Mary tried to blow the troublesome hair off her moist face as she carefully pinned to the line the big laundry she had worked on all morning. Realizing it was much too humid to use that tactic, she stopped her work, lifted her apron and wiped the perspiration from her brow. She loosened her hair, combed through it with her fingers and then refastened it with the big pins she had temporarily held in her mouth. She wondered if the clothes would ever dry with such humidity, but the sun was so hot it would probably win out. Mary had no intention of complaining about the wonderful big rains they had been having since they needed them so badly, but she was very grateful that she could finally get the laundry done. She wished now for a little of the Oklahoma winds that had been so abundant all spring. At least we finally got to go a few days without having to go to the cellar, she thought. It seems we were down there every night for a while. Today it was so still that her sparkling white sheets stood rigidly soaking up the hot sun.
Just as she was returning to her work she saw Lawrence coming toward her with his head lowered. He had grown into such a handsome young man of nineteen and was a good person. She still felt bad that she and Robert had allowed him to quit school in the eighth grade. His reason that he got too far behind when he had to stay home to help get the cotton crops in each fall seemed valid at the time. They had rationalized that he would learn farming from his father who was the best there was and that many young men of his day didn't even have an eighth grade education. Then too, he was an avid reader, often having to be forced to blow out his lamp and get to bed. Yet, at times he seemed to resent the girls for their education. Mary also wondered if he really liked farming as much as his father. Whatever, it was a little late to be thinking of that now.
"You look like you lost your last friend, son," Mary said as he approached her. "What's wrong?"
"Oh nothing," he replied in a solemn voice.
"I thought you would be enjoying the fact that the fields were too wet to work in today. Didn't you find any thing to do in town? You didn't stay long."
"No, there wasn't much going on. I stayed down by the river most of the time, watching the high water."
"Do you think it will go out of it's banks?" his mother asked.
"No, not this time, it's already starting to recede. It's really rolling though."
"You love that old North Canadian, don't you? You have ever since you were a little boy. I never shared your fondest for it. The water there isn't even soft. I remember one time when we lived near the river I took all of you little tow-heads down there, hoping to wash your hair in soft rain water like I remembered the rivers in Nebraska. It was as hard as the water I had at home. Your dad laughed at how angry I got, but I didn't think it a bit funny. It never occurred to me the water would pick up enough chemicals to make it hard as it traveled south."
It was increasingly apparent that Lawrence wasn't too interested in talking about rivers right now. He mechanically began to hand the clothes to his mother from the basket as he had done when he was a little boy. He finally blurted out what was on his mind, "Mother, is it a sin to talk to a whore?"
Mary was so startled by the question her voice quivered as she asked a question rather than give an answer, "Lawrence, what ever prompts you to ask a question like that?"
"Well, you see Mama, there's this real pretty girl around town and she is always very friendly with me. I don't know her very well, but I always speak to her like I do everyone else. Today I was walking with one of my friends when I saw her and when I said 'hello' to her he had a fit. He said, "Don't you know she is the town whore? I can't believe you would associate with a girl like that." I told him I wasn't 'associating' with her but it couldn't hurt to speak to her. He still acted like I was really doing something shameful."
Mary pondered his words carefully before she spoke. The last thing she wanted to do was change the best part of her son, his ability to see some good in everyone. On the other hand, she did not want him to jeopardize his good reputation or certainly not get in the clutches of a wanton woman. Finally she spoke tenderly, "Lawrence, it is never wrong to be nice to anyone, so of course it is not a sin to speak to the young woman. It would be more of a sin not to be kind. However, your friend is right to some degree. It is also important to be careful not to fall into the company of those who for whatever reason have chosen a sinful way of life. You said the girl is pretty and friendly, and that can be very dangerous if she has chosen to use her beauty to lead men into sin. But there is even an element of sin in us judging her actions. We have no way of knowing what is in her heart or why she has chosen her way of life. So I really have no good answer for you. But I have seen you grow in to a fine, honorable young man, and I trust that you will be able to continue to be kind to the young lady without risking your good name."
Lawrence seemed relieved by her words and put his arm around her shoulder as they walked together toward the house with the empty clothes basket.
As they approached the cellar Mary asked, "Would you mind running down to get the butter. The girls probably have dinner a about ready."
Lawrence willingly pulled up the weighted door of the cellar and went down to retrieve the butter for the noon meal, taking two steps at a time as he descended into the coolness of the cellar. The jars that had a month ago been mostly empty now were mostly filled with peas and beans and jams from the summer crop. Before fall they would all be full and ready for winter. It felt so good down there after being in the hot sun that he wanted to stay, but he knew dinner was waiting. He took the butter from under the damp towel that covered it and returned to the house.
