And the greatest of these is Love

Chapter 7

Page 19

Trevor was doing quite a lot of automobile business for a new entrepreneur. He decided to name his shop after his best friend, so Buddy's Auto Repair and Filling Station, it was. The sign he designed, with Luke's help, was finished and ready to hang up. While Trevor was on the ladder, Luke was handing the sign to him.

"Hey Luke, lift it higher, I can't reach it!"

Luke stretched as far up as he could which finally was enough for Trevor to take it from him. When Trevor grabbed it, it was heavier than he had figured, and the sign fell and knocked Luke to the ground. Luke lay on the ground with his head bleeding and not moving. Trevor flew down the rungs of the ladder in a flash, "Luke, Luke!" he screamed.

Luke didn't move. Trevor listened for his breath, but it was shallow. "Help, Help!" Trevor yelled looking for help. Panicking, Trevor grabbed his handkerchief and began wiping Luke's forehead trying to find the source of the bleeding. It was near his temple and he knew that was a thinly covered area and could be a fatal blow. Trevor began to shake, sweat pouring down his neck and tears burning as they welled up in his eyes. "Please, please Luke, wake up, don't die!" he cried.

He didn't notice a group of people had gathered at his side. They opened up the circle as Dr. Carson came running up. "Let him through," someone in the crowd said.

Trevor saw Carson and sobbing he screamed, "he's dead, he's dead. I killed him."

Carson looked shocked at Trevor, "Trevor, he's not dead, I can see he's breathing. Let me check him please." Carson moved slowly watching Trevor as he approached Luke. Trevor was unusually upset.

Carson carefully examined Luke and was relieved to see his eyes flutter and then open scanning the area. "Where am I?" Luke asked as he tried to get up.

"Hey, hey buddy, you are alive! You had me scared!" Trevor was thrilled.

Carson told Trevor, to take it easy and catch his breath, and he'd take care of Luke. "Luke, how do you feel?"

Luke grabbed his head and confessed it hurt. "How did this happen?" he asked as he pulled his hand off his head and saw blood on his fingers.

"I'm sorry," Trevor said hurriedly, "I dropped the sign and it hit you and knocked you down."

After his initial exam, Carson told Luke to try to sit up, but slowly. As he did, Carson watched him carefully to make sure he didn't get dizzy. "How do you feel now?"

"Just a little woozy. Am I still bleeding?"

"It seemed to have stopped. Trevor put his handkerchief on it which helped," Carson explained. "Now, sit here for a few minutes and take a few good breaths."

Minnie came with a glass of water rushing from the Cafe. "Here you go, Luke."

The cool water refreshed Luke and he started to feel better. Looking over at Trevor, Carson noticed he was still shaking. "Hey, Trevor, it's okay, Luke seems to be much better. Why don't you help me walk him to the infirmary where I can do a thorough examination?"

Trevor didn't hesitate, after all it was his fault he thought. Anything he could do to help Trevor, he was ready. Luke slowly stood up and took a few good breaths. After a few minutes, Carson asked him to slowly walk over to infirmary with them. If needed he could put his arms around Carson and Trevor, but he was fine and walked on his own. When they got to the infirmary Molly opened the door and had the second examination room ready.

Carson asked Trevor to wait in a chair over by Molly. Molly took down notes as she asked Trevor what happened. Trevor was still very upset, and Carson could hear him talking to Molly. Carson called out, "Molly, don't question Trevor any more. He needs to relax. Please give him a glass of water, thank you."

When Carson was done examining Luke, he told him that he was lucky that he woke up so quickly. "I don't think you suffered a concussion, but I would like you to go home and take the day off of work. Let's just see how you do. If you have any headaches or get drowsy, I want to know right away. Understood?"

Walking with Luke to the door, Carson asked Trevor a few questions, "How are you feeling Trevor? You were shaking and quite upset before and I'm concerned."

This time Luke spoke up for Trevor, "Doc, he suffers from shell shock from the war. It's been rough for him, losing his best friend who died in his arms."

"Oh man, that is tough. Look, Trevor, you might feel better if you get some counseling. It's nothing to be ashamed about, plenty of soldiers have come home and suffered in silence, but you don't have to," Carson advised.

