Kentucky
An early November ice storm hit Kentucky as George and Anna traveled across the state. As a result, they found themselves spending the night on a horse farm near Lexington. They had made good time in spite of oddly frequent snow squalls, but they were not prepared for ice.
Nor was either of them really prepared for the hardship of the road. George’s strength was not fully back, and neither of them were used to such cold. They weren’t feeling very young anymore. Both of them were bone weary. Their love for their daughter had kept George and Anna moving northward, but it was starting to make sense to get off the road for winter and start up again in spring.
Good with horses since his days at Shannon Oaks, George sought employment at the Lexington stables of Mr. Albert DuPont. He was hired on the spot. The job provided a room over the horses, and Anna was allowed to stay, as well.
Since Mr. DuPont was a widower, Anna approached him with the offer to use her sewing and knitting skills to get him and his hired men ready for winter. A sensible man, DuPont happily hired Anna also.
So George and Anna decided they should spend the winter at DuPont Acres, put their money away, and start out again in spring. “We can take a train then, sugar,” George promised. “We’ll get to Chicago fast and in style.”
Anna laughed. To her “in style” would simply mean staying clean and not sleeping out in the weather. And that sounded just fine to her. Initially, she was reluctant not to keep moving, but she saw the wisdom of shoring up their strength, earning money, and looking less bedraggled when they hit the sophisticated city of Chicago.
Besides, the recent nightmare about Janie had not returned. Anna felt a peace about her little girl, a peace for which she was grateful.
CHAPTER 13
Change in the Air
Mrs. Hull?” Janie looked over the banister and spied the mistress of the house at the foot of the stairs. The white-haired woman looked up and beamed at Janie.
“And how was thy rest last night, Janie?” This was Janie’s second day at the Hull farm.
Janie ran lightly down the stairs. “Very good, ma’am, thank you.” She joined the woman in the hallway. Mrs. Hull was so short that Janie could look her straight in the eyes. “Mrs. Hull, did you know Maydean can’t read?”
Mrs. Hull’s mouth opened in surprise. “No, child, I did not know this. Why, there’s a school not far from her house, and I assumed …” She looked down for a moment then back at Janie. “Is thee quite certain of this, child?”
“Yes, ma’am. Maydean told me herself. Her granddaddy won’t let her go to school.”
“Oh, I see.” Mrs. Hull frowned. “Well, then, it is good of thee to bring it up. We should do what we can about that, shouldn’t we, young Janie? Let us see if dear Maydean would like to join our little kitchen-table school. How does that sound?”
“That sounds real fine, ma’am,” said Janie. She and Mrs. Hull smiled at each other.
“Now, dear Janie, I have a surprise. Come with me.” Mrs. Hull led the way to the kitchen.
Indeed, the warm kitchen held the most wonderful surprise. Sitting at the table was the very thin figure of Blue, sipping from a cup of tea. In front of him sat a small dish of stewed pears. Blue’s gaunt face made his eyes look as big as saucers. Aleta sat next to him, her eyes never leaving his face.
Seeing Blue sitting up and handling that dainty flowered cup made tears well in Janie’s eyes. “Blue!” she called.
Blue looked up at Janie and grinned weakly. “Hey, girl. Come sit down here and help me eat them pears.” His hand shook as he lowered the teacup. It rattled softly in its saucer.
Janie slid into the chair next to Blue. “Them pears is yours, Blue. You got to eat ‘em.”
“That’s what I been telling him,” Aleta fussed. “He’s got to eat. That fever took the stuffin’ right out of him.”
Blue laughed softly. He placed his hand on Aleta’s and left it there a moment. Aleta’s face flushed, and her brown eyes sparkled.
Janie was surprised. She’d thought of them all as brothers and sisters, but clearly Blue and Aleta were—what had Maydean called it? Janie thought a minute. Oh yes—they were beaus. Sweet on each other. It looked that way to Janie, anyway.
Change in the air. Aunty Mil’s favorite phrase drifted through Janie’s mind. Yes, Janie thought, lots of change in the air.
Aleta pulled her hand away from Blue and looked self-consciously at Janie. “Blue’s gonna be here at our kitchen school. He’s gonna learn to read, too. Mrs. Hull says he can sit up for an hour at a time. Won’t be long ‘til we start our lessons.”
