Title: History’s Tale

Author: Lady S

Disclaimer: Catherine Marshall's beautiful story of
Christy is owned by the Marshall-LeSourd Family,
L.L.C. We are in no way seeking profit or credit for
her story. We are continuing the story of Christy for
our own amusement only. Any additions in story line
and characters were invented by the writers of the
alt.tv.christy Round Robin and the Christy Mailing
List. The content of each story is the responsibility
of the individual writer. The fanfic here is being
posted as a service to the Christy mailing list, Pax
Christy Forum and Alt.tv.christy News Group.

Author’s Notes: This is the third and final chapter in
the Life Trilogy.  I hope you all enjoy it!


History’s Tale
Lady S


Chapter One


“Get out of my room you little cretin!”

Scowling at her little brother, the most infuriating
of the bunch, Millie took the brush that ha'd been
whacking her with and finished packing her duffel bag
after shutting and locking the door to her bedroom. 
She was already running late and Peter’s constant
interruptions weren’t making it any easier.  Millie
Jensen couldn’t believe that the day had finally
arrived.  In two hours she would be sitting on a plane
headed to her new home.  She’d barely been able to
sleep the night before, going over and over, in her
mind, everything she needed to remember to bring, the
people she needed to say goodbye to, addresses she
needed to make sure she had.

“Come on Millie!  The taxi’s waiting,” Debra called up
the stairs.

“All right Mom, I’m coming!”

Zipping up her duffel bag she stood in her room
looking around for a moment.  It would be at least a
year before she would see it again and Millie wanted
to remember everything about it.  “Dear God,” she
whispered.  “Please guide me through this.  I can’t do
it on my own.”

Taking a deep breath she swung the bag onto her
shoulder, unlocked the door, and headed down the
hallway, down the stairs to see her family waiting to
say goodbye.  Too difficult for everyone to say
goodbye at the airport they had opted to do so at the
house.  Only Grandma Catherine would be coming with
Millie to the airport.  Hugging her mother and father,
kissing her squirming little bothers, Millie stowed
her bag in the trunk and climbed into the back of the
taxi with her grandmother.

The ride was silent, each one lost in her thoughts as
they rode to the airport.  It was only when they had
reached the gate that the two women spoke to each
other.  

“I’m very proud of you Millie.  What you’re doing is a
good thing; you’ll be helping a lot of people.  There
is something I want to give you.  But you must promise
me something first.  Promise me that you will only
open this if you ever find yourself wanting to come
back home for good.  If the time ever comes when you
don’t think that you are making a difference anymore I
want you to read this book before you make a decision
about your future.”

Handing her grandaughter the small package Catherine
made her point clear with her eyes.  Nodding Millie
took the package wrapped in brown paper and tied with
a string.  “I promise Grandma.”  Reaching out she
hugged the older woman close.  “Write me, okay?”

Smiling, ignoring the prick in her eye, Catherine
hugged her favorite granddaughter tightly.  Seeing
Millie off onto the plane she stayed until the plane
had taken off, her thoughts drifting back to the tales
from her childhood, the ones she had loved to hear
every night as her mother or father would tuck her
into bed.  Millie would live such experiences herself.
 

“Take care of her, my Lord.  Watch over her and guide
her through her trials as you guided my mother and
those who came before her.”


*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


On the plane, hours upon hours after she had left her
grandmother in the airport, several transfers and
layovers later, Millie looked out the window to see
lush green trees lining the ground as she listened to
the stewardess make the announcement in both English
and Spanish.

“Ladies and Gentlemen… Welcome to Chile!”


*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


Chapter Two



Gathering her bags, stretching her legs, Millie
scanned the crowds, searching for the one that had her
name in their hands.  Spotting it she walked over and
pointed to the small piece of board.  “That’s me,” she
smiled.  “I’m Millie Jensen.”

Nodding the man took one of her bags and motioned for
her to follow him out of the airport.  Walking a few
steps behind him, making her way through the crowd,
she emerged into the parking lot to see him loading
her bag into an old army jeep.  Tossing the bag she
carried next to the other one Millie climbed into the
passenger seat and barely had time to buckle up before
the car tore out of the parking lot.  Racing along the
roads, the wind too loud to allow conversation, Millie
watched the scenery flying by until they pulled up to
a ridge and stopped, dust still flying around them. 
Getting out of the driver’s seat the man walked to the
edge and stopped.  Turning around he gave Millie a
pointed look, motioning for her to join him.