"I've talked to Fr. Ricardo and he's offered to counsel me, but I haven't been back since. I guess, I better I don't want to over react like I did just now, scaring myself and Luke too. It's just that I don't like to talk about it," Trevor admitted.

Carson nodded, "That's very common. Otherwise normal people break down under sufficient stress and have nightmares, reliving their experiences from the war. Your first step to health, is to admit you are suffering with the symptoms and need help. It would be essential that you talk to someone. Fr. Ricardo is a start, but you might need a doctor who specializes with this too. I want you to come with me to Clearwater Hospital as soon as I can get an appointment set up. Is this all right with you?"

"Look, we're here to take care of Luke, not me," Trevor backed away.

"Luke will be fine and back to normal tomorrow. You Trevor, I'm not so sure of. Please let's just give it a try."

Luke looked at Trevor, "Hey, do it for me, okay? I'm tired of your nightmares waking me up!" he laughed.

Trevor hesitated, but eventually gave in, "All right, I know when I'm outnumbered. Right now though, after Luke gets back to our home, I want to fix up my banged-up sign. Thanks Doc," Trevor smiled.

Page 20

Nathan was sitting outside drinking his coffee while rocking in the chair on the porch of the NWMP office. He was waiting for Andy and Gunther to show up, but they were running late. He looked again at his pocket watch and noted that it was already 7:00. If they didn't show up in the next minute or two he'd go on rounds himself, but they'd have to stay late tonight. It was Nathan's turn to close up and be on call, but he'd gladly let one of them take it over. Having his son, Christopher caused him to look forward to spending more time at home. Dee was such a good, loving mother, but by the end of the day, she was more than ready to have her husband would be relieved to have his daddy come home early to take care of him so it worked out wonderfully, most of the time.

Nathan had to chuckle, most of the time, that was true. Thinking back on one night from last week he had walked into a chaotic time at home. Allie was stewing that she hadn't heard back from Robert and was sure he had fallen out of love with her since she was not with him while he was in Mountie school. Nothing Dee said calmed her down and she continued to moan and whimper which only made Christopher cranky when it was her turn to watch him while her mom was busy.

Dee never thought twice that Emily should cook all the meals and insisted that she relax while Dee took over. Archie had been a handful more and more leaving Emily stressed by dinner time. It was time for Archie to have his second cataract surgery, yet the rest of the family were very concerned how it would affect him this time around.

Archie was starting to get up in the night and wander around. This inevitably caused Emily to wake up and have to check on him. He would usually stumble and walk into things making noise. Nathan would hear him once in awhile, but he and Dee had kept their bedroom door closed so when Christopher woke up he wouldn't wake anyone else too. Now though that Christopher was sleeping for a good 6 hour stretch at a time, they left the door open because Nathan was concerned knowing his dad could be waking up at anytime.

Nathan talked to Dee about it as he didn't want his Ma to be worn out. They decided to talk to Carson and see what he suggested. Nathan didn't want to lock Archie's door, as that might start a whole different set of problems. Carson had being doing research on senility and was disappointed to find that there wasn't enough studies concluded to suggest anything in particular to help.

"Just try to set up a routine, that's about all you can do. Maybe no afternoon naps will help him sleep all night, or giving him a drink to settle him down at night too might be worth it. I just don't recommend it every night," Carson shrugged.

"What about warm milk at night? Ma thinks that calms down the stomach. She used it with us if we couldn't sleep when we were little," Nathan asked.

"Couldn't hurt. It does seem to help. Old wives tales usually have some truth behind them. Sorry, Nathan that you are going through this."

"I am too. We were thinking about having his other eye operated on, but now we don't know how that will affect him. What do you think?" Nathan asked his good friend.

"You're probably right, if it breaks his routine, well, it won't be worth it. He seems to be doing all right with the one corrected. Although, you might want to double-check with the ophthalmologist," Carson suggested.

