The Event Series (Book 2): The Gospel According to Matthew, Margo & Lance

by Thomas Larson

  “Yeah, you’re right there, maybe I’m just, you know, she’s our mom.”

  “Yep,” I smiled. “That she is.” But I would think about this, and watch; maybe he’s right, maybe not.

  After a few minutes we were at the veggie field. It looks like the bunny population may be getting a little too large and they are cutting down more plants than we can allow.

  “We could have Biter or Lucy kind of hang out in this area to alter the population.” Mark offered.

  “That might be the way to go. I don’t see a fence working.” I told him. “But it would be better if we can somehow get the rabbits trapped so we can have the meat. Maybe a couple more traps are all we need.”

  The larger crops are doing well, the weather has been good, and we have gotten enough rain to make it work.

  We got back to camp about lunch time. It was getting warm so it was going to be a find a shady spot and just settle in. I spoke with Tanya about the bunny issue and she will bring it before The Three later day. They really haven’t had much to talk about, so meetings have been kind of sporadic.

  Vespers tonight, it has in many ways become our family TV in that it’s a group activity and just a nice way to end the day. Sometimes it is with stories, sometimes singing, sometimes, just all sitting to sky or fire watching. But at the end of the session, it is always a little prayer of thanks for the day, and all that we have.

  (Lance) It was Del’s turn to play Little Bo-Peep, so I hung out with her for the day. While we were out there I wandered out into the woods for a couple minutes to pee. While I was there I thought I heard something, or someone moving. I stood quiet for a few minutes, but I didn’t see anything or anyone.

  As I was standing there, Chelsea came down the pathway out of the woods with a cloth bag she used to collect herbs or mushrooms.

  “Hey Chels, were you out in the woods? Or just on the trail?” I asked.

  “I was a little of both, why do you ask.” She looked a little confused by the question.

  “Oh, it was probably you then that I heard then,” I said. But I was not convinced that was the case.

  “Well, Nick had me out looking for tree fungus, seems he has a new idea for a recipe and wanted to try to use it as a sort of portabella substitute. “

  Oh great, more experiments in fine dining I thought. I mean some of his stuff is really good, some, not so much.

  “Anyway,” she added, “I need to get back. See you at dinner, is Del with the sheep?”

  “Yep, I was with her and just had to …. never mind, TMI. Anyway, I am heading back to the pasture.”

  She left and I could not help but feel that she was not who I heard or saw in the woods. I asked Del if she heard anything, she hadn’t.

  We brought the sheep back around dinnertime. I was at first thinking that we were having some kind of grilled steaks for dinner, NOT, tree fungus is not very tasty, nor tender.

  We did fire-pit tonight.

  (Margo) The standard morning stuff, run, sword work, then, there was nothing, we are going to skip the horse farm today, Teckla and Tay are going to ride back out and suggested a day off for Code and me, but I think it is more for Code.

  Of course, last night he was complaining about saddle sores. I just laughed.

  “Stop your whining it isn’t that bad,” I said.

  “Yeah it is!”

  “Okay, enough, drop your pants, let me see.” I said.

  He did and turned around to show me his backside, I broke out laughing.

  “Holy Crap, those look awful!”

  “Wait, what do you mean?” Code said, sounding nervous.

  “I guess you can complain.” I tried not to laugh.

  “Huh?”

  “You have two saddle sores, red marks where the skin has been rubbed off, one on each butt cheek, about the size of a quarter.” I added.

  Code was silent for a moment while it sank in and then said, “See, I wasn’t lying.”

  “True, we need to get something to put on then, some ointment or something, let’s go see the Major, or Charlene.”

  “Aw, do we have to, I, they’ll laugh at me.” Code protested

  “Yeah, they will, and I will too, and so will Del and Lance when they hear about it.”

  “No, you wouldn’t, you can’t.” Code was in panic mode.

  “Hahaha, and why shouldn’t I?”

  “Please, Please don’t.”