“Welcome to Chile,” he said once she had moved to
stand next to him.  “From here you can just see the
villages, there’s five total.  We’ll reach the first
one, Los Corentas, by nightfall.  Tomorrow we’ll visit
each of the villages before taking you to the hospital
in the center of them.  The hospital is located in the
center of the villages so it’s about equidistant to
all of them.”

Staring out over the ridge at the lush green forest
Millie felt a smile growing on her face.  “Then let’s
roll,” she smiled.  “But first, how about a name?  You
know mine, care to let me in on yours?”

The man grinned and Millie could feel her heart drop
to her knees.  Sure, she had thought he was gorgeous
but no more so than any of the men she’d met so far. 
Then he smiled.  That one smile made any actor, from
Harrison Ford to Brad Pitt, look like runners up for
the ugliest man on earth.  

“The name is Paul.  Paul Cravatta.”

“Okay, then,” she smiled, making her way back to the
jeep.  “Let’s roll.”  Standing up in the jeep, her
head sticking up above the windshield, Millie stared
down at Paul.  “You comin’ or what?”

Laughing he climbed back into the jeep and they took
off, racing along deserted roads for hours on end
until, just as the first stars were beginning to show,
they pulled into the edge of a small village.  “We
have to keep the car outside the village, they won’t
let any automobiles inside.”

“How come?”

“Superstition.  They think that anything electronic
will bring bad tidings to the entire village.  So if
you got a cell or a laptop, you better not bring it in
with you.  Leave it here in the car, no one will steal
it I promise.”

With a small bit of hesitation Millie left one of her
bags in the jeep, taking the smaller one with her
before following Paul into the village.  Walking
through the village, listening to the people greet
Paul with warmth and friendliness, Millie hoped that
soon she too would be as welcomed here as he was. 
Almost to the middle of the village they stopped
outside of a small hut made out of tree bark and wild
grasses.

“You’ll sleep here tonight Millie Jensen,” he said,
pulling back the braided ropes that formed the door. 
“Tomorrow we’ll make it to the hospital.”

“Thanks, Paul,” she smiled.  “I really appreciate
this.”

“No problem.  Have a good night.”

Slipping into the small hut Millie put her bag in the
corner and sat down on the straw mat off to the one
side.  It had really begun.  She was here, in a small
quintet of villages of the mid-Chile region, and come
tomorrow she would arrive at her home for the next
year.  Closing her eyes Millie fought back her urge to
laugh, scream, and cry all at once.

“Thank you God,” she whispered.  “Thank you.”


*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Chapter Three



“The operating rooms are down the eastern hallway
while the recovery rooms are toward the south.  The
doctor makes the trip from the city only three times a
week so we try to schedule those days as fully as
possible.  On the other four days it’s up to us to
treat whoever comes in.  It’s not exactly procedural
but it’s the best we can do for now.  In about three
months we’ll get our doctor full time but for now
we’ll have to make due.”

Note pad in hand, pen flying over the paper, Millie
took notes on everything the RPN, Lisha Kilmartin,
told her, marking the rooms and hallways on a small
map she had scribbled.

“The nurses station is here near the entrance and the
only telephone we have is here at the desk.  If you
need to call home you can but try to keep the line
clear in case we get a call from the doctor or the
hospital in the city.  Have you brought a laptop or
cell phone?”

“Yes, I did.”

“All right but keep them out of the villages, the
people here are very superstitious about them.  If you
want to stay on their good side you’ll make sure you
keep anything electric out of the villages.  These
people are superstitious to a fault, it’s unreal
sometimes.  Getting them to do what’s needed and
what’s best for their health is a fight, practically a
war.  But you have to stand strong and not back down.”

“Got it.  Paul mentioned the electronics thing
earlier.”

“Paul?  You’ve met Paul?”

“Well yes, he was the one who met me at the airport.”