Life with Archie was unpredictable, but he sure enjoyed his grandson. Archie could simply act like himself with Christopher and keep him entertained for quite some time. Nathan was grateful that his Ma and dad had reconciled. That was due to his Ma's heart which was good as gold. Everyone knew her kindness and forgiveness. He appreciated that Allie witnessed it first-hand and admired her Oma too.

Dee was such an easy-going wife lovingly accepting having her in-laws living with them at t he same time turning his precocious daughter into lovely young lady. Now the two of them were learning to be parents together to their little bun who was growing fast and not so tiny anymore. It seemed to come natural to Dee, and Nathan envisioned a big family with her.

Nathan snapped out of his daydreaming when he almost dropped his coffee. Looking once more at his pocket watch he decided he'd go with Newton on the morning rounds. As he got up, he smelled something quite delicious. Not sure what it was, he followed his nose to Billees. It was very early and Billees normally wasn't open, so Nathan went to the door and found it unlocked and peeked inside. There was Andy and Gunther sitting at a table eating bacon, fried eggs, and french toast and jam with big steaming cups of coffee jabbering away. Bill was whistling in the kitchen and boomed a big, "Hello there!"

Nathan was definitely surprised. Gunther and Andy stopped eating and looked up and stared at Nathan.

Bill saw the young Mounties had stopped eating and looked at Nathan, "Hey, don't be sore. I told them I made too much breakfast so I invited them to stay. I told them I would take the blame if they were late."

Nathan gave Bill a puzzled look, "Wait, why are you here cooking breakfast at 7:00 in the morning? Where's Molly?"

"Molly? Yea, well, she's going through a rough time now, so I felt I'd be better off leaving the house for a little."

At that, Andy and Gunther got up, brought their plates to the kitchen and apologized to Nathan. "Sorry Sargent, we're coming right now!" Andy responded gulping the last of his breakfast with a quick swish of coffee to wash it down.

"Just go on rounds fellas, we'll talk later," Nathan ordered.

When Nathan heard the door slam behind them as they left, he was still curious. "Rough time? What is the matter?"

"Let's just say, she's going through that womanly thing. You know, the change, or something like that."

"So, why are you here, if she's the one with the thing," Nathan didn't know exactly what to say.

"Oh man, I wish I knew what I do wrong, but she's in one foul mood this morning. She started by yelling at me that there's too many blankets on the bed and she was hot! So, I took off the blankets," Bill explained.

"Then the next thing I know, she says she has a headache. She says my snoring keeps her up. Nathan, I can't keep up with Molly. One day she's as happy as a lark, and the next she ready to bite my head off!" Bill shook his head.

Nathan chuckled. "Lucky for me, I don't have that problem now and won't for a long time."

Bill shot Nathan a sour look, "Hey, don't you have to get to work?"

Nathan laughed as he walked out the door, "have a good day Bill!"

Page 21

Spring was definitely in the air. All the boys were busy practicing baseball under the direction of their coaches from last year, Matthew, Mark, and Luke for the Hope Valley Stallions. Like last spring, the girls would gather around and watch the boys. It was fun watching them practice, but the boys didn't much care if they were there or not.

This year the team was bigger with the families that moved to Hope Valley when the new row houses were built. Some of the boys knew nothing much about sports and had to be taught how to even play, but they were surprised when they actually went up to bat who could hit homers. That helped those boys to feel better about their place on the team. Others proved to be better playing bases or out-fielding, and there was one who was particularly good at pitching.

What all the boys needed was to exercise, unless they were coming from farms and even those who did, still had to get those muscles back in shape from the winter. The coaches had been back to work themselves so they were ahead of the game, which proved to be a good thing.

With the new boys joining the dads were coming when they could to watch practice, but they were warned that if they thought they could do better, there was always the fathers vs son baseball game later in the summer at the Family Fun Fest where they could strut their stuff. It was a good way to make friends outside of work. However, most of the men rarely had any free time and when they did, they often times were too tired to watch. If they did, they found it was a great way to unwind and relax. This was a great bonding time for fathers and sons. Moms and siblings would come to the games, but the fathers dominated at the practices.