“That’s good,” said Janie. She paused. “How’s Lucy?”
“Nobody’s saying nothing,” said Aleta. “Dr. Hull’s in there with her now. We got to keep prayin’, little sis.”
Blue looked at the tablecloth. It was hard to read his face. He most likely knew he had almost died, and he must be very worried for Lucy. Janie breathed a quick, silent prayer.
The kitchen door to the hall opened, and in walked Maydean and Betsy. They stopped at the sight of Blue.
Aleta introduced everyone who hadn’t met, and Blue thanked Maydean for taking them to Hull Farm.
“I’m awful glad you’re better,” Maydean said. “Mrs. Hull will feed you good—I can tell you that.” She turned to Janie. “Betsy’s gonna braid my hair. You wanna come watch?”
Janie looked at Maydean’s matted red mane. It would need a lot done to it before braiding would even be possible. Betsy certainly had her work cut out for her.
Janie glanced over at Blue. He and Aleta were looking shyly at one another again. Janie smiled inside. She hadn’t seen that coming—Blue and Aleta together—but it made so much sense. They were meant to be together.
“Sure, Maydean,” Janie said. “I’ll come along.”
The three girls headed into the front room, where the morning fire burned warm and slow. Maydean still wore men’s pants, and she plopped down on the rug in front of the fire. She sat cross-legged, and Betsy sank down behind her. “What a marvelous head of hair you have, Maydean,” Betsy said.
Janie thought that was a very kind thing to say. The fact of the matter was Maydean’s long, curly hair was dirty and matted.
But Betsy didn’t seem to mind. She brushed and brushed Maydean’s hair. She worked oil through the matting with her fingers until she could brush every snarl free. Then she brushed some more.
Janie thought about Aunty Mil and how she used to comb Janie’s nappy hair with only those long fingers of hers, then braid it nice and snug. Whenever Aunty Mil hit a snarl and had to work through it with her fingers, she would coo, “Little girl, you got the patience of Job.”
The first time Aunty Mil had said this, little Janie had piped up, “How come you say that?”
“‘Cause you let Aunty Mil pull on this knot of hair, and you don’t complain or cry or nothin’.”
“Who’s Job?” Janie had asked.
“A patient man o’ God,” was all Aunty said. But the next time—and every time—she untangled a snarl, she said, “Little girl, you got the patience of Job.” Janie came to expect it and like it. Those hair sessions were some of the fondest memories Janie had.
It took a long time for Betsy to get Maydean’s hair unsnarled. Throughout what had to be a painful process, Maydean simply sat quietly and looked straight ahead into the fire. She reminded Janie of the horses back in Georgia, how they looked when the groomsmen brushed their sleek coats. Those big creatures always stood perfectly still, looked straight ahead, and seemed to like how the brushing felt. That’s how Maydean looked to Janie.
Before long, Janie could see that Betsy was right—Maydean did indeed have a glorious mane of hair. Now Betsy’s fingers worked and worked some more until she’d braided two long, thick braids, snugly woven to stay put.
“Voilà!” said Betsy.
“What’s that mean?” asked Maydean.
“It means I’m done, and you are beau
tiful. Turn around so Janie can see.”
Maydean squirmed on the rug until she faced Janie. “Oh, Maydean,” Janie said, “you got to look in a mirror. You look so pretty.”
Betsy pulled Maydean to her feet, moved her to the gilded mirror across the room, and placed her square in front of it. Janie watched Maydean’s reflection. The redhead’s jaw dropped.
“That’s me?” she asked.
Betsy nodded. “I can help you keep it that way, too. I’m giving you this hairbrush to take home, and …”
Maydean’s expression changed. “If it’s all right, Miss Betsy, can I leave the brush here and just use it here?” Maydean’s eyes looked anxious. “If I take it home, I might lose it.”
Without a question, Betsy nodded. “Of course. I will find a special spot for it, Maydean. It will be your personal grooming spot in this house.”
Maydean’s shoulders drooped visibly. “Thank you, Miss Betsy,” was all she said.
