Someday

 by Hope S. (ages 10-13)

It was only fifteen days until Christmas, and Mitch Carter could hardly wait. He had been courting Rachel Scott for a year, and he had a special surprise for her. Something that would involve the both of them. Mitch breathed in the chilly air and smiled to himself.

 “Hey, Mitch!” Chad bellowed, interrupting Mitch’s thoughts.

“Yeah?” Mitch answered looking up from where he stood bridling up Chase.

 “Are you going into town?”

“Yes, did you need something?” Mitch asked.

Chad grinned, “Just make sure you place that order for the feed. I will be in town later with Mother so I can pick it up.”

“Will do!” Mitch called as he nudged the horse and headed towards town.

                                                              ***

Fresno loved decorating their town for Christmas. Garland hung from the posts and overhangs above the boardwalks of every building. Wreaths seemed to hang from every door, and a giant tree stood in the middle of town.

 “Whoa,” Mitch commanded before tying Chase to the hitching post.

 A rush of warm air greeted him as he entered the mercantile. It was an unusually cold winter for Fresno, California.

 Rubbing his gloved hands together, he grinned at Mr. Goodwin, “Is it here?”

Mr. Goodwin smiled, “Yes.”

He held out a small box and Mitch reached for it.

 “It’s perfect,” Mitched said gazing into the box, “Thanks!”

Mr. Goodwin’s eyes twinkled, “Merry Christmas!”

“Merry Christmas to you too!”

                                                             ***

Andi dismounted Shasta and entered the Carter house. “Mother! Ellie! Chad!” she called.

“Please, Andrea, lower your voice,” Mother commented coming out of the parlor.

“Sorry, Mother. Are you going somewhere?” Andi asked gazing at Mother’s coat and gloves.

 “I was going into town with Chad to do some last-minute shopping. Why?” Mother answered as she pulled on her gloves.

 Andi bit her lip, “Well, I needed some help, um… wrapping Riley’s presents.”

“I’ll help you with that,” Ellie offered appearing in the front hall, “That way Mother can still go into town.”

“I think that’ll work,” Andi agreed, “Go have fun, Mother.”

Mother waved a gloved hand and disappeared into the chilly winter air.

                                                            ***

“I have to get to school, you know,” Rachel said softly.

 When Mr. Foster had moved back east, Rachel had taken over the older students.

 “All right,” Mitch said as he gave her a quick peck on the cheek.

 As Rachel turned to go, she turned to face him, “Oh, and we’re singing your favorite Christmas carol for the pageant.”

She turned away and flounced into the schoolhouse.

 Mitch chuckled and climbed back on Chase; he most certainly couldn’t wait until Christmas.

                                                           ***

“Howdy, Tom,” Mitch greeted as he entered Justin’s law office.

“Good morning, Mr. Carter,” Tom replied.

“Is Justin available?” Mitch asked.

“I think he can spare a few moments,” Tom answered.

“Thanks,” Mitch said as he removed his hat and gloves, just as Justin stepped out of his office.

“Hey, Mitch,” Justin said ushering Mitch inside and closing the door, “You’re a welcome sight! What can I do for you?”

Mitch grinned, “Well I wanted to talk to you about the land and maybe some courting advice.”

Justin smiled, “Your bill of sale for the land is right here. Just sign here and it’s all yours.”

 Mitch quickly signed the bill of sale and looked up proudly, “I own 4 ½ acres now!”

Justin laughed, “You sure do! Now, what was your other question?”

“Do you think Christmas would be a good time to pop the question?”

Justin jumped up, “ Absolutely! Congratulations, lil’ brother!”  

“Thanks, I—” Mitch was interrupted by the frantic clanging of a bell.

“Fire! Fire in the schoolhouse!” Someone yelled.

 Justin and Mitch leaped up and ran out the door.

***

“Rachel!” Mitch screamed, his gaze frantically sweeping the schoolyard.

 Flames licked the schoolhouse walls and women ran for their children while men ran toward the burning structure with buckets of water.

“Sammy,” Justin said kneeling down, “Where’s Miss Scott?”

“In the schoolhouse,” Sammy replied tearfully, “We were practicing for the play, and then the stove exploded, and Miss Scott was standing in front of it!”

Mitch’s gaze snapped up, and he took off toward the schoolhouse. “No! Rachel!” he screamed, “Rachel!”

 “No, Mitch! You can’t go in there!” Peter yelled grabbing him and pulling him back.

“I have to! Rachel’s still in there!” Mitch cried.

Children were screaming and crying, while the whole town looked on in disbelief.

“Mitch, don’t go in there!” Mother said grabbing his other arm.

Mitch watched in horror as the men fled the building and a loud crash sounded from the schoolhouse. Justin’s sad gaze met Mitch’s and Chad quickly looked away.

“I’m sorry, Mitch. We couldn’t reach her,” Justin sympathized.