"I declare you girls are getting to be better cooks than I am," Mary said to her three daughters as they set the beans, tomatoes and homemade bread, butter and jam on the table. Loretta set the plates on and Mildred carefully added the silverware, under the close tutelage of their older sister, Margaret, who had studied proper table setting at school and made sure every meal was done just so.
"We about know this meal by heart, Mama. We've had it every wash day since I've been big enough to remember," Margaret responded. "It's pretty basic."
"But always so good," Mary added. "And food always tastes better when someone else prepares it." She sat at the table looking out the north window at the clothes she had just hung.
When the buttermilk pie had been eaten they said their prayer, "We give Thee thanks for these and all the benefits we have received from Thy bounty, through Christ Our Lord. Amen."
Barely were the words out of their mouths when someone came riding into their drive as fast as the horse could carry him. "Who in the world is that in such a hurry?" Robert asked as he rose from his chair.
The whole family rushed to the back door as the rider quickly tied his horse, then ran toward the house.
"It's not anyone I ever saw before," Lawrence said as the stranger approached.
"Is this the Higdon place?" the young man said panting for breath.
"Yes, what can we do for you?" Robert asked as his concerned family looked on.
"I've got some awful bad news for you," the young man said, still trying to get his breath.
"Oh dear," Mary said as she put her hand over her mouth, gripped with fear for what was to come.
"Come in," Robert said to the man, then to Lawrence, "Bring him a dipper of water."
Lawrence wasted no time getting the water and the man drank it eagerly, then wiped his face with the sleeve of his blue chambray work shirt and began to deliver his news.
"It's your brother Frank, Mrs. Higdon.
"Oh, no. Not Frank. What happened to him?" Mary asked.
"It's not him, Ma'am. It's his children. Drowned."
"Jesus, Mary, Joseph, give me strength," Mary prayed, "Which one was it?"
"That's the worst of it, Mrs. Higdon. It wasn't one. It was all of them," he said. "All except the baby, that is," he corrected himself, and continued in one breath, " Bernard, John, Catherine and Teresa, all of them. They were out picking berries by the river. You know the river is up high and had overflowed some. An onlooker said that one of the little boys slipped into one of those overflows and got sucked under, then the other children tried to save him, then another and another, until they were all gone. There must have been an undercurrent. It was just awful. Your poor brother and his wife are in bad shape. They kept bringing up the little bodies, all covered with mud and Frank just sat there on the ground, taking each one as they came up, trying to hold all of them at once, clinging to them so the undertaker couldn't take them away--it was awful."
Robert was holding Mary close to him and shaking his head to the young man not to say any more. "Come, Mary, you had better lie down for a few minutes," Robert said to his wife as he led her to the north bedroom. "Girls, see if the young man needs something to eat, and Lawrence, you go tend to his horse."
Mary sat on the bed for only a minute, then turned to Robert, "This won't do, Robert. We must go to Frank and Delia right now. They need some family with them at a time like this." Before he could answer she continued, "Oh dear, every decent dress I own is on that clothesline."
"You're right about our going right away, Mary. Don't worry about your clothes. Just find something to make do for today. I will take you to El Reno and come back tonight to pick up some clothes for you. The girls will take care of folding the clothes and ironing up our good things for the funeral."
"The stove is still hot from dinner, Mama, and I'll set the irons on to heat and go get your blue seersucker and press it up a little. It doesn't take much ironing. You go ahead and get the rest of your things together."
With everyone's cooperation Robert and Mary were soon turning past the cascading pink roses at the corner of their drive and heading south on their unhappy mission. Their four young adult children, along with the messenger, waved good-bye until they were out of sight.
"Oh, Robert, it takes something like this to make one truly appreciate how good things are. We've had such good luck raising our children with little pain or injury. It's a miracle we didn't lose one of ours to that treacherous river," she said as the buggy carried them over the bridge that covered the swollen North Canadian.
Robert only responded, "Yes Mary, we have much to be grateful for."
***********
The business of farm life helped ease the painful loss as Mary lost herself in work in rest of the summer, filling every jar she owned and lining the shelves of the cool cellar, and helping the girls get their Fall clothes ready to return to school. How nice it was to have Margaret at home this fall, teaching at the local school. Loretta was eagerly pursuing a degree in music at Oklahoma College for Women and Mildred was finishing her high school education at Sacred Heart in El Reno. Mary still wished Lawrence had not dropped out of school in the eight grade, but it was too late now for regrets. He and his dad did work fairly well together on the farm, despite their contrasting work habits. Robert still moved like a house a fire and Lawrence maintained a slower but steady pace. They had a mutual respect for one another that got them through, and they both took pride in the fact that their fields were well tended and they produced some of the finest crops in the area.
When there was no field work to be done, they mended fences and kept up repairs around the place.
Mary saw them now coming up the drive with a cotton wagon that was spilling white fluff as they drove along.
"Looks like a pretty good day's work," she said as they approached the well for a drink fresh water. "How's the yield turning our this year?"