  “I’m only kidding, your secret is safe, but you owe me one.” I told him. I really wouldn’t have told, but it was funny.

  We went to the med hut and the Major did his best to keep a straight face. He did give him some petroleum jelly to keep the area soft, but that was about all he could do.

  “You want a note for Teckla to get you off of horse patrol” the Major asked.

  “Ha Ha, very funny.” grumbled Code, “That won’t be necessary.”

  The rest of the day was pretty boring; I did some sketches, one of Code’s butt with the sores. He did not find it amusing.

  We skipped Vespers tonight, Code was not real comfortable sitting.

  June 20th

  (Matt) I think it is going to be a scorcher today. We had no thunderstorm yesterday and this morning it was very warm and humid. I am guessing it will be a ‘get the tasks done early and then minimum movement’ kind of day.

  When we got to the veggie garden to do some picking and empty the traps of bunnies today, there were two, Mark was there. He was sitting with Biter.

  “I think that Biter can help with the rabbit issue, but it will mean that I have to tie him out here. I am not sure he will go along with that.” Mark began. “And it’s very sunny in this spot, no shade.”

  “That is true,” responded Tanya. “Maybe it would be better if we didn’t leave him out here.”

  I wasn’t sure if it was that or the idea that the dog would make the kill and it would not be a quick one. But I had to agree.

  “I think the extra traps might be better?” I said out loud.

  “Well, we could just have someone camp out here at night,” offered Mark.

  “Yeah, I am thinking that will not work so well.” I said. “Let’s just let it sit for now.”

  I was thinking after that we really are not having it that bad if our biggest issue is about some lettuce stealing bunnies. I thought back to the early days, and the onslaught of the undead, or that battles with the uninfected humans like Brother Gabriel or the Biker gang. We are in a better place even though there are not as many of us as there once was. There are 19 of us now, at one point there were over 40. Half of us are gone, some to other places, but there are a lot that have died. Maybe we are not having it so easy after all.

  Tanya took the lead at Vespers tonight, when we got back after the fire-pit, she asked me if I was okay. I am, but the thoughts of those we lost were kind of a cloud that was covering the sun for me tonight. I told her about it and we were both kind of thoughtful after that. But we were also thankful for those we still have, and what we have.

  (Margo) Code’s butt is doing better, the ointment has kept it from getting a hard scab on it and that makes it easier for him. He didn’t want to take the bikes out to the horse farm today so I rode out by myself. It probably was not the smartest thing to do. But we had not seen any Zoms in a while and things had been pretty quiet.

  I did run into one of them, the Zoms, she was in rough shape, I mean being a dead thing is rough, but this one was missing an arm and really did not move all that well. It was an easy kill, but it was a reminder, we aren’t in the land of cupcakes and sprinkles.

  I spent about 5 hours out at the farm, Lemon Drop and I did a good ride with Tay, we checked out the area to the east of the farm. There is a pasture out that way and we did see some fresh signs of at least one additional horse.

  While we rode, she and I talked.

  “How are you doing after losing Joseph?

  “I’m hanging in, but it has been hard, it’s hard for Chels too.” She answe
red kind of giving me a smile.

  “I bet the horses help.”

  “Yeah, and so has Momma Teckla, and for a while Chels helped.” She added.

  “Good, that is good”

  “Yeah, at one point Chels and I were really pretty close and then it got really, really close.”

  She didn’t go into it much further than that other than to say they were kind of different from each other and it was weird and wouldn’t have worked.

  We got back to the farm about 3:30, when we got there, we both realized how hot it really was. We had been in the woods most of the time and the shade kept it comfortable.

  I was getting ready to start back when Teckla and Tay said they wanted to head back with me. I had forgotten that I had told Teckla about the Zom I ran into and they wanted to make sure I got back home safely. Ah, Momma Teckla.

  Besides, Tay wanted to grab a few things at her cabin and have a Nick cooked dinner for a change.

