Free Nan's Journey by Elaine Littau Page B

teatime. Luckily, the mistress of the house had a good many callers and prepared tea quite regularly. The book spoke of the little cakes eaten with the pinky finger extended. Mary got the last piece of cornbread from the pan. It was cold and hard but edible even if it was left over from the night before. She also read about the large linen napkins that were to be draped over the lap.
    “Goodness sakes, it is plum stupid to put the napkin there, a whole lot of food could end up down the front of your dress that way. I wish they put the napkin into the neck of their dress like normal folk!” So with a dry dishcloth and her cold cornbread and hot coffee, Mary practiced the art of being a lady taking tea with the social elite.
    After her hours of practice she began the chore of cleaning up the dishes. As she dried the few things that she had washed, she noticed her hands. My, but they were red and callused. She remembered that her mother had rubbed horse medicine over her hands and elbows to soften them up.
    Being a lady was such a bother, but Mrs. Malone might not know the hard work a lone woman had to do on a farm. When she got the message that she was to come to Mrs. Brown’s house, she would ask the messenger where the house was located and then have to take a bath. That would be a lot of work too. Was it all worth it?
    Mary heard the clock on the mantle chime and realized that she was quite behind on her evening chores. She would do without supper tonight. She was too anxious to eat anyway.
     
    *****
     
    After the meeting with Mrs. Malone, Mary kept a busy pace in the social circles of the large church in the center of town. She became a regular at the Monday morning quilting circle and the Tuesday afternoon bridge club. Never mind that she had to rise earlier and go to bed later to keep up the break- neck pace. She had new friends and acquaintances.
    If there was to be an event, Mary was called upon to participate in it. It didn’t seem to bother her that she was never called upon to chair any particular event. Goodness knows that she really didn’t know much about such matters, but she did have a stubborn will and desire to learn all the th ings that she put her efforts into .
    It was after one of the mornings of quilting that she walked into the farmhouse to discover Mr. Dewey sitting at the kitchen table drinking a cup of lukewarm coffee. “Where have you been this fine morning, Mrs. Dewey?”
    Mary didn’t like the smirk that lurked in the corner or his mouth. “Why, I have been at the church quilting bee, Mr. Dewey. How is your Mother?”
    “She has passed away, my dearest Mary.” He was studying the appearance of Mary and couldn’t quite put a finger on the difference in her looks. “Did you take those two kids to town with you or what?”
    “I sent them to Boston to live with their g reat a unt. She wrote and was quite firm about their living with her. She did say that the place is ours if we care to keep it seeing that we took care of them all these months.” The lie was so familiar to Mary by now that it s eemed to be the truth to her .
    Sam studied her face and decided that she was speaking the truth. He wasn’t at all sure that he liked the idea of a woman making a decision like this without him, but it had to be easier to get by with two less mouths to feed. Of course they did earn their keep, at least Nan did . What was Mary up to? She was all gussied up for something. “Have you made a good number of friends since I have been gone, dear wife?”
    Mary didn’t like the tone that Sam was using. She would have to be very careful about how she answered him. “Not so many as you might think. I have managed to make a few acquaintances that may be beneficial to us. It may be to our advantage to have people speak well of us … say, if we were ever to want to get a loan for improvements or start a small enterprise.”
    At that Sam gave a small chuckle. “Well said, good woman. You know how to