“Hmm…”

Watching the older woman fall silent Millie wondered
what she had said to cause it.  Opening her mouth to
ask they were interrupted as a small boy ran into the
hospital.  Babbling rapidly to them in Spanish he
began tugging on their hands, urging them to come. 
Calling upon her best language skills Millie, a young
woman who spoke three languages fluently, found it
difficult to keep up with him as he scrambled his
words together in his haste.  Following him out of the
hospital, throwing herself into the Jeep with Lisha,
Millie held on tightly as they flew down the road
until they had reached the third of the five villages.

Once they were inside the hut she saw what the little
boy had been trying to tell them.  A young girl, no
older than six or seven, was lying on a bedroll,
shivering, shaking, sweating; she was sick.  Dropping
to her knees Millie worked side by side with Lisha,
one woman taking the girls temperature while the other
felt for her pulse.  

“103.2,” Lisha announced.

“Pulse is high, racing.”  Ignoring the frantic
chattering of the parents behind her, the mother
wringing her hands in worry, Millie bent her head
closer to the little girl.  Opening the girl’s mouth
Millie saw the white spots in the back of her throat
and cringed.  “Looks like strep, pretty advanced I’d
bet.”

Peering into her throat Lisha frowned.  “You’re right.
 We need to get her to the hospital.”

“You calm down the parents, I’ll get the girl.”

Nodding Lisha stood to speak to the parents, telling
them exactly what was wrong with their daughter and
what they would do to help her.  Half listening to her
as she explained what would happen, what they would be
able to do to help their daughter, Millie gathered the
little girl into her arms and stood from her crouched
position.  Emerging from the hut Millie strode as
quickly as she could to the car only to find herself
blocked by a small crowd of people.  

“Let me pass,” she called out in Spanish.  No one
moved.  “Please, let me pass so we can help this
girl!”

Emerging from the hut Lisha yelled at them to move but
no one budged an inch.

“Why won’t they move?” Millie asked of the woman who
had moved to stand behind her.  “Please!” she cried. 
“Let us help her!”

“They won’t listen to you if it means taking her out
of the village.”

Turning on her heel Millie saw Paul approaching them
through the crowd that had gathered behind her. 
“Why?”

“Same reason they won’t let electronics in. 
Superstitions.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me!”

“‘Fraid not.  If you take her out they won’t let her
back in.  Take her away from her family and you’ll
make her an orphan for life.”

Millie felt a sense of disbelief and hopelessness
creeping in.  “You can’t be serious.”

“Completely.”


*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


Chapter Four


Muttering in a language that Paul didn’t recognize
Millie scowled.  Watching her he could practically see
the wheels turning in her head, trying to figure out
how to solve this problem.

“We don’t have time for this!” Lisha declared.  Moving
ahead she pushed past the crowd, making room for
Millie to get through but she stayed still.  “What are
you waiting for Millie, let’s go.  The sooner we get
this girl to the hospital the sooner we can get her
well.”

Looking down at the little girl shivering in her arms
Millie thought over what Paul had said about her
parents and the village.  The look in his eyes as he
had spoken told her that he wasn’t fooling around. 
“Why can’t we leave her here?” she said, looking up to
meet Lisha’s eyes.

“Are you crazy?  We need to get her to the hospital
where we can treat her properly!”

“What are we going to do at the hospital that we can’t
do here?  We’ll give her medication, make her sleep,
plenty of fluids, and wait.  We can do that here.”

“You are crazy,” she frowned, reaching out to take the
little girl from her arms.  “Hospital!”

“Lisha!”  Moving back a step Millie spoke her mind. 
“If we take her out of here they won’t let her back
in.  What do we do when she’s healed?  What then?  Do
we just send her on her way to fend for herself or can
we take care of her at the hospital, because those
will be our only two options.”

Drawing herself up straight and tall Lisha stared at
Millie with a mixture of anger and disbelief.  “You
have just gotten here, girl, what in your little mind
makes you think that you know better than I do?”

“The fact that I have just gotten here, Lisha!” Millie
retorted.  “You’ve been here for three years, you’ve
become so used to these people and how they act and
how they are that you don’t see them as anything but
an obstacle!  I just got here, I’ve never met these
people but I can see the fact that they care about
this little girl.  Take a look at their faces; you can
see the worry and the pain for her in their eyes.  If
we can help her and at the same time respect their
wishes and beliefs then why not?”

