pinky swear? February 8, 2010

“What did you think about the truck going into the river last weekend?  I did not get to see you after because your parents put you in the camper.  Your father was so mad at uncle Jacob!  Every right to be mad too, at least I think so.”

“Why was he so mad?”

“Oh they didn’t tell you?”  Sara looked very surprised and Violet was very worried that this might have something to do with the secret she promised to keep with her father.

Sara did not wait for a reply and simply continued with the story.  “Well it seems that Jacob had been drinking, truthfully they all had been your father and mine too.  Anyway Jacob had too much to drink, and so when he was backing the trailer down, he went too far and too fast.   I didn’t see it right from the start but I guess your dad was in the boat and saw it all and was pretty mad.  Do you know that before you all left that Jacob and Dean got into a good yelling match?  Truth is it was pretty funny to see.”

“You mean my dad and uncle Jacob were having a yelling fight?”

Laughing Sara replied “A yelling fight, yes that is a good way to explain it!  But I overheard my mom on the phone, and she was saying everything was all patched up now, and it is fine.  No hard feelings or anything, so this weekend will be normal.”

“Oh but it won’t be.”  Violet was so pleased that she had something to share with Sara, something she could tell.  She stood up a little straighter and said “Mom and I will not be there, well not till the last day.  We are going to the city to go shopping for my new playroom and to stay with Uncle.”

“Really, I did not hear that yet.  Well good for you!  I bet you will have a lot of fun, and I did hear about the playroom.  It sounds very cool.  Are you excited or will you miss the barn?”

“I promised to be happy about it, so I am happy.  But I already miss the barn, and Max and Grey won’t be allowed in the playroom.  But Max has been in the house!  He is helping take care of Cocoa, a calf that needs to stay warm and have a bottle.”

Sara looked very surprised, and then seemed to be concentrating very hard on the last smile of the last head and not saying anything.

“Sara what is wrong?”

“Oh Violet I am so sorry, I thought you knew.  I will tell you but you have to promise that you won’t tell anyone that I told you.  Pinky Swear?”

“Pinky Swear” the girls said in unison and Violet listened very carefully as Sara told her the sad news that Cocoa had died last night and that was the real reason she was sent here today, so she would not be sad. ©

what is happening? January 17, 2010

Violet was floating on her back in the pool; she was the only person in the great big pool and it was so nice and quiet.  The water was warm and smooth.  There were two women behind the counter working on some sewing project.  Then it happened, swim time was over.  Violet’s mother came in through the front doors, said hello to the women behind the desk and walked to the pool edge.  “Violet, come on Violet! It is time to shower and change, I brought your clothes. Come on I know you can hear me.”

Violet swam to the edge and crawled out and just as she got to her mother one of the women at the counter screamed “Annie! Annie come quick!!! Oh praise Heaven and have Mercy!”  Together they ran to join the women at the back door that overlooks the boat ramp.

Violet looked at the river and there was her Uncle’s red truck sinking into the water.  “Stay HERE Violet! Stay here!” her mother said as she ran to the rivers edge.  Violet could hear her father hollering “Put it in first! Keep the brake on Jacob! Stay WITH the truck! Get that tow chain ready Lacey, I am almost clear!”

She could see her father was at the back of his truck, and was dropping the boat and trailer to the ground and running around the side.  He started the truck and pulled it forward and then was driving backwards to the waters edge, very fast.  The tires made a noise as he hit the brakes and he seemed to be out of the truck before it even stopped.

Her uncle Jacob’s truck was sinking further back into the water and moving a little with the current.  Her uncle Lacey had finished hooking some chain to the front of it and she heard her father again yelling “Lacey get in my truck and get ready! I am almost done.”  Apparently he was taking the other end of the chain and getting it to the back of the truck where the boat goes.   Then her father was running into the water saying “we will try to save the trailer too, hang on Jacob” the water was to his chest as he turned and screamed at his own truck “Pull!  Pull!”

Then he disappeared under the water.

The red truck was slowly moving forward, water pouring from it but where was her father.  As Violet started to run to the rivers edge one of the women from the pool grabbed her and said “No child stay here, sweet mercy your daddy is a stubborn man and too stubborn to die.  Look! there he is!” as she was pointing to the other side of the truck,  he came out of the water with the front of the boat trailer and he was wet from head to toe. ©