emily's gift and ride into town with it. Ma asks me where I'm going and I tell her that I'm going to visit Granddad for a while. She seems to accept that reason and lets me go.

As I ride I look up at the sky, it's one of the nicer days that we have had in a while but it is still cold. I wonder how Emily can stand living in a cramped big city when there was all this space that she could have. I cross the creek that runs through our place, where Pa always crosses with the wagon so that my horse doesn't slip. As I cross I think to myself that it would be a nice place build a house someday. Once I get out on the flat I hit a lope because it is still cold outside and I want to get to town as quickly as I can.

When I get to town I stop at Granddad's house first. He isn't there so I figure he must be down at his store. When I get to the store I see the renters and Granddad. "Hi Granddad!" I say knocking the muddy snow from my boots before I go in.

"Ethan!" my Granddad says. "How have you been my boy?" He comes up and slaps me on the shoulder.

"Ok, granddad. How have you been?" I ask.

"Oh fine, fine." Granddad says. He starts coughing then and I wonder if he is really ok. I know that he wouldn't want to worry any of us.

I'm carrying Emily's Christmas gift with me and Granddad looks at it and ask, "Ethan what are you doing with that? Do you plan to sell it here in the store?"

"No. This is a Christmas gift for Emily but I need some way of shipping it to Philadelphia." I tell my grandfather.

"Oh well. Let me go behind the counter and see what I have. That's beautiful work, I assume you made it?" Granddad ask.

"Yes sir."

"Well that is fine craftsmanship. You do fine work boy."

"Thank you."

Granddad digs around behind the counter for a while and then he comes back up with some soft looking material and some brown paper. We wrap the soft material around the jewelry box and then the brown paper. After that we tie some good brown cord string around the whole package and then Granddad and I walk down to the post office.

I tell them where it has to go and hope that it gets to Emily before Christmas. I had tucked a letter inside the box as well so I hoped that she didn't open it and read it with her Aunt or Lou around.

After sending off my package Granddad and I walk down to the café for lunch and again he starts coughing. So I ask him, "Granddad are you sure that your feeling ok? I mean maybe we should go and see doc instead of going to eat."

"No no, don't worry about it Ethan. I'm fine."

I pretend not to worry all through lunch but I am. Just as we are leaving we see Emily's parents. "Oh hello Ethan." Casey says to me.

"Hello Miss Casey." I reply. I kiss her cheek and accept her hug.

"Ethan, how are you son?" John ask. Extending his hand.

I take it and give it a firm shake and say, "Fine, sir. How are you?"

"Fine, fine. Have you been over to see Oliver at the bank?"

"No sir. I plan to stop over there after I take Granddad home."

"Well I'm sure he'll be glad to see you. Good to see you Percy." John said and he and Casey moved on down the board walk.

I take my grandfather home and then walk over to the bank. When I walk in I see Oliver behind the tellers window helping a customer. He is dressed in a fine suit with a vest and he is wearing a little green visor and his hair is all slicked up. He seems to be doing quite well and I am glad that he is taking to banking to a duck like water. I also wonder if that is the type of fellow that Emily sees herself marrying, with fancy clothes, button up shoes, slicked up hair.

When Oliver finishes with his customer he sees me and comes around from behind the counter. "Ethan! How have you been?" He shakes my hand.

I shake back and say, "Fine. It's good to see you to Oliver. How is working in the bank?"

"Well I didn't think that I was going to like it at first but I've adjusted and I like working with the customers."

"That's good." I reply. "So have you found your own house yet or are you still at home?"

"I'm renting a room at the hotel. I like it a lot better than living at the house. I needed to get away. So now mother and father only have Alexandra to worry about, oh and Emily." Oliver says. "She seems to be doing well in Philadelphia."

"I know. We've been writing to each other." I say a little sheepishly. I am sure that my cheeks are red from just admitting it.

"I know that as well. We've been writing. I would really like to meet her friend Louise. It sounds like they may come home for a visit after spring comes and Louise has her baby."

"Hmm. She never told me that." I say. What a thought! Emily coming home. Maybe then I could screw up enough courage to ask her to stay, to tell her I love her, to ask her to marry me or at least let me court her.

"Well don't mention it to her, I'm not sure if they'll come or not. Em seems to really like Philadelphia." Oliver says. "I just wish she would come home so I could meet this Louise."

"Hmm" I say again, "Sounds like you might like Louise. What do you know about her?"

"That she is a widow, her husband died of the fever and her family sent her away and she met Emily on the train to Philadelphia."

I wondered if that was a concocted story of Emily's, but I wouldn't say anything to Oliver about it. Let him believe what he wants I guess. We visit for a while more and then Oliver tells me that he has to get back to work. I say good bye and go back to my horse who is tied at the hitching rail.

Just as I was about to step away from the hitching rail Elizabeth Connelly comes running out of a store down the street. Elizabeth works at the boarding house helping Mrs. Smalley. "Ethan!" she shouts a big smile on her face, the wind blowing her red hair into her face.

I stop, "Hello Eliza."

"Ethan did you hear?"

"Hear what?"

"About the dance, they're going to have a dance down at the stable barn for Christmas. It was Mrs. Munch's idea. "

"Oh." I say. "Well what does it have to do with me?"

"They would like you to bring your guitar and play with Hal Deeter and Paul Long." Eliza told me.

"I guess I can." I say. I know that I won't feel like dancing with anyone so I might as well play my guitar for everyone that does.

I chat with Eliza for a few more minutes and then figuring that she must be freezing standing in the cold I say my goodbye and head towards home.

As I get out away from town I see that it has started snowing again. I hope that I haven't worried my parents. My Ma is always worried that I'm going to get caught in a blizzard and die.

By the time I get home I can't feel my finger tips or toes. I take my horse into the barn and unsaddle. There I find my father milking the cow. "Hello son." He says.

"Hi Pa."

"How were things in town?"

"Alright. I'm worried about Granddad though."

"Really? Why?"

"Well he was really coughing today. Almost like he was starting to get sick or something."

"Well we won't say anything to Ma. I have to go in for supplies later in the week and I'll check on him."

"Alright."

Remembering we had mail from the day I pulled it out of my saddlebags and told my father that I was going into the house to warm up.

I was disappointed to see that I didn't have any new letters from Emily. I warmed my fingers and toes and was also relieved to see that they weren't frostbitten. The boys were home from school and they told me "Ethan! We don't have to go to school tomorrow!"

"That's good." I say. "Katie what did you do today?"

"Played dollies and I even got Papa to play house with me."

"Oh." I say.

Ma was cooking supper. "Boys." She said, directing her attention to my younger brothers. "You get the plates out and give Katie the silverware and set the table."

I set Katie down on the floor and watched as the three set the table for supper.

Later that night I sat in my room and wrote Emily another letter.

Dear Emily,

I hope you got your Christmas gift and that you liked it. If you didn't like it I guess you can give it away or something. I went and seen Oliver today at the bank. He seems to be doing well. He told me that he has taken a room at the hotel. I guess that is ok, so he feels a little more independent. I am looking at building a house maybe in the spring, along the creek. I haven't talked to Pa about it yet but when the snow is gone I would like to start a little spread of my own. I guess I feel after talking to Oliver to today I feel I need to go out on my own a little bit.

So tell me about your Christmas ball. I heard from Eliza Connelly today that they are having a Christmas dance in town, she came and asked me today while I was there if I would bring my guitar and play for them. I suppose I will cause I won't want to dance with anyone there anyway.

Well I best get to bed. Pa and I have a lot of feeding to do in the morning.

All my best,

Ethan

I went to bed that night, feeling a little better than I had before.