“Nope. The girls have decided to create their own blast right here.”
“They aren’t planning on shooting off any rockets, are they?” Sam asked worriedly.
“No,” laughed Brenda. “They’re going to set up a tent in the back and camp here tonight.”
“Oh, perfect. I have a bunch of camping stuff they can use. Wait, are you planning on camping, too?”
“Not sure yet,” Brenda said. “This is their first Un-July 4th and adults may not figure into the plan. But food definitely will because I am starving!”
Sam helped the girls set up the tent. Brenda went to the store and picked out snacks and food for the grill. She hadn’t planned on doing anything special and it felt gratifying to see the girls so joyous. How could I not have realized that a simple holiday could mean so much to all of us, she wondered. She thought of Milla and her unhappiness with holidays. Losing a loved one must be extremely difficult. Brenda remembered her own grandparents who had passed on. Her grandmother attended every family party in her finest clothes, even barbecues. Brenda laughed as she thought of the photos of her grandmother swinging a plastic bat in a dress and wearing pearls. Time has a way of easing the pain and she hoped Milla would be able to remember all the love that she had shared with her own grandmother. I guess this un-holiday is exactly what we all needed today, she thought as she pulled into the driveway.
The evening that had started out so blue turned into a night of adventure. The girls decided to brave the tent alone, keeping Flannel on duty as guard dog. Brenda and Sam enjoyed a quiet evening around the campfire reminiscing about college days. Milla and Carrie kept busy with games, toys, and ghost stories. Every now and then it would become completely silent in the tent and then both girls would shriek with laughter. They even coaxed the women into playing a few games, including a scavenger hunt that sent them all over the B&B looking for zany items. “The food was great, thanks,” Sam said. “I love all the vegetarian recipes you whip up. I usually throw together pasta or a big salad, but you, geez—you’re a gourmet cook.”
“Thanks,” said Brenda smiling. “It’s nice to know someone appreciates it. My friends usually make comments like…eew, no meat?”
Carrie popped her head out of the tent. “Mom, are you and Sam going to stay out here much longer?”
The campfire felt cozy and both Sam and Brenda were enjoying their peaceful conversation. The stars looked like jewels and the air was cool and breezy. “Actually,” Brenda replied, “we plan on sitting here and enjoying this beautiful evening, thank you very much.”
“Oh,” Carrie frowned.
“You see,” Brenda said. “This is the beginning of lots of new things for us. Un-July 4th has something that we don’t have in New Jersey.” Milla and Flannel joined Carrie and all three sat there with their heads peeking out the front of the tent flap.
“A beautiful moon over the Calico Mountains?” asked Sam as she reached for a chip.
“Nope—coyotes, mountain lions, and snakes,” Brenda replied. “Zip!” went the tent flap. “Clink” went the ice in Brenda’s and Sam’s glasses as they toasted the un-holiday.
Chapter 41
The drip-dripping of the rain was the first thing Shannon heard when she opened her eyes. Her bed was comfy and the room was still dark. She closed her eyes but didn’t feel sleepy. The house was quiet and she listened closer to the pattern of the falling rain. She could hear it hitting the roof and the tap-tapping of drops against her bedroom window. Thank goodness it was July and she didn’t have to go wait for the school bus. She rolled over, remembering all the good times with Carrie on the bus. They had been friends since they had started school and she couldn’t imagine sitting next to anyone else.
She didn’t want to think of Carrie riding to her new school with someone else either. She decided to think of raindrops instead, hoping maybe it would put her back to sleep. But then she heard the boom-boom of thunder as it shook the house. She heard Kelsie run into her brother’s room and scoot under the bed. Brian started to whimper. Suddenly, her room lit up brightly as lightning streaked across the sky. The pitter-patter of the rain fell harder against the roof and the boom-boom of thunder sounded much closer. Brian ran into her parents’ room crying. Bang! She heard the thump of the door shutting behind him. Flash! The room lit up again and then the house went completely black as her night-light went off and the hum of the air conditioner suddenly stopped. The crackling of lightning seemed to be right over their house and Shannon threw a pillow over her head. Brian’s cries were getting louder and Kelsie wasn’t making a peep. The wind was really gusting hard and she heard trashcans banging into one another. She went deeper under her covers. Then her mom poked her head into the room. “Come get in bed with us,” she whispered.