Mrs. Hull stuck her head in the room. “Girls, Dr. Hull wants to see us.” Her eyes widened when she saw Maydean. “Why, look at that! How lovely thee looks, my dear.” Then she hurried to the kitchen.
Everyone immediately gathered in the kitchen again—all except Blue, who was resting in his room, and Lucy, of course. Aleta, Janie, Nathan, Mrs. Hull, Betsy, and Maydean waited expectantly for news.
Dr. Hull was brief. “I want thee all to know,” he began, “that in this past hour, our young Lucy’s fever has broken.” He looked at each of them. “She is still unwell. I do not know if any permanent harm has come from her days of fever, and I shan’t know for a while. We must continue to pray for the child’s health.”
With that, Dr. Hull led a short, heartfelt prayer then returned to the back of the house.
It happened so fast that nobody said anything for a bit. Then Mrs. Hull spoke briskly. “I believe it is time to start our school. Betsy and I can give Lucy any special help she needs while she’s recovering, and before long, she’ll be caught up. Let us begin in the morning.” The Rubyhill youths nodded.
Mrs. Hull looked at Maydean. “Will thee be joining us as well, dear?”
Maydean looked at her hands. She shrugged.
“I shall take that as a yes,” Mrs. Hull simply said. “Now Betsy and I shall see all of thee bright and early tomorrow after breakfast. We’ll meet right here at the table.”
With that, Mrs. Hull left to join the doctor at Lucy’s side.
Aleta turned to Maydean. “You got the most beautiful hair,” Aleta said.
Maydean simply squirmed in her chair and grinned.
CHAPTER 14
Christmas Eve
A rooster woke Janie up on the morning of Christmas Eve. She looked out the bedroom window to find the hills and fields covered in another heavy blanket of fresh snow and tinged with the pink of a soon-to-rise sun.
Janie sat up and hugged her knees under the warm, heavy quilts. Aleta was already up and out of the room, probably downstairs helping. The Rubyhill youths who had not taken sick offered to do any work they could at the Hull farm, and their help was appreciated.
Janie smiled. She felt happy these days, more content than she had been since Aunty Mil was alive and more hopeful for the future than she’d ever been in her whole life.
There were many blessings for Janie to count as she stayed snuggled under the quilts. First of all, Lucy was getting stronger every day. She would eventually move upstairs to Aleta and Janie’s room, but right now the stairs were a bit too much for the very weakened Lucy. Dr. Hull said that he couldn’t see anything deeply wrong with Lucy from the long fever, but he warned them that she would be quieter than she had been before being sick. That would last a long time, he said, most likely all winter.
Indeed, Janie found Lucy to be very subdued. She sat quietly at the kitchen table with everyone for meals and for short periods of schooling. Sometimes Janie caught Lucy watching her move about the room. Lucy’s big dark eyes were expressionless until Janie made a funny face. Then Lucy’s eyes smiled, but often her face did not.
“You all right, Lucy?” Janie would ask.
Lucy would nod and continue to watch Janie with those big dark eyes. After a while, Janie understood that Lucy had simply lost all her energy at those times and that watching the others was entertainment for the still-weak girl. When this happened, Janie would help her friend back to her room in the back of the house. Lucy would crawl into bed and fall asleep almost instantly. This happened every day, but the naps were getting shorter every day, too.
Of course, people had gotten sick before in Janie’s world, but they usually got better faster than this. Janie sorely missed Lucy’s friendship. Maydean was turning into a friend, but Lucy had been Janie’s friend for many years. Aleta seemed preoccupied with Blue these days, and Janie didn’t feel she should take up Aleta’s time. And Nathan … well, Nathan was a boy.
At least Janie could see the baby steps Lucy’s health was taking. And they were forward steps. She would be her old self soon enough.
On the other hand, Blue was back to his full strength and former sassiness. He and Nathan helped Dr. Hull and some hired hands with the farm work. Blue had early on returned to teasing Janie like a big brother, and everyone was relieved to see it.
And then there was the Blue and Aleta romance. It took a couple of weeks for Janie to adjust, but now she found herself happy to see how Blue acted with Aleta. He did not treat her as a sister anymore at all. He held Aleta’s hand under the table, and he watched her cross a room as if nobody else were in the room with them. Janie figured that must be what love between a boy and a girl looked like.