  (Lance) Hot, sweating, miserably hot. I am glad that Fred and Jan are playing Bo-Peep today. I spent much of the morning in the computer room, I almost feel guilty about the AC….yeah, no I don’t.

  After lunch Del talked me into going to the little stream and trying to catch some fish. The fish won today, but we did flop around in the water and that was a great thing.

  Matt was quiet at Fire Pit tonight, he seemed a little deep in thought. Tanya told us a couple of stories. It was one of the first times we actually heard some of the details about their pilgrimage. It was not the spiritual side of it that she told us, it was about one of the people that they met along the way, Linda Harris, real estate whack-o, wow. If it was not so sad, it would be kind of funny, kind of a bad horror film funny.

  June 21st

  (Matt) Now this becomes an interesting question, by our reckoning it is the summer solstice, the longest day, how do you look at that? I’m no longer sure. In many cultures it would be the cause for celebration. But really is there anything to celebrate besides getting through another day, or year, I broached the subject with Tanya.

  “Of course, we should do something.” She said looking at me in disbelief.

  “Why?” I asked.

  “Because, ah, well, I don’t know why, other than it seems the right thing to do.” She was kind of taken back.

  We spent some time thinking about what to say and share tonight at Vespers. We arrived at the usual time but dressed a little differently.

  “We have reached the longest day, and we are doing well. It has been a good year, though not one that has not seen its sufferings and loss,” I began, and was silent for a minute to let it sink in.

  Then I continued, “We have survived, thanks to the help of the Earth and the Sky. We share with the animals, they share with us. We should be thankful, we are thankful.”

  Tanya picked up the point and told the clan about the Earth Mother and how she gives us what we need and that by treating her right and being thankful we can enjoy her abundance.

  “Before the stone fell from the sky,” she said, “I think that mankind had lost sight of so much of the respect and caring for the planet and each other. We had become so out of touch with the Earth, we became a cancer and were devouring her with little thought or concern for where it would lead.”

  I could see that this point did not fall on deaf ears, we all are now so much more aware and attuned to the ways of nature. We have reached a place where we waste almost nothing and try to use and reuse everything. A part that is equally important is we look to avoid over doing it, avoid excess and greed. We take what we need, but no more, and we give back as we can. The bunnies are a good example. We share with them, and they share with us.

  After we did our little talk, we all formed up into a circle, standing around the fire and just held hands for a few minutes. It is just one of the things we do well; we are a family, a clan.

  I finally found that Fred and Jan had gotten with Tanya to make certain that we did do something for this day. It was none of the mysterious things that I had thought of. It was good, and in the end, it was a peace filled day, and we are good.

  (Lance) It was a standard hot as heck day with humidity to boot. I have to say I was never a big fan of summer, but then part of that may have been due to the heavy black clothing that I used to wear, heavy boots, long coat, even in the middle of July. At least I don’t have that issue anymore, but it was still miserably hot today.

  Del talked me into taking a walk out to the horse farm today. We’re still trying to save on the diesel fuel so we don’t use the cars or trucks very often. I had looked into the idea of the bio-diesel fuel and how we might make it but it does not seem as if there is an effective way to do it. I have to wonder if there is some kind of fuel depot in the area. I would think that there has to be. That may be the better way to approach this.

  I finally had the chance to see the horses up close and personal. I am clearly not a horse person, they are a little scary to me. Del had no problem saddling one up, I think it was called Lemonade, or something like that and before long she was moving the horse, is moving the right term, around the stable yard.

  We hung out there for a while and I finally ran up enough nerve to try to get on the back of the horse that Del had been on. It wasn’t so bad.

  “Woohoo, look at me, I’m a cowboy!” I said nervously.

  “Ah yeah, a regular member of the Apple Dumpling Gang,” laughed Del.

  By the end of the afternoon I was actually starting to get the hang of the riding, it was riding, not moving I was told. It seemed that it was not as bad as I thought. I am still intimidated by the beasts, but am certainly more comfortable.