 Mitch took one final look at the charred schoolhouse and turned away.

“Mitch,” Mother said touching his shoulder.

Mitch jerked away, mounted Chase and galloped off.

“Mitch,” Mother called after him.

“Mother,” Justin said softly, “Give him some time.”

                                                          ***

Mitch gazed out across the 4 ½ acres he now owned. He’d had plans when he purchased the land. I was going to ask Rachel to marry me. We were going to have the spring wedding we’d talked about so many times, Mitch thought sorrowfully, we were going to raise our children in a house that I built. Our dream home. Mitch swallowed the lump in his throat. None of that will ever happen now.

                                                           ***

“Thanks for your help, Ellie,” Andi said as she mounted Shasta.

“You’re welcome,” Ellie replied pulling her shawl tightly around her shoulders.

Andi turned at the sound of the buggy pulling into the yard, “Oh look! Here comes Mother and Chad!”

As the buggy pulled to a stop, Andi noticed that Chad was covered in soot.

“What on earth happened to you?” Ellie gasped.

Mother, whose face was streaked with tears, accepted Chad’s hand as she descended from the buggy.

“Mother, what’s wrong?” Andi questioned.

“The schoolhouse burned down,” Chad began, “Rachel was trapped inside… She’s gone.”

Andi almost fell off Shasta, but Chad caught her and lowered her to the ground.

No, God! Not Rachel! Andi pleaded, She can’t be gone! It doesn’t seem possible!

“What makes matters worse is that Mitch saw it all,” Chad continued, “He rode off somewhere after the schoolhouse collapsed.”

Andi let the tears fall.

“Come,” mother instructed, “Let’s go have a seat in the parlor.”

Chad placed a hand on Andi’s shoulder, “I’ll tell Diego to ride out to your place and tell Riley to bring Jared and the girls here.”

Andi nodded her head. She could really use Riley’s shoulder to cry on right now.

***

The whole Carter family sat around the supper table waiting for Mitch to make an appearance. As soon as Melinda and Lucy heard the news, they’d insisted on coming out to the ranch to be with mother and the rest of the family during this difficult time. Hardly anyone had touched their food, and Luisa had fed the remnants to the grateful ranch hands.

“I’m worried about him, Justin,” mother cried softly.

Justin’s kind gaze locked with mother’s, “We all are, but he’s a grown man. He can take care of himself. Give him time, he’ll come around.”

Andi began to sob on Riley’s shoulder, “Why do bad things happen to our family? Why can’t it be someone else’s family for a change? I know how awful that sounds, but that’s how I feel!”

“God doesn’t give us more than we can handle, Andi,” Ellie replied softly.

Chad cleared his throat, “How about we ask the Lord to protect Mitch and bring him comfort?”

“That’s a wonderful idea, Chad,” Peter agreed.

Everyone bowed their heads.

“Dear Lord, we come to you in a time of need and comfort. We know that whatever happens in our lives happens for a reason. It’s all part of your plan, even if we don’t understand it. Our family has been through a lot of grief and trials, but we’ve seen your presence, grace, and mercy through it all. Please be with Mitch as he struggles with the loss of his best friend. Help him realize that we want to help him heal and that he’s not alone. You’ve been nothing but good to our family, so help us to trust you during the difficult times, even when we’re not sure what You’re doing. Protect Mitch wherever he’s at tonight, please bring him home safely. Give us peace knowing that someday we will meet those loved ones again who have gone before us. In Your wonderful name we pray. Amen.”

Mother dabbed her eyes, “That was a beautiful prayer, Chad.”

“I just prayed as the Lord led,” Chad replied modestly.

Justin smiled, “That’s always the best kind of prayer.”

***

Mitch placed Chase’s saddle in the tack room and climbed up into the loft. This place held several memories.

“Father, when can I go on a cattle drive with you?” six-year-old Mitch asked.

Father smiled, “When you can rope a steer from your horse, son. Then you can come with me.”

Mitch wiped away the tears trying to block out the memories, but they came flooding back.

“Son, tell me what’s wrong. I care about you and how you feel!” Father pleaded.

Mitch hesitated, “Well, there’s this girl at school that I really like…”

Father nodded, “Go on…”

“You see, she doesn’t pay me much mind. Sometimes I wonder if she even likes me,” Mitch admitted.

Father laughed, “Mitch, God will bring the right woman into your life when you’re ready to settle down and get married. I don’t think that a twelve-year-old boy is ready for marriage.”

Mitch glanced up at Father, “How will I know she’s the one?”

Father looked him in the eye, “Because you’ll build each other up in Christ, you’ll be strong where the other is weak, and you’ll make each other laugh.”

Mitch buried his face in his hands as he sat down on a bale of hay, “I found her, Father. But God took her from me!”

“Mitch?” Chad ventured from the ladder.

When Mitch ignored him, Chad walked across the loft and sat down next to his brother.

“Anything you want to talk about?” Chad asked.