Without hesitating Shannon raced into her parents’ room and climbed in beside Brian, who was snuggling beside her dad. “Brian, take that helmet off,” her dad said grumpily, as he rolled over. Shannon’s mom, Jodi, squeezed in to hug her. Together they huddled in the dark, listening as the wind howled an unhappy tune. The booming thunder grew faint and the lightning dimmed as the storm moved away. Like the sound of a beating drum the rain continued heavily against the roof. Kelsie nosed his way into the room and lay down beside the bed. Brian had stopped crying and had fallen asleep with his helmet still on. For Shannon, lying snuggled in their parent’s bed was a treat, a special time reserved for storms and nightmares. The room grew hot and sticky as the air conditioner remained silent.
Her dad’s fire radio blasted an alarm and he jumped up, knocking over a chair as he stumbled in the darkness trying to get dressed. Jodi got up to find a flashlight. Shannon watched her dad give her mom a quick kiss and dash out the door. The wind was eerie and the rain was pounding and Shannon wished he would stay home. Speeding away to the firehouse, his truck tires threw up pieces of gravel and Jodi cried out, “Careful, John—the roads are wet!” but he didn’t hear her. It was completely dark and Jodi was still pulling open drawers searching for matches and grumbling. Shannon found her little reading lamp and went to help. Together they found batteries and flashlights and lit some candles.
The storm played a song of pinging rain against something metal—a song about being hot and stuffy in the dark probably, thought Shannon. She peered out into the night through the curtain of rain. It felt creepy without power. The entire neighborhood looked mysterious and gloomy. Her mom started to crack open a few windows but the howling wind blew rain through the screens and she quickly shut them. The house grew hotter.
“I can’t even get a weather report and our phones are all dead,” Jodi said as she wiped up a puddle beside the window.
“Mom, it feels like an oven in here,” Shannon said. “Can’t we get a fan or something?”
“Fans need electricity too. We’ll just have to make the best of it. We’re used to air-conditioning, but actually people lived without it for years. Luckily, this is only temporary. Go put something cooler on, honey.
“I don’t care about ancient people,” Shannon replied. “I’m hot and we can’t even open all the windows.” Picking up a flashlight she headed into her bedroom to exchange sticky PJs for a fresh tank top and shorts. The minutes turned into hours as they sat quietly together in the dark hoping the electricity would pop on soon. Shannon nodded off a few times watching the hypnotic rhythm of the flickering candle. The flame seemed to dance to the beat of the drumming rain. She felt the sweat trickle down her back as she gathered her hair into a ponytail. The headlights of a car shot a beam across the living room and they jumped up hoping it was Shannon’s dad, but it was only a passing car.
They had no way of knowing what time it was or when they would have power restored. The not-knowing part seemed to add murkiness to the room as the candles became shorter. “I’m so hot, Mom,” Shannon said. “Can I at least have a cold drink?”
They fumbled their way into the kitchen, bumping into a few things along the way. “Ow, ow, ow,” Jodi cried.
“Are you okay, Mom?”
“Ugh. I just stepped on one of Brian’s plastic toys. Yow! It really hurts so watch your step.” She rubbed the bottom of her foot. The light of the candle exaggerated their shadows and made funny shapes on the walls. “Cool! Look at our shadows. Don’t they remind you of those scary movies? “Jodi asked.
“Can we not think about scary stuff?” Shannon replied as she moved closer to her mom.
“Oh yeah, right. Sorry.” Jodi opened the refrigerator door, forgetting that the interior light would be out. “Oh, geez, I can’t see a thing. Let’s do this fast so we keep everything cold.”
The simple task of getting something to drink was much more difficult in the dark. Shannon held the flashlight while her mom juggled the contents of the freezer to dig out ice cubes. “All those people you said lived without electricity—how did their refrigerators work?” asked Shannon.
