Chapter One, Episode 92 - Heart Felt - Situationally Theirs

Review, Revision, Edit and Update:
Most of this revision included shifting words around as well setting this early morning scene in the kitchen. The second part of this Episode, a setting for Samuel, did not seem to require anything. 

When doing these reviews, I begin by reading it aloud, including reading my Review section once written. If I'm not able to read a sentence easily, it red flags that a some kind of a change is needed. Often I am staring out the window, or getting up and doing something else, until I find the right words to add or delete. Once the change has been made, I read that aloud, and if it's still not right.....well it's back to staring out the window or making a cup of coffee. This morning I had to eat a saskatoon tart! These are the foibles of my writing life. 

Heart Felt

Maybe she’d just never had the chance. Dez woke up to that thought. There was no dream attached to it, only her sister’s name. She rolled over, covering her eyes with her pillow. In the city, the sun was shaded from her bedroom window by other high-rises. Out here at the estate, Dez had slept in Emmie’s east facing bedroom. Each golden ray of the sun filtered through brush and grass crowning a low rocky outcropping. Hours before, the birds had began their waking chirps. Dez had heard them faintly and managed to get back to sleep. It really was all very comforting. Estranged from Emmie for ten years, she never really thought about whether she had nieces or nephews. After Emmie’s concern about whether Joey got home safely the evening before, and seeing the troubled look on Emmie’s face, Dez was curious. It’s none of my business. If she wants to talk about it, she will.

Dez was not an early riser unless she had an early appointment or had much earlier day shift scheduled. She was on the estate for the weekend, but not just for some time off. Her friend, Matt Hamilton, an orchardist and bee keeper, had given her an assignment. She opened her eyes, tossed back her covers and sat slowly up on the edge of the bed. She sniffed the air. Cook mustn’t be here yet. I can’t smell any coffee. Dez pushed herself up to standing and dragged on her housecoat. Sliding her feet into her slippers as she walked away from the bed, she quietly opened her door. Not hearing Emmie stirring, she tiptoed carefully to the stairs that lead to the kitchen. As soon as she was downstairs, Dez went straight to the coffee machine. She checked to be sure the reservoirs were topped up with coffee grounds and water. From the cupboard above, she randomly chose from a set of rippled pottery mugs, all in shades of light blue. She set the mug under the coffee spout,  pushed all the right buttons and waited for her mug to fill with dark, rich coffee. Brushing her hair back and snugging her housecoat around her, she went to the refrigerator. Nothing much to snack on but two pieces of chocolate cake. That’s a good breakfast food. Cook makes a nutritious chocolate cake. She pulled it out and put one of the pieces on a plate. The coffee was ready. There were bananas on the table. Coffee, chocolate cake and a banana. Good breakfast. Dez was about to sit down when Cook came in the kitchen door.

Cook liked to start her morning organized. Everything in its place before she got busy with the days work. So, she was surprised when she came in the back door to the aroma of coffee and someone stirring around in her kitchen. That someone was Miss Dez and still in her pyjamas. She liked Miss Dez, but coming downstairs in pyjamas when anyone could come in door! But Cook knew how to think on her feet. “Good mornin’ Miss Dez. What on earth have you got there?” Cook had eyed Dez's so-called breakfast with amusement. Dez grinned, almost a bit embarrassed to have been caught but said “Good morning Cook! It’s my breakfast.” Dez, to hide her tiny bit of discomfort, took a sip of her coffee. Cook slid the plate away before Dez had a chance to sample her 'breakfast'. She gave Dez back the banana and said “You go ahead and eat that banana but I’m taking that cake. Just let me get my sweater off and put my purse away. You take your coffee upstairs and get dressed while I make you some bacon and eggs.” Cook covered the cake and set it aside. She hung her sweater on a hook and put her purse in a cupboard above the refrigerator. Dez felt like she was about ten years old and given her marching orders. “Can I have the cake after the bacon and eggs?” Without hesitation, Cook replied “Yes, but if you’re going to be working out in the orchard all morning you need more than cake and a banana. Off with you now and let me get cooking.” Dez also felt comforted by the motherly attention from Cook. “Thanks Cook.” Dez gave her a quick hug, picked up her coffee and went upstairs.

~~~~~

Samuel liked getting out in his garden early in the morning. His cottage, on the other side of the creek that flowed behind the orchard, was merely shelter for him. Two rooms and a loft. He had little furniture. The loft held his cot and a book shelf over flowing with books. Downstairs there was a small fireplace that he only used in the winter. An old floor lamp stood behind his easy chair. A kitchen table and chairs filled the space behind his chair. A small refrigerator, a gas stove and a small counter space completed the first room. The second room was not really a room, but his washroom. He took his laundry up to Elizabeth every two weeks. Samuel knew Cook as Elizabeth. No one really knew what their relationship was, only that they took care of each other in their distant ways.

Samuel got up with the birds, washed up, had a cup of tea and went out to the garden. He especially loved the mornings when there was still a mist drifting along the ground, flowing over rocks and around trees. It was a cold damp, but it was beautiful. If he had had a son, he would have had him out of bed and with him on those mornings. This morning he thought of the young man that he met yesterday. Nice young fella. Polite. Respectful. There hadn’t been any children on the estate for a very long time, except for Martha’s grandchildren once in a while. Samuel got down at the row of bean plants he had been weeding the day before to continue where he left off. Elizabeth would give him fits if he didn’t wash his hands before he went up for coffee, but he wanted to get that part of the garden done. I wonder if Mz. Beaufort realizes how much food this garden produces every year. Could be, now that she’s woke to her life, she’ll figger it out. Samuel sat back on his heels, spotted a thistle sprouted a couple of rows over. I’ll get that before I wash up. He stood, stretched his back and went into the toolshed for a small spade. Thistles and their tap roots need a spade. The thought of teaching Joey about the garden, plants and seeds made him smile. Might give him his own space in here. Samuel checked the sun. Looking over at the house, he saw Elizabeth’s car. Better go wash up.

“Being is the great explainer”

~ Henry David Thoreau