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One of the wheels of their wagon was
squeaking like an old lady complaining of her tired aches and pains. “I
reckin’ we’ve made it here all right, and not in any too soon either. I
think this old wagon has about given up the ghost.”
Bell ignored his irreverence and
couldn’t seem to get enough looking at the big sky. “My! My! I thought
Otter Creek out of Marshall, Oklahoma was beautiful the first time I saw
it, but this, this is surely God’s country.” The land they bought out of
Guymond, Oklahoma was spread out in a grand way before them.
“I know. This sky is wonderful!” Joe
observed. “It looks like it is just goin’ to plumb swaller’ you up.”
“There’s a half dug-out on the place,
where we can live, until we kin git a well dug, and a proper house.”
Joe wanted to comfort Bell for what
was ahead.
“Half-dug-out?” Bell’s eyes fell on
the structure that looked more like a shed than anything else. Most of
the space was underground, and over the hole was a roof.
"My goodness! It’s not even big enough
to store a barrel of my sweet elderberry wine! Is that what you’re
talking about when you say, half dug-out?” Bell couldn’t get the
incredulity out of her voice. There wasn’t anything homey looking about
this structure. It really wasn’t even as inviting as the first log cabin
had been there on Otter Creek. Around the grounds were no trees, not
one. In fact, the land was void of any landscaping details to break the
monotony. Something in her character wouldn’t let her be distraught or
disappointed. Before her was the, here and now, but in her mind she
could see a vision of what this stretch of ground could be.
Bell turned to Joe and said, “I guess
I had better see inside the place. I’ll have to know what has to be
done.
“Stay here! Let me check things out
first!” Joe ordered.
When he came up out of the half
dug-out there was a rather large snake hanging over the barrel of his
gun, and Bell almost gave way to her less than intrepid attitude. |