Ronnie Lipinski wanted so badly to join but he had to help his dad at the farm. Spring was also planting season for the farmers. They had to turn over the soil and plant the seed. David Lipinski didn't want his son to miss out. He had learned his lesson the hard way with Christy, not to shelter his children so tightly to the farm that they didn't know much about the world in town. So, David asked the coaches if Ronnie could come as often as he could and be a part of the team. Knowing how difficult this would be, Matthew suggested that he be the bat boy and score keeper at the games. Ronnie wasn't too thrilled to have to sit on the bench, but at least he could join the team and have some fun with the other boys.

Every time Nathan, Andy, or Gunther were out riding their horses and checking on the countryside, the signs of new life were everywhere. Of course the wildflowers were blooming, leaves were filling in the bushes and trees, dandelions lined the path, and the streams and rivers were full of melted snow and rushed down their course. Peonies, tulips, and daffodils were blooming around the houses and farms, carefully tended to. Emily loved her edelweiss and had transplanted some she had potted taken from her farm to their new home. She also picked up some seeds and bulbs from Kevin at the hardware and garden shop in town. Having Archie outside helping her kept him busy and Emily happy.

Out at the farms, baby animals were peeking out from their mamas. Little lambs, calves, foals, and baby chicks were populating the farms nearby. Out in the country the wolves, raccoons, and coyotes had their pups and the bears had their little cubs. Of all the animals in the wild, the little fawns seemed to be the cutest prancing around on their tall, thin legs with their fluffy white tails. One thing Andy learned was that baby rabbits were actually called kittens! Yes, it was a delightful season full of new life!

Most of the time that is. With spring also came thunderstorms and high winds coming down from the mountains. Last year they had the dam built that controlled the melted snow water so the fields weren't as flooded like previous years. The other benefit was the electricity it provided for the towns nearby. The Mounties had to keep an eye on the weather too not only for flooding, but for fire. If anyone was building a fire for burning trash or for whatever purpose, the wind could easily blow a few sparks onto dry brush and start a huge fire.

Mayor Fiona was asked that they purchase a motorized fire engine and ambulance for the town. Both were expensive, but with the size of the town, Hope Valley needed to provide for their residents safety. Fiona knew they had to have a town hall meeting to discuss these purchase requests and financing. Before she had requested meetings, but this evening she said it was imperative that as many as could should attend. It was on a Saturday night when they gathered at Billees.

"Good evening," Fiona looked around, "I see representatives from the businesses in town, the farming community, and the rest of the good citizens of Hope Valley, so this makes for a well-rounded group of friends and neighbors. Thank you all for coming. It's been a very productive year in our town with the expansion of Billees which now accommodates all of us at the same time. The Community Church will be totally renovated as only the Church with a new school house built this summer."

At that everyone applauded. "We are also very pleased to get word from Fr. Ricardo that St. James church will begin being built in earnest with plans to open their sanctuary in a year from now, provided they receive their stained glass windows from Germany this summer." With that another round of applause ensued.

Fiona continued, "Thanks to Mr. Coulter and his crew our row houses were completed in time before winter blew in, and now we have several new families as our neighbors to get to know better." The new families waved at Fiona's encouragement.

Molly jumped in announcing, "Welcome, we need more help for our Family Fun Fest this summer, so if you'd like to know more about it or be interested to help, please let me know."

"I take it you would like to head up this activity?" Fiona asked. Nathan and Lee burst out laughing and both were nudged by their wives to stop.

Bill rolled his eyes at Molly who ignored him, "Yes, of course. Bill and I will be happy to!" Molly didn't dare look at Bill because she could hear the mumbling under his breath.

"Why thank you Molly. Now, as I was saying, there has also been many buildings in town that have had additions too. The Mercantile for one," Fiona nodded at Flo and Ned.

"We've also added a hardware and garden shop," Flo piped up turning towards Kevin Townsend which prompted Kevin to nod and wave.

Mr. Peterson, Mr. O'Neill, and Mr. Lipinski representing the farming community confirmed how much they appreciated having an expanded hardware and garden shop.

"That is all good to hear. However, with expansion comes more safety concerns. Our physicians, the Shepherds, have made a very good case requesting an ambulance and Sergeant Grant has requested a fire engine. I will now give each of them a chance to state their case for their requests."