“They didn’t have them. They had things called iceboxes. It was just a big cooler like the one we use at the beach only it was shaped like a big cabinet and was made from wood, not plastic.”
“Huh, how does a wooden box keep food cold?” Shannon held the cool glass of ice water against her face before sipping it.
“Well, it was a big cabinet lined with tin and it had a special place to hold a huge block of ice. The ice kept everything cool, but they had to keep replacing it because it melted.” Jodi explained. “I guess it didn’t matter if they had a storm. Without electricity they still had a cold place for their food.”
“That sounds so weird, Mom—no air-conditioning and no refrigerators. Yuck.”
“That’s what I’m trying to tell you, Shannon. They weren’t invented yet and people managed perfectly well. Candles and iceboxes were part of their normal life. Who knows, maybe someday your grandchildren will say, ‘Poor Grandmom Shannon, she didn’t have a bicycle-jet that could fly.’”
“Oh, man,” Shannon said. “I hope scientists hurry up with that invention!”
Just then she heard the familiar sound of her dad’s truck pulling into the driveway. He ran through the rain and leaped up the porch a few steps at a time. He was shaking himself off as Shannon opened the front door to greet him. She loved his wet hug and scratchy beard kiss and didn’t even mind when he ruffled her hair.
“Where was the fire, John?” Jodi asked as she helped him off with his boots. “The old market on Tuckahoe Road was hit by lightening. It took us quite a while to get it under control. The wind really kicked up the flames, but it’s out now.”
“Did anyone get hurt, Dad?”
“Nope, there wasn’t anyone inside. But I’m going to miss that place, Shannon. I used to go hang out there with my buddies when I was your age.”
“Was it totally destroyed?” Jodi asked.
“Yeah, it’s all gone—and it was just registered as part of the historical walk, too. I really loved that place,” he said, yawning.
“Did it have an icebox?” asked Shannon.
“Huh?” John shrugged.
“Never mind, I’ll tell you later. We had a history lesson in the dark tonight,” Jodi laughed.
“Um, okay…well, I have to get some sleep. It’s only four in the morning. Why are you both up?”
“Everything is electronic, John, and we didn’t have a clue what time it was. Did you hear anything about when the power will be coming back on?”
“I have no idea. They’re working on it now.”
“Let’s all go back to sleep and worry about it later,” Jodi said as she blew out the candles.
“Good idea,” John agreed, but first I’m getting helmet-boy out of my bed.”
Shannon’s parents fell back to sleep, but she wasn’t tired so she just fiddled around in her room. A few hours later Brian wandered in and hopped up onto her bed. Kelsie ran to the back door and barked. Shannon looked out the window as she slipped on her rain gear. “Don’t wake up Mom and Dad, Brian. I’ll be right back. I have to walk Kelsie,” she said a little hesitantly.
He seemed to ignore her as he eyed her jewelry-making kit. It was lying open with its twinkling sequins and tiny gemstones of glittering colors. She had been making a beaded necklace and it sat unfinished next to her wire cutters and tweezers that were kept in a little toolbox. She quickly began putting it away when Kelsie barked louder. “I mean it, Brian. Don’t touch this. I’ll be right back,” she warned as she ran to the yipping Labrador.
The rain had made huge puddles and Shannon hopped around them trying to stay dry. Kelsie happily splashed through them all. A few minutes later they were back inside shaking themselves off. Shannon dried Kelsie with a big beach towel and then fed him breakfast.
