Begin Again

Chapter 8

(RYAH)

I sat on the edge of the back porch with my feet resting on the step beneath me. I looked out over the back field. It had drastically changed in the past few weeks. My father and I had spent countless hours out plowing the field to get it ready to grow the plants that would sustain us through the winter. We had gotten the soil ready then the three of us planted the little seeds down in the dark soil. We had planted them weeks ago and some of the plants would be ready to harvest in just a few more weeks. We just had to water and protect them until then. There were some plants that were already suitable for harvesting. The peas were the first to be ready to eat. Mother and I had already gone through the plants pulling off the pods that were fat enough pick. 

I tore open the pea pod and let the tiny green balls fall into the bowl that was resting in my lap. I threw the open pod into the bucket to my left. The task was monotonous and allowed me to think. I thought of everything that had happened in the past few months. My life had drastically changed. I never imagined that I would be here at this point. I thought I would be off starting my new life with Eric. Our house would have been nearly finished by now. We would have been moving in any day now. Everything would have been perfect. 

I sighed and dropped the peas into the bowl and threw the pod into the bucket. I looked down at the little mound of peas that was slowly beginning to pile up. It was a lot of work and there wasn't much of a reward for the work. Breaking open a pod to only find three little peas in it was always depressing. Instead of grabbing another pod I stood up and shook out my arms and stretched my legs. It had been a long tiring day already and it was only half over. I felt like it should be evening but it was only about noon. The midday sun was hot and beat down against my back as I set off walking across the yard. I went around the field and into the trees that surrounded our property. I walked for a few minutes through the trees and I tried to listen to the sounds of the forest. Birds squawked up in the trees and there were bugs buzzing around in the heat. I heard the quick feet of a rabbit darting into the bushes as I startled it. I paused for a moment to just listen to the sounds of the forest as it came alive around me.

I was completely still for a few minutes as I looked around and listened. There were so many things that could be missed from trying to rush through without pausing to look around. There was the sound of footsteps and I slowly turned to look in the direction of the sound. The deer paused as it sensed me and looked in my direction with its large ears twitching. We looked at each other for a few seconds then she twitched her nose and continued walking through the trees. Behind her came her baby. The newborn spots on the fawn were still visible as it followed after its mother. After a few seconds they were gone. I decided to keep moving through the forest. 

Eventually I made it to a break in the trees. A large meadow stretched out in front of me. I could hear the sound of running water from the little stream that ran through. The stream was mostly snow-melt from up on the mountains that were visible on the other side of the meadow. It was absolutely stunning. I had been to the meadow many times before as a child but I hadn't ever really thought much about it. 

The meadow had been a perfect place for a picnic with the family or a place to play. I remembered when we would pack a basket with food and come spend the day with the wildflowers. As a child, the meadow had been one of my favorite places. I would pick wildflowers into a bouquet for my mother. My father would help me climb the trees around the edge of the meadow. Sometimes my mother would show me how to braid the flowers into a crown and I would wear them in my hair. I smiled at the memory of the simpler days that we had spent together in the meadow as a family. 

"This would have been a perfect place for a home. If Eric were here he would agree," I whispered to myself. Then I had an idea.

 An absolutely insane idea.