"Nothing to complain about," Robert replied.
"It's better than that dad, it could be the best we've ever had. I'm anxious to get this first load to the cotton gin and see how we make out," Lawrence put in as he pumped himself another dipper of water.
"I do believe it will be a good crop, but I've learned never to count your chickens before they hatch," Robert continued cautiously.
Lawrence took the bucket of water his mother had come to fetch and carried it to the house for her. Margaret and the teacher who roomed with them during school term were both at the dining room table grading papers while it was still daylight.
When he deposited the water he returned out to start the evening chores. He and his dad knew well what each had to do and worked quietly, Robert unhitching the team and feeding them while Lawrence went to drive in the cows to milk.
"I sure hate to see it freeze, these cows are producing so well on that good pasture, but it's stayed warm longer now than I thought it would," Lawrence said as he and his dad sat on their stools carefully extracting the milk from the cows bulging bags.
"At least we've got plenty of hay and silage. We should get through the winter in good shape," his dad spoke with his usual optimism.
***************
Fall passed as fast as the twinkling of an eye and soon Mildred and Loretta were home from school for the holidays. Margaret was happy to have a break from teaching and it was good to have the roomer gone for a while and have just the family back together for the holidays.
Mary and the girls spent hours in the big cozy kitchen transforming last summers fruits from the jars into delicious apple, apricot and mincemeat pies. They made endless amounts of cookies and the ever popular divinity and fudge candies. Lawrence and Robert loved to come in from the cold after doing the chores and smell the aromas that drifted through the house. The tree they had cut from the east pasture last week was now beautifully decorated by the four talented women and it alone had enough cookies on it to fill a bakery.
Robert had been ecstatic since he heard they would have a visiting priest to offer Midnight Mass at Calumet this year. It was far and away his favorite part of Christmas and when the big evening arrived he eagerly loaded his grown family into the buggy, sporting new scarves and gloves they had received in the Christmas exchange.
"You sure make a man proud," Robert said as he looked at his family all in their best bib and tucker. After being sure everyone was warm under the big lap covers he secured his big black hat over his dark hair and drove the happy group to Mass.
Spiritually satisfied and even happier the group continued the Christmas caroling begun at church all the way home. Lawrence took the horses to the barn and gave them an extra pitchfork of hay. He then returned to warmth of the house to share in the homemade bread and ham sandwiches and sweet pickles that were now set out on the big dining table. It was a contented family that retired to their warm beds to wait for Christmas Day 1915.
It appeared the cooking done the past few weeks would surely be devoured in one day as Mary watched her family and extended family eating eagerly. She was happy Frank and Delia had consented to join them for Christmas dinner along with John and his family, even though the air of sadness was hard to ignore. Everyone avoided talk of the four cousins who would never again join the happy family and concentrated instead on darling little Irene and baby James.
**********
The following year went very much the same, with school and hard farm work the order of the day.
"I can't believe the year passed so quickly," Mary commented as she strung popcorn for the Christmas tree again.
"They say the older you get the faster it goes and I'm beginning to believe that is true," Robert agreed. Do you have about everything you need in the line of gifts?"
"Yes, most everything is ready. I still have a little to do on the stocking cap I am knitting for Frank's little Jimmy. I got Irene's finished last night. I am glad they will come again this year. Christmas is still a bad time for them and I hope it helps a little to be with us."
"Mary, you are so good and kind," Robert said as he bent to kiss her cheek.
*********
"Hold still, Loretta, so I can get this hem straight," Mary scolded her daughter as she twisted on the chair on which she was standing to try to catch a look of herself in the mirror across the room. "You can look at yourself when I get finished."
"Oh Mama, it is so pretty. Thanks for working so hard to get this done with Christmas barely over. It's just two days until the New Year's party and I know this is the prettiest dress I have ever had."
"You're bound to be the prettiest girl at the dance, but not unless you hold still and let me get this hem pinned," Mary said as she again straightened her daughter on the chair.
"Now who in the world could that be?" Mary asked aloud as she looked out the north window to see someone on horseback riding up the drive. "It's a mighty cold day for anyone to be out riding."
Soon the whole family was looking out the window to see the young man dismount and hurry toward their back door.
They all moved to the door and opened it quickly to admit the same young man who had brought the forbidding news about Frank's children on a day last year that was as hot as this one was cold.
Mary's hand went to her mouth when she saw the distress on his face. She instinctively braced herself against the cupboard, knowing before he opened his mouth that it was more bad news.
"I'm awful sorry to always be bringing you bad news," he apologized to the family who stood frozen with fear. "This is just as bad as before, or maybe even worse. It's little baby Jimmy this time. He scalded to death in a tub of hot water Delia was preparing to do her laundry in. I'm awful, awful sorry."
"Oh dear God in Heaven, how much can one family endure?" was all Mary could say before she broke into uncontrollable sobs.