  Vespers were really strange tonight. Matt and Tanya showed up wearing kind of robes. I did not understand at first, but then as they talked I kind of began to get it. There is a sort of tradition, a sort of ceremony to this day; it is the summer solstice, the day the tilt of the earth reaches its highest point, now we start back toward winter. But that was not their topic; it was about balance, about just taking enough, and about sharing. It was a good message.

  (Margo) It was a good day to stay out of the sun and enjoy the shade. I had the duty to do the sheep to pasture thing today. I took my sketch book and pencils, but found no real inspiration at first. Code had decided that he didn’t want to head out with me which was okay. When I get drawing, I am not much fun to be around, kind of a lump, so it was fine.

  The entire day was pretty uneventful, except for few minutes in the early afternoon, the sheep started to get a little noisy and nervous. They formed up into a little knot in the middle of the field and were in a sort of defensive ring. Lucy went on alert also. Using my rifle scope I scanned the area where Lucy and the ram seemed to be looking, but couldn’t see anything obvious, maybe it is the mountain lion, or some other predator. Then, after about 10 minutes or so everything just went back to normal, like nothing was going on. Weird.

  I went back to sketching, but was more attentive to my surroundings. I chuckled to myself, situational awareness. I doodled a big cat. I need to talk to Matt about the qualities of the mountain lion as a spirit animal. It, she, has kind of shown up in my mind and dreams. I guess I am more open to the idea than I first considered.

  I got the sheep safely back to the pen in the afternoon and had dinner. Code had spent the afternoon at the lake and had managed to catch a dozen or so catfish. There were enough of them to have a little fish fry and Nick made them tasty. I could have gone for some fries or chips to go with it.

  I was in awe of Matt and Tanya tonight; they showed up at Vespers in kind of white ceremonial robes. They burned cedar on the fire, and the smoke just smelled wonderful. They talked about the year, and the circle of life, and how things move on; it is the way of nature and the cycle of the year.

  In a way, it kind of reminded me of the old days, the days before the meteor, when my mom would drag Tom and me to this thing they called the Summer Revels. It was a type of festival; I think it had its roots
in the Pagan or Druid cultures. Tom always complained about going to them because in the course of it there was dancing, and he hated to get stuck in that. It was gender neutral and you bounced from partner to partner. Eventually he would end up with some fat bearded guy who was wearing a kilt.

  June 22nd

  (Margo) The weather was kind of moody today, it was weird moody, it started out okay, kind of warm but not real bad, but by noon there were thunderclouds building and the humidity went way up. It felt like we were going to get storms and I am thinking that we will see some nasty ones.

  I had Bo-Peep duty today and Code came with me. His saddle sores are pretty much healed so he can sit. Maybe tomorrow we will head out to the horse farm again. Anyway, about 1:30 it was getting darker and darker so we brought the sheep back home to the pen early.

  We had a storm or maybe a series of them, it was big, and bad, and we had some wind and hail damage. At one point, I almost thought we had a tornado come through, the winds were so strong. A number of the trucks and cars had their windows broken from the falling ice. The Coyote was fine, it was under a tree so that broke a lot of the hail’s momentum.

  After the storm we all did damage control work. Code and I drove out to the horse farm to see how things were there. We had a tough time getting there because there were some trees blocking the road.

  When we got there, everything was okay, there were some branches down and a couple of trees were blown over near the fields. But the buildings, and horses were fine and Tay and Teckla were none the worse for wear.

  “We dodged a bullet on that one,” began Teckla.

  “Whaddaya mean?” I asked.

  “You guys didn’t see the tornado? It was just a little to the south of us, I figured it touched down at the camp, we were just getting saddled up to ride over.” She continued.

  “Wow, no, I mean it was bad, and I thought we might get one, but all we had was tree damage.” Code said.

  “Come on, I am curious, let’s take a trip down there, see what happened.” suggested Tay.