“No,” Mitch replied, “I’ll be fine.”

Chad sighed, “Holding everything inside doesn’t help.”

Mitch sat silently.

“It’s okay to cry, Mitch. We’d all understand!”

Mitch scoffed, “Father never cried. Maybe crying is a sign that you’re weak.”

“Actually, I read it cleans out your tear ducts,” at Mitch’s glare, Chad stopped chuckling, “uh, yeah…anyways, Father did cry. I saw him once.”

Mitch looked at Chad in disbelief.

Chad nodded, “It’s true! In fact, it was in this very spot that I walked in on him.”

“What was he crying about?” Mitch questioned.

“He missed Kate. He thought he’d been a terrible father and vowed he’d protect Melinda and Andi better,” Chad replied tears filling his gaze, “When he died, Justin and I had to take on that responsibility and those were not easy shoes to fill.”

“Obviously,” Mitch stated, “You and Andi hardly ever got along… till you both got married. Even now it’s a little shaky sometimes.”

At Chad’s look, Mitch ducked his head.

“‘Father,  I thought that crying was for wimps?’ I said. ‘No, son,’ Father reprimanded, ‘those who say that are the weaklings. Crying shows how much you care.’”

Mitch was silent for a few moments, “I miss her so much! She was my life! I loved her with my whole heart!”

Chad placed a hand on Mitch’s shoulder, “If she’d been the one, God wouldn’t have taken her away from you. I once heard that ‘God gives the strongest soldiers the toughest battles’ God is trying to make you stronger through your trials!”

Mitch began to cry softly, and Chad pulled him into a tight hug.

 “God makes no mistakes,” Chad said quietly as tears streamed down his face, “The right woman is out there! You just have to be patient. You can have peace knowing that someday, you will see Rachel again. Just like we’ll see Father again someday.”

Mitch wiped away his tears, “Thanks, Chad. I really needed to hear that.”

Chad wiped away his own tears, “I’ll go tell the family that you’re back home. They’re probably worried about me too now!”

Mitch gave him a smile, “I’ll be in in a while.”

Chad slapped him on the back, “By the way, some of Andi’s school friends are still single. Maybe you could think about courting one of them?”

“You little sneak!” Mitch shouted shoving Chad into the pile of hay.

“Truce! Truce! I plead a truce!” Chad pleaded.

Mitch let up, “Fine! But you’re going to pay for that!”

Chad gazed longingly at the pulley that dangled from the barn roof, “What do you say? For old time’s sake?”

Mitch grinned and raced toward the rope and with a flying leap he slid to the ground, “Better hurry up big brother or I might tell the cowhands that you did that!”

Chad quickly descended and raced after Mitch, “Not so fast lil’ brother!”

“Papa!” Susie called from the house, “Can I do that?”

At Ellie’s petrified look, Chad chose the wise decision, “Not today.”

***

The sun shone brightly as the town gathered for Rachel’s funeral.

Reverend Harris ended the ceremony with this statement, “Rachel Scott will always be in our memories. She was a wonderful woman, and a great friend and teacher. Rachel deserves to be honored. Now, Mitchell Carter would like to say a few words.”

Mitch walked to the front of the crowd and began his speech, “Rachel was a great woman, and I was blessed to have her in my life. Because I know that I will see her again, I can go away in peace. I can move on with my life, and I can get married someday because that’s what she’d want. A wise man once told me, ‘God is trying to make you stronger through your trials’.”

Chad grinned at Mitch with tears in his eyes.

“Sounds familiar,” Justin whispered to Chad.

Chad silenced him with a look.

 “Let us go in peace,” Mitch concluded.

As the town began to disperse Mitch walked up to Justin, “How’s Sammy doing?”

“He’s a little traumatized from what happened, but he’ll be fine,” Justin assured him.

“That’s great!” Mitch said, “Maybe he can come fishing with me tomorrow. I really need to spend some quality time with him.”

“Sure!” Justin agreed.

Both brothers watched as Mitch walked into the church to enjoy the meal that the Ladies’ Aide Society had put together.

“Now why didn’t he quote me in his speech?” Justin questioned.

“Because you didn’t give him any good advice like I did. And the fact that I’m his favorite brother helped a little,” Chad added.

Justin’s jaw dropped open, “I did too give him good advice. Besides, he told me yesterday that I was his favorite.”

Chad’s face turned bright red, “That little…!”

“You know he was joking, right?” Justin asked.

“Yeah… of course!” Chad laughed, clearly embarrassed.

Justin laughed as he headed into the church, “At least… I think he was. Now let’s behave like grown men and celebrate Rachel’s homegoing.”

***

Several months had passed since Rachel’s death and Mitch had healed with time, and even married Liberty Flanders, one of Rachel’s best friends.

“Someday I’ll see you again,” Mitch said as he placed a bouquet of roses on the grave, “And I look forward to that day.”