She heard Brian running out of her room and slamming his door. A sense of dread came over her. Oh, no, she thought, I told him not to touch…she stood there not able to speak. Hundreds of beads and sequins were all over her rug where Brian had knocked them onto the floor. Her necklace was cut into sections and the wire cutters were half hidden under her pillow. The spool of wire was completely unwound and looked like a messy knot wrapped around her bedpost. She wanted to scream and she wanted to hit but most of all she wanted Brian to know what it felt like to have something of his destroyed. She marched into his room and he began hollering for help. Shannon looked at the platform where he played with his trains. Brian loved the small town with its wooden cars and little people. The magnetic trains that stuck together as he pulled them around the track and into the station were all linked together. The wooden trees, houses, and train station, along with some road signs, were neatly assembled. Shannon was angry and frustrated and out of control. She was screaming and crying as she flipped the platform over and shook it. The tiny cars and people went flying across the room. The trains and tracks were scattered everywhere. Brian’s city was history. She turned and ran into her room, slamming the door behind her. Brian picked up a few cars and went crying into his parents’ room. Shannon fell into her beanbag chair and kicked the jewelry-making toolbox that was lying upside down next to her dresser.
She heard the door squeak open as her dad peeked his head into the room. He looked at the mess and shook his head and then disappeared. She heard her parents mumbling and she knew she would be punished. Great, thought Shannon, no air-conditioning, no TV, it’s raining, it’s everyone’s day off, what’s the difference. I might as well be punished.
Her mom came in and looked around. “That was some storm,” she said. “The old market was burned down, your jewelry kit was blown to bits, and a hurricane struck Brian’s train set.”
Shannon looked up and saw to her surprise that her mom was smiling. “You and your brother will be cleaning your own mess. Dad wants to make pancakes on his camping grill and I guess we’ll just have to all figure out how to get by without electricity.”
“Mom, I’m sorry. I was just so upset,” Shannon said as she hugged her mother tightly.
“I know,” Jodi said. “I understand. The hard part isn’t cleaning up the mess. The hard part is controlling your anger. I’m still learning myself, Shannon. Brian is different from us but Dad says he was always doing stuff like this when he was a kid.”
“Daddy?” Shannon asked in disbelief.
“He says it was more like exploring and experimenting and just plain curiosity. Your dad said he would do all kinds of stuff that would land him into hot water with your grandparents. Well, Shannon, you have to admit, your dad’s very skilled and he can build or fix anything. Maybe all of Brian’s mischief is his way of learning. I’m not saying its okay to get into your things. I’m just saying his intent is not to damage or destroy. It’s more about discovery.”
“Yeah, well he better keep his expeditions out of my room,” Shannon said.
The rain continued the rest of the day and the family gathered in the living room. Shannon stitched her quilt while her mom and Brian played a game. The room was cooler with every window and door open. The light from the two oil lamps made the house seem brighter.
Her father called to her. “Shannon, come help me with this card table.” She climbed up the little pull-down stairs that led to the attic and helped him carry items down one by one.
“What’s all this, Dad?” she asked.
“It’s some old toys of mine. I thought you guys might want to help me build something.”
“Wow!” said Brian.
“Cool,” said Shannon.
He opened a box that contained metal bars, nuts, bolts, and tiny wrenches. Shannon sat and read the instructions as Brian helped sort the metal pieces into piles of matching shapes and sizes. Shannon winked at her mom as her father quietly removed Brian’s helmet. Slowly the metal pieces came together and they began to see the large towering building come alive. Shannon was happy to play with her family and she forgot all about air-conditioning and TV.
It wasn’t until later when they couldn’t run the dishwasher that Shannon remembered the power was still out. She loved this closeness that she felt within her family. She dried a dish and put it into the cabinet and looked over at her dad showing her brother how to build a puzzle. Her mom gave her a warm squeeze and said, “Thanks for helping me with the dishes tonight. I’m glad this power thing is only temporary.”
Shannon followed her mom into the living room and leaned against her dad. He looked up, put his arm around her, and pulled her onto his lap. Then the whir of the air conditioner began to hum and the lights popped on. The children watched their parents begin to blow out the oil lamps and shut doors and windows. They wondered about all of the things they had shared today—the laughter, the affection, and the stories their parents had told them of days long ago. Shannon watched as her mom began to clean up the puzzle and her dad flicked on a baseball game. She slumped back into the now empty chair she had shared with her father. She gazed out the big picture window and up to the sky and looked at the twinkling stars. She set her eyes on the twinkliest star, wishing with all her heart that the now humming power was only temporary.
Calico Horses and the Patchwork Trail Page 18