Love Worth Fire, Part 2

Camille (Cannon) Eide

Up at the main house, Maggie had the kitchen table prepared for tea, just as she said. {It was a little uncanny how she always seemed to know when a letter was coming.} [I’d put this in earlier. It doesn’t have anything to do with the tea.]

Settled at the table with her tea and a plate piled with odd-shaped bannocks, she demanded, “Let’s have it, mon. Read it aloud.”

Ian heaved a sigh. He always read them out loud.

As he unfolded the letter, he smiled at the neat, elegant handwriting belonging to Grace’s niece, Emily. There was something uplifting about the kind, gracious tone in her letters.

“May 4

Dear Maggie and Ian,

Thank you for another charming and insightful letter. Grace is very relieved to hear that her sister is still so fit and managing the farm so well. Her homemade pies sound wonderful.

Grace worries that Ian will soon tire of farm life and she wants him to know how much she appreciates him being there with Maggie.

Your letter reminded Grace of a story, and she wants to know if Maggie remembers the time when, after butchering some chickens, Maggie saved a chicken head and put it in Grace’s porridge when she wasn’t looking. Grace wonders if Maggie still has her charming sense of humor, and if Ian is enjoying it as much as Grace did.

Your last letter didn’t mention Claire and her husband David, and we’re curious to know how the “fishing” has been going. We’ve been praying, so please let us know more when you can.

Grace would like you to know that her doctor is very pleased with her progress. He’s nicknamed her “Amazing Grace” because of how well she’s doing, and he thinks it’s a miracle. We know it’s a miracle! We thank God for it and for giving the doctor such a precious glimpse of Himself through this. Isn’t it amazing how God can use any situation to reveal Himself to us! Isn’t He wonderful! I’m also amazed at Aunt Grace. I’ve seen how hard she’s worked and how much patience she’s had. She should be proud of herself; I know I am!

With that said, it seems we are considering the possibility of making a trip to Scotland after all, inspired by your many kind invitations. When is a good time to come? School is out for me from early June until the end of August; how does a visit toward the end of summer sound? And when are you busiest with berry season? Please let us know what would be the best time for you.

It’s hard to believe the school year is coming to an end, with only 4 weeks left. Our students are showing symptoms of “summer fever”, even the kindergarteners. Most of the high-schoolers have already begun working in the alfalfa fields. Grace is even looking forward to summer and the projects we’ve been planning, including teaching me the fine art of canning. She taught my mother too, since she took mom under her wing as well. I’m not sure how I’ve managed to slip through the cracks. I’ve lived in a farming community for 3 years and still don’t know such a basic task. Even my first grade girls know how to can (well, maybe). I’m very sorry, Maggie, if it pains you to hear it. But Aunt Grace has kindly agreed to remedy all my shortcomings as soon as possible.

We will look forward to hearing from you soon, and to knowing when a visit from us would best suit you both. We would also love to meet Claire and her family, if it would be convenient for them.

With Love,

Grace & Emily”

[I don’t think the reader needs to see all of this letter. Highlight the important things—only you know what’s important to the rest of the story—and summarize the rest.]

Maggie insisted Ian read it several times, which he expected.

With a final sigh, Maggie drained the dregs of her teacup and propped her elbows on the table, her round face resting in her hands.

“I don’t know where she gets such rubbish—chicken heads! Humph!” But Maggie was smiling to herself.

{Ian looked at the letter again. The mention of fishing with David reminded him that he needed to phone him.} [The reader doesn’t need to know this until you actually have a scene of Ian calling David.] {He was glad to know Grace and Emily had been praying. Then he smiled at Emily’s raptures about the goodness of God.} [I think it would be better to have his reaction break into the letter than to see it here. But all in all, this paragraph isn’t really needed.]

“Well? What do you think? They sound like a wild pair—should we let them come?”

“Och! What’re ye saying laddie! ‘Tis about time they come!” Maggie’s smile pushed her jowly cheeks up into rosy mounds on either side of her round nose. “They can come anytime! Berryin’ or no! And mind ye start a letter back to Grace this minute! We’ve loads to do!”

Ian’s sigh was nearly a low growl as reached for pen and paper, tossing up a silent prayer for patience. Then the old woman, turning away to tidy up, said with unusual softness, “Ye’re a good mon, Ian. Thank ye… for everything ye do around here.”

Ian’s jaw fell open. Maggie chuckled heartily as she carried cups and saucers to the bunker next to the sink. “I’m old and blind, not deaf and dumb, laddie.”

“Alright then,” he said, shaking his head. He began to write, wondering how her words could gratify and terrify him at the same time. “What would you like me to say?”

Maggie wanted him to say she does remember the chicken head porridge and knows where she can get some more if they’d fancy a pot when they come. She also wanted him to make for certain they know about his upcoming trip to Oregon, tell them that he will come to see them, no matter what it takes … because if he’s that close to her sister and doesn’t bring back a first-hand report, she’ll have his head.

[Present tense words don’t belong in past tense narrative. The above could either be straight dialog, or smoothed out like this:

Maggie wanted him to say she did remember the chicken head porridge and knew where she could get more if they’d fancy a pot when they came. And to make for certain they knew about his upcoming trip to Oregon, and that he would go see them, no matter what it took. Because if he was that close to his sister and didn’t bring back a first-hand report, she’d have his head.]

Ian had seen Maggie with an axe and didn’t doubt that a wee bit.

***

Camille tells me she’s pretty new at writing. Don’t you think she’s off to a good start? Again, her blog is Extreme Keyboarding.