These winter days found Aleta making a handsome quilt. She allowed Janie to help her with it. Lucy was too weary to concentrate on needlework, but she sat with them. Maydean had no interest in it. She preferred to help out with the chickens and cows outdoors or work in the kitchen on occasion with Betsy.
Maydean had truly blossomed from the dirt-caked, wild-haired girl Janie had met weeks ago. Maydean spent almost every day at the Hull farm. Janie watched the girl transform from dirty to clean, from what Blue called “half boy” to all girl. Maydean still wore men’s clothing, but now Janie knew why. That was all her drunken granddaddy had for her to wear, and she didn’t want him to wonder where she got new clothes.
Janie had also learned why the frightening man did not allow his granddaughter to go to school. “It’s ‘cause he cain’t read,” Maydean finally told her, “and he can’t have nobody smarter’n him around. If he knew I could read, he’d beat the smartness right out of me.”
Janie was horrified to hear this, but she said nothing else about it to Maydean. The Hull farmhouse door was always open to the child, so she had a sanctuary. She kept her books at the Hull farm along with the hairbrush and combs Betsy gave her. Maydean kept her hair braided, but she never worked on it at her own house, only at the Hull’s. And every evening before dark, Maydean trudged on back to her grandfather’s house. Now that Janie understood all that, it was an even happier thing to have Maydean around.
The Rubyhill Five’s new reality still took some getting used to. All five of them now spent time each day with—even ate with—white folks. The strangeness of it never completely went away during their winter at the Hull farm. But Janie and the others had grown to love the Hulls, Betsy, and Maydean.
Mrs. Hull’s and Betsy’s good cooking filled out hollow cheeks and skinny arms. All the Rubyhill Five gained weight and soon looked hale and hearty. Even Maydean was no longer so thin, and her cheeks were rosy all the time. Janie appreciated not going to bed hungry. Every night she thanked the Lord for that.
Best of all, Janie and her friends could read. It had not taken long. Betsy said that they not only were more than ready to learn new things, they were also all very smart. The group progressed quickly under the kind and careful instruction of Mrs. Hull and Betsy.
Soon they could both read and perform tasks of basic arithmetic. Janie found she was particula
rly good at this, and it was fun for her. She now was learning multiplication tables and even fractions.
The young students also took lessons in proper spoken grammar. At first, none of them had been particularly interested in talking in any other way but their own. Deep down inside, they also didn’t want to speak like a Yankee. Such ideas had been part of their rural Southern upbringing, though they never spoke any of those ideas aloud at the kitchen table.
But Betsy, who came from St. Louis, told them, “You’re eventually moving to Chicago. If you don’t change how you speak, the good citizens of Chicago will dismiss you as country bumpkins. Let me help you so that northern people treat you with respect when they hear you speak.”
Of course, Maydean wasn’t going to Chicago, but she was most excited about learning proper grammar. She confided to Janie that she was formulating a plan. “What I want to do now, see, is to be a teacher like Betsy. I’m talkin’ to her ‘bout it all the time in the kitchen. She says I can get caught up real quick. She thinks I can do it.” Janie noticed that Maydean’s face brightened with passionate energy when she spoke like this.
Another exciting benefit the Rubyhill Five and Maydean had during kitchen school was that now they could all read the Bible. Slaves had almost no access to the Bible since they were not allowed to read or gather for church. Janie was stunned at how much was in just one book.
At first it was difficult with all the old-fashioned language and complicated sentences. But Mrs. Hull and Betsy patiently walked them through the hard words to understand the thrilling stories of the Old Testament and the birth, life, and death of Jesus in the New Testament.
Now Janie knew where to find, “Make a joyful noise.” She also knew that the Lord considered her singing such joyful noise.
Janie learned who Job was, the man Aunty Mil said had patience. That Old Testament hero had lost everything, and in some ways, Janie felt like him. But through it all, she read, he still loved the good Lord. Janie considered her own losses, and she came to see that all people went through pain in life, no matter who they were. Janie determined that no matter what, she would continue her love and dependence on the Lord.
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