“All right then Miss I’ve-Got-All-The-Answers, what do
you suggest we do?”

“Is there an empty hut, somewhere near the edge of the
village, away from everyone, where we could treat
her?” Millie asked, changing from English to Spanish
so the people would understand her.

Realizing that this new woman wasn’t going to try and
take the little girl out of the village the people
suddenly became cooperative with her, moving aside to
show her to the medical hut, a barren hut on the edge
of the village, isolated from the others.  Following
the crowd, leaving them behind as she entered the hut,
Millie laid the girl out on a mat in the middle of the
hut.  Taking off her outer shirt she laid it over the
young girl, tucking it in around her shoulders. 
Reaching into the backpack that had been tossed into
the corner she pulled out a small vial of medicine
and, dosing out the correct amount, injected the
little girl.

Sitting back on her heels she stared at the little
girl, the medication lulling her into s dreamless
sleep, and prayed that she had done the right thing.


*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


Chapter Five




Dropping into the nearest chair Millie groaned as she
rubbed a hand over her tired face.  After working on
scrubbing the hospital floors all day she was beat. 
All week she and Lisha had been working to get the
hospital ready for the founder’s visit in two days.

Sitting back in her chair Millie thought about the
older woman she was working side by side with.  They’d
had a rocky start.  The RPN had considered her snippy,
know-it-all, and rude ever since she’d spoken out so
brazenly about little Mara.  But, after eating a large
helping of crow pie, Millie managed to get back on her
good side again.  

Life in Chile was going well for Millie, she was
enjoying her time here, and the scenery was stunningly
beautiful.  She’d sent rolls of film home to her
family so they could see her home here and they
agreed… it was beautiful.

Of course she’d censored her pictures so they only saw
the beauty.  Millie didn’t want them to see the
horrors she dealt with on a daily basis.  The poor
living conditions, the huts that don’t protect the
people from anything, it was too much for her
sometimes when she thought about the life she’d led at
home.  But when the sadness of it all would strike her
she would go out and watch the little children as they
ran around the village, their laughter rising in the
air, filling it with a beautiful scent.

Rising from her chair she glanced out the window and
saw that the moon, high in the sky, was filling the
land with it’s pale light.  Just enough light to bathe
by.  With a grin she grabbed her towel and soap,
slipped out of her room on the second floor of the
hospital, down the stairs, and through the woods
toward the river.  Stripping off her outer clothes,
leaving her underwear on- a lesson Lisha had enforced
strict adherence to- she waded into the water.  

Washing up quickly she stood staring at the shore,
debating on whether she should head in or go for a
short swim.  While she knew she should get some sleep,
a swim sounded too enticing to pass up.  Pushing off
with her feet Millie sliced through the water with
powerful strokes.  While she swan her mind was a
jumble.  

Her year here would be over in two months.  Millie
could scarcely believe that it had been ten months
already; time had flown by faster than she had ever
thought possible.  At the end of her year Millie knew
she had to make a decision.  Did she stay on for
another year or return home to her family in the
states?  

As much as she did love being here, loved working with
the hospital and helping the people, she missed her
family, her friends.  How could she decide between the
two things she loved most?  Was it possible to make a
decision of such magnitude in the two months she had
left?

Suddenly Millie was pulled under the water, her head a
good foot under the rivers surface.  Automatically her
survival training kicked into gear and she went limp,
playing dead, hoping and praying the animal would
leaver her as dead.  Her heart hammering in her chest
Millie felt the animal release its hold on her leg. 
Knowing that she needed to play dead as long as she
could Millie didn’t move, floating in a dead man’s
float on the surface of the river, her body being
pulled along by the current.  Finally, when she was
sure her lungs would burst, she raised her head,
gulping in the humid night air and it was then that
her ears picked up on the other sound.

Laughter.

Frowning she turned around to see her suspicion
confirmed.

“Jerk!” she cried, splashing him with a burst of
water.

Un-phased by the water shower Paul kept laughing until
she was treading right in front of him.  Treading
water against the current he grinned down at her. 
They’d fast become friends after that one instance so
long ago.  Seeing her stand up to Lisha had confirmed
that she was there to help the people, not just for an
adventure to tell her grandchildren.  Since then he’d
done what he could to help her.  Including some basic
survival skills.

“You did good.  Playing dead, I mean,” he grinned.

Growling under her breath Millie began to swim back
towards her clothes and towel a good ways away on the
riverbank.  Still chuckling to himself Paul followed
her, swimming side by side until they reached her pile
of clothes.  She was so much fun to tease.  He could
read Millie like a book; her face was as open as one
to him.  She could never hide how she really felt, no
matter how she tried.  And it hadn’t taken him long to
realize it.  When she was sad she bit her upper lip;
angry, she muttered in another language; happy, then
she smiled.  There was no stopping the brightness of
her smile when she was happy.

“One of these day’s I’m going to get you back, you do
realize that right?” she threatened, sitting on a
fallen tree to dry off.

Rolling his eyes Paul joined her.  “You’ve been saying
that since the first time I did that.  You’ll never do
it and you know it as well as I do.”

Scowling at him she pulled her shorts on and stood,
gathering her shirt and heading back towards the
hospital as she pulled it on, towel wrapped around her
head like a turban.  Paul could get under her skin
faster than anyone she’d ever known.  But he was
closer to her than anyone else as well.  They’d become
friends quickly after coming here and she had to laugh
when she thought back to her first impression of him,
back at the airport.

As the local teacher he traveled between the villages
teaching the children, giving them the most basic of
an education, the information they would need to know
to get along here in their little corner of the world.
 And he’d taught her as well.  Customs of the people
so that she didn’t offend anyone by mistake, survival
skills for the jungle she traveled through every day,
things she would need to know to live here.

Approaching the entrance to the hospital, listening to
Paul telling her about one of the pranks some of the
children had played on one of the others, Millie
carefully wiped her feet on the grass to make sure
they were clean and dry.  She’d spent all day
scrubbing the stupid floors; she didn’t want to have
to do it all over again.

“Don’t mess up my floors, Paul, I just finished them
today and I want them to stay clean,” she warned him.

“This floor?” he teased, holding his filthy foot just
over her clean floor.

“”Yes that floor, and you know it.”  Seeing the gleam
in his eye she pointed at him.  “I mean it!  I spent
all day scrubbing these floors, you mess them up and
you’ll regret it.”

Challenging her he lowered his foot a little close. 
“What are you gonna do about it?”  

She was so much fun to tease, had been for as long as
he knew her.  Paul knew she could take a joke and
loved to push her buttons at times.  She never took
any flack from him and she could dish it out as well
as she got it.  But as the words left his mouth he
could see that she was too tired to take it right now
and decided to stop.  He’d tease her another time,
when she was in a better mood and not as tired as she
was now.  

Before Paul could move his foot he lost his balance
and stumbled a few feet into the hospital, his filthy
feet making tracks on the spotless floor.  

Grimacing at the dirt he raised his eyes to meet hers
and apologize but the words never made it past his
throat.  Meeting her eyes Paul was shocked to see the
hurt in them, and in the one corner he could make out
the first shimmer of a tear.  Without a word Millie
turned and walked away, disappearing before he could
call out to her.  Muttering under his breath, cursing
himself for pushing her too far, Paul ran a frustrated
hand through his hair as he saw her disappear around
the corner.


*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


Waking from her sleep Millie rolled over and looked
out the window at the beginning of the sunrise.  The
founder’s were coming today; she and Lisha had to
finish cleaning.  Thankfully she had done the floors
yesterday so the only thing left was the…

Suddenly she remembered.

Paul and his filthy feet.

Frowning she still couldn’t believe he’d done that. 
She’d been serious about wanting to keep them clean
and he purposefully messed them up.  Too shocked to
make a sound she’d turned and left, angry at herself
for getting emotional about it.  They were only floors
for crying out loud.  But it had still hurt that he’d
done it on purpose, smiling the whole time.

Sighing, forcing herself to get up out of her bed,
Millie donned her work clothes and headed downstairs. 
Passing the supply closet she grabbed the scrub brush
and pail, wanting to get it clean again before Lisha
woke and saw the mess.  Entering the hallway she
stopped and stared at the small sight before her.

A small bunch of wild flowers sat atop and equally
small piece of paper, all of which sat atop a spotless
floor.  Picking up the flowers she opened the folded
piece of paper and read it.

“I’m sorry.”


*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Chapter Six



“You ready yet?”

“No.”

Lisha smiled.  Sitting on the bed, watching Millie
tear through her closet in search of something to
wear, she checked her watch again.  Millie had been
searching for something appropriate to wear to the
dinner tonight with the visiting founders.

“Give it up girl; put on your tan pants and your white
tank, you’ll be fine.”

Frowning she pulled the two items from the closet and
stared at them.  With a shrug of defeat she pulled
them on and grabbed her sandals.  As the two women
walked down the hallway towards the dining room Millie
couldn’t believe the two weeks were already up.  For
two weeks the hospital had been abuzz with the
visiting founders and their guests.  Tonight was the
farewell dinner, to say goodbye to the guests as they
left in the morning.  The founders, Mike and Patty
Hill, were staying on an extra day but they too would
be leaving.

Mike had brought her a contract to sign if she wanted
to stay on the extra year and Millie had to answer him
before he left with her decision to stay on or to
leave.  All week she had been thinking about it,
coming to the same conclusion time and time again. 
She loved it here, Millie had no desire to leave and
yet at the same time she wondered if this was what her
life was to be.  Living here in the heart of Chile,
seeing each day the hardships of the people who lived
here, was a difficult life to lead.

Could she make a life for herself here?

One year was only barely scratching the surface of the
life she would be choosing if she did choose to stay. 
Still, though she had been thinking about it for a
while now, Millie had yet to find the answer she
needed.

Entering the dining room Millie and Lisha sat with the
others and the meal began.  Trying to forget, for a
few hours, the decision she needed to make, Millie
listened to the conversation as it flowed through the
room.  Looking around at the people sitting at the
table she saw happy smiling people who had no idea the
harsh reality of life in the five villages.  They
smiled and laughed while others were working all day
just to find a way to survive for another one. 

Her thoughts were interrupted when a door crashed open
out in the hallway.  Rising from her chair Millie
slipped out into the hallway, Lisha not far behind, to
see Mara running down the hallway.  Tears streaming
from her eyes the little girl pulled on Millie’s hands
pulling her down the hallway back towards the doors
babbling so fast no one could understand her.

“Mara, Mara slow down, honey, I can’t understand you,”
Millie said, kneeling before the frightened little
girl.  “What’s wrong?”

“Momma’s sick,” she replied.  “They’re all sick, you
gotta come!”

Immediately they sprang into action.  Grabbing their
supply bags from the emergency room both women ran for
the jeep sitting outside the hospital, a few of the
others falling in step behind them.  Racing down the
road to the village Millie never let her foot leave
the gas pedal.  Pulling to a stop just outside the
village they ran to Kailua, Mara’s mother, and found
her lying in her hut, shaking like a leaf in a storm. 
After a brief examination Lisha looked up, her eyes
filled with worry and concern.

“It’s Scarlet Fever.”

Despair began to bubble up in Millie’s heart.  “I’ll
check the village, see if anyone else is showing signs
of it.”

Nodding Lisha turned back to Kailua and Millie left
the hut.  A small crowd had gathered in front of the
hut, friends and family worried over the woman’s
health.  One by one she briefly examined the people
and found that five others were showing the first
symptoms while two people were already nearing
Kailua’s state.  Working quickly Millie moved the sick
people away from the others, setting up some
additional medical huts, and getting them some
medicine, hoping and praying it would help them,
unsure of exactly how advanced their condition really
was.

Emerging from one of the now four medical huts Millie
saw Patty standing in the yard with the children,
trying to keep them occupied.  “I need you to go back
to the hospital and ring Dr Lesion in the city.  Tell
him he’s needed out here at once.”

“I will,” patty nodded, standing and taking the keys
from Millie.  “Mike was called away to Los Cijioro,
they have some sick people there.  He’ll need help.”

“All right, I’ll go.  For now go to the hospital and
stay there in case anyone comes there for help.”

Nodding once more Patty turned and left, starting the
jeep and driving off to call for the doctor.  Millie
stepped into the first hut and found Lisha still bent
over Kailua.  Before her eyes she saw the RPN lay a
hand over the woman’s eyes and close them.  Millie’s
heart sank another notch as Lisha pulled the thing
blanket over Kailua’s head and stood.

“We were too late,” she said with a choked voice when
she saw Millie standing there.

Closing her eyes for a moment Millie swore she
wouldn’t let this happen to anymore of the people.  

“There are seven others.  Two are near critical and
five are still in the early stages,” she announced,
forcing her mind onto the problems at hand and off her
own pain.  “Mike went over to Cijioro, there’s
sickness there as well.  I’ll go help him there after
I’ check on the other three villages.  Hopefully we
can keep it from spreading.”

Agreeing Lisha handed her the pack and turned to look
at the other people still alive, still in need of
medical attention.  Heading out Millie began walking
the trails as fast as she could, to dangerous to run
lest she break her ankle and become useless to anyone.
 Though it only took a half hour to get to the next
village, Las Sajiros, her mind was active the whole
way, thinking back over the people who had come to
mean so much to her.  She refused to lose any more to
death if there was something she could do about it.

Nearing the third village she repeated the same
message she had at Las Sajiros, staying at a distance
in case she was now carrying the disease.

“Have you any sick?”

The chief shook his head no.

“If anyone does become sick keep them at the edge of
the village and let no one near them.  Contact the
hospital and do as they say.  Do you understand?”

This time the chief nodded and Millie bid them well
health before heading out to the fifth village.  Only
after she had delivered the same message to them as
well did she head over to the first village to find
Mike and Paul working side by side, trying to save the
four people who were sick.  Sending Mike back to help
Lisha Millie and Paul worked side by side for days on
end to keep the people of Los Cijioro stay alive
through this epidemic.  Day after day, night after
night they worked, never stopping to eat or sleep
until their body refused to go on, and even then, only
for a few moments.

Finally, after almost two weeks, the villages seemed
to be safe once more.  At the hospital Lisha, Millie,
Paul, Patty, and Mike all convened to discuss the
outcome of the Scarlet Fever Epidemic.  Sitting around
the dining room table the five people were ragged with
lack of sleep and nutrition.

“We lost three people, thought there were seven people
total who had caught the disease,” Millie told them. 
“The damage could have been much, much worse.”

“Of the eleven that caught it where I was we lost
seven.  Thankfully we managed to keep it contained to
two of the five villages.  It was a good thing you
warned them on your way to Los Cijioro Millie.  It
could have been a lot worse if it had spread to all of
the villages.”

Shaking her head in sadness that so many had died
Millie put her head into her hands.  “Who did we
lose?”

“Kailua was the first one to go, after her we lost the
three of the Sanguara’s children.  Two of the old
sisters, Pilata and Marie, too,” Lisha recalled,
forcing herself to keep her emotions at bay.  

There was one more but she was reluctant to mention
the name, knowing it would be near devastating for
Millie to hear.  However, knowing the young woman
needed to know, she continued.  

“We also lost Mara a few days ago.”

Millie’s heart stopped.  “Mara?” she whispered,
raising her eyes to meet Lisha’s, praying she’d heard
wrong.

Lisha nodded.  

Sitting in her chair, arms propped on the table,
exhausted, Millie lost her last shred of control. 
Tears streaming from her eyes she fled the dining
room, out of the hospital, walking blindly through the
jungle until she found herself by the river.  Sitting
on the fallen tree Millie bent over in two, sobs
wracking her body in pain of the loss.  Little Mara,
the first of the children to befriend her, had been
closer to Millie than her own shadow.  It was a joke
at the hospital that if they needed to find Millie
they had only to listen for Mara’s laughter and there
she would be.

Though she had heard no one approach Millie felt
herself being drawn into an embrace, a pair of strong
arms holding her close in her moment of weakness. 
Opening her eyes she saw Paul sitting next to her, his
own eyes shiny with unshed tears.  Closing her eyes
Millie wrapped her arms around him and sobbed.


*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


“Are you sure you want to do this?”

Millie nodded.  “I need to think, Paul, and I can’t do
that here.”

Sighing he took her hand in his and walked with her to
the airport terminal.  Handing one of the bags he
carried to the luggage attendant he turned and handed
the other to Millie.

“Just try to remember that you still have a place down
here, okay?  You’re a good nