I was taking a quick morning walk to Manzanita Post not too long after Thanksgiving. My legs were sore from sleeping out in the open in the cold weather. My horse walked beside me, content at not being ran that day. A few strangers greeted me as they passed me by and I just nodded back.
When I arrived at Manzanita Post, I considered going to the general store. As I approached, I noticed a woman sweeping the steps. When she saw me, she smiled and greeted me.
"Hello, mister." She brushed her hands off on her skirt. "If you've come to buy something, you'll have to wait a couple of minutes. My uncle has gone to town."
"Alright." I stepped over and sat down on the flat stump nearby. "I can wait. May I ask why your uncle has gone to town? He doesn't buy his products from Blackwater, does he?"
"No, no." She shook her head and continued sweeping. "He got in a fight with a man who tried to rob us about an hour ago. He broke his arm, but managed to get his gun and take care of the robber."
"Well, I'm glad he took care of it." I replied.
"Yes, sir." She said. She was one of the few people around close to my own age. Her hair was pinned up, but a few curls fell loose over her forehead. Her hair was dark brown like rich soil, and her eyes matched. She wore a dark green dress with a thick coat and an apron over all of that. She looked as if she had been working all morning, but due to the cold it seemed that not a drop of sweat had touched her forehead.
She finished sweeping and set the broom aside. With a sigh, she sat neatly on the steps and looked at me. To be honest, her cheerfulness made me feel a little uncomfortable.
"May I ask your name, mister?" She folded her hands in her lap and looked at me patiently. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."
"Jack Marston." I had no reason not to tell her.
"Oh, I've heard of you." She clapped her hands together. "A woman came through a few days ago saying that you saved her from wolves."
"Yes, well-"
"And a man came a while before that and said you got his wagon back from some robber."
"Well, I-"
"And then another woman came through and said you saved her from getting kidnapped in Thieves' Landing."
I waited for her to interrupt me again, but she didn't.
"Lots of people think of you as a hero, Mister Marston." I didn't know what to say to that. It struck a chord in me that hadn't even sounded in a long time. I looked down at my filthy boots.
"I'm no hero, ma'am." I shook my head. "I've done just as many bad deeds as good."
"Aw, I'm sure you're just being hard on yourself." She stood and set her hand on my shoulder. "My Momma always used to say that the person who judges you the harshest is yourself. Not even God judges us as much as we do to ourselves." I stared at her. "Now, when my Uncle gets back, I'll treat you to some hot tea. No charge, I promise."
At that, she turned around and went back inside of the general store. Instead of taking her up on that offer, I left. I couldn't have possibly done that, sitting and talking wasn't something I was used to doing. Still, she left me with something to think about.
I haven't returned to Manzanita Post since. I don't know what I would ever say if I saw her again.