Read Online Argosy Junction by Chautona Havig - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Chautona Havig
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off your “departure.” So howdy!
I don’t know what to say. It’s so easy to talk to you when you’re here, but now that you’re gone… Actually, that’s silly. You’ve only been gone for two hours. Nothing has happened to tell you about yet except that Mom forgot you weren’t going to be here for dinner and made you stew and blackberry cobbler.
Is it wrong to confess that in hindsight, I’m really glad you had that run in with Josiah Gideon? If you hadn’t, you wouldn’t have spent your days here and with us. I can sense that Daddy is going to make an effort to make friends again. He really enjoyed having you around. I don’t think people were meant to be so isolated.
I wonder if you’ll return our letters? Will you? I wouldn’t think of your being much of a letter writer, but then I wouldn’t have pictured an urban welder as a lover of all things Shakespeare and L’Amour. I’m going to start on the sonnets tonight. I’ve always ignored them as sentimental poetry. “Shall I compare thee” and all that drippy stuff. Why don’t people write poetry about finding new friends in a sheep pasture?
Oh dear, Patience is done. She has a stamped envelope that she’s shoving under this letter. See that blip back there? That’s where the envelope hit my pen. She’s out the door and down the steps. I’d better go.
Uncertain how to sign,
Lane, the shepherd’s allergenic daughter
He read both letters again. And, then once again. Grabbing his clothes, he shuffled to the kitchen and laid them on the mini bar that separated their minuscule kitchen from the living room. His mom was taking one of her “box and can” casseroles from the oven.
“It’ll be ready in ten. Better get your shower.”
Matt waved the letters. “I just got letters from the Argosys. I thought you might want to read them. Read the one that looks like a kid wrote it first.”
He returned minutes later, with dripping hair, to find his parents laughing over Patience’s letter and grinning to each other over Lane’s. Great. They were getting ideas already.
“Man, I’m starved. Did you get to read the letter? Isn’t that kid a hoot? When I saw her middle name, I almost laughed. Her mom’s name is Martha and the dad kept telling the mom to be patient during labor so they named the baby Patience, but I didn’t know they used Martha for a middle name.”
“Patience Martha. That’s a good one,” his father’s voice sounded like the joke was on Matt.
Dinner was a welcome relief. Thankfully, Matt’s parents didn’t have time to comment on Lane’s letter or ask uncomfortable questions. Bowling started at seven-thirty, and his father liked to arrive early for practice.
The moment they were out the door, Matt switched off his video game and checked his email. There was a note from Tad.
To: [email protected]
From: [email protected]
Subject: rescue me
ok matt,
get back here. how could you leave like this? patience is moping around the house. we have made two trips to the post office today. no one can make her understand that her letter might not even be there yet. i made her an email address so please write to her ASAP at [email protected].
lane tries to cheer her up, but she’s a bit out of sorts too. i told lane about the woman at the gift shop. (lane doesn’t “do” email, but i bet she’d read one if you sent it to her. [email protected]) i don’t know if she is willing to risk it. i might go in with her the first time. it’d be nice if she had friends. i need her to have friends. we all do. home schooling patience doesn’t take up enough of her day. she’s learning all that accounting stuff, but… well you get my drift.
the sheep are shorn. we ended up with about 69,000 lbs of raw wool. it’s a good year. we’re back to just us and nate again until time to ship the market lambs in june.
be sure to tell us about your trip home. this is my private email so if you want to
I don’t know what to say. It’s so easy to talk to you when you’re here, but now that you’re gone… Actually, that’s silly. You’ve only been gone for two hours. Nothing has happened to tell you about yet except that Mom forgot you weren’t going to be here for dinner and made you stew and blackberry cobbler.
Is it wrong to confess that in hindsight, I’m really glad you had that run in with Josiah Gideon? If you hadn’t, you wouldn’t have spent your days here and with us. I can sense that Daddy is going to make an effort to make friends again. He really enjoyed having you around. I don’t think people were meant to be so isolated.
I wonder if you’ll return our letters? Will you? I wouldn’t think of your being much of a letter writer, but then I wouldn’t have pictured an urban welder as a lover of all things Shakespeare and L’Amour. I’m going to start on the sonnets tonight. I’ve always ignored them as sentimental poetry. “Shall I compare thee” and all that drippy stuff. Why don’t people write poetry about finding new friends in a sheep pasture?
Oh dear, Patience is done. She has a stamped envelope that she’s shoving under this letter. See that blip back there? That’s where the envelope hit my pen. She’s out the door and down the steps. I’d better go.
Uncertain how to sign,
Lane, the shepherd’s allergenic daughter
He read both letters again. And, then once again. Grabbing his clothes, he shuffled to the kitchen and laid them on the mini bar that separated their minuscule kitchen from the living room. His mom was taking one of her “box and can” casseroles from the oven.
“It’ll be ready in ten. Better get your shower.”
Matt waved the letters. “I just got letters from the Argosys. I thought you might want to read them. Read the one that looks like a kid wrote it first.”
He returned minutes later, with dripping hair, to find his parents laughing over Patience’s letter and grinning to each other over Lane’s. Great. They were getting ideas already.
“Man, I’m starved. Did you get to read the letter? Isn’t that kid a hoot? When I saw her middle name, I almost laughed. Her mom’s name is Martha and the dad kept telling the mom to be patient during labor so they named the baby Patience, but I didn’t know they used Martha for a middle name.”
“Patience Martha. That’s a good one,” his father’s voice sounded like the joke was on Matt.
Dinner was a welcome relief. Thankfully, Matt’s parents didn’t have time to comment on Lane’s letter or ask uncomfortable questions. Bowling started at seven-thirty, and his father liked to arrive early for practice.
The moment they were out the door, Matt switched off his video game and checked his email. There was a note from Tad.
To: [email protected]
From: [email protected]
Subject: rescue me
ok matt,
get back here. how could you leave like this? patience is moping around the house. we have made two trips to the post office today. no one can make her understand that her letter might not even be there yet. i made her an email address so please write to her ASAP at [email protected].
lane tries to cheer her up, but she’s a bit out of sorts too. i told lane about the woman at the gift shop. (lane doesn’t “do” email, but i bet she’d read one if you sent it to her. [email protected]) i don’t know if she is willing to risk it. i might go in with her the first time. it’d be nice if she had friends. i need her to have friends. we all do. home schooling patience doesn’t take up enough of her day. she’s learning all that accounting stuff, but… well you get my drift.
the sheep are shorn. we ended up with about 69,000 lbs of raw wool. it’s a good year. we’re back to just us and nate again until time to ship the market lambs in june.
be sure to tell us about your trip home. this is my private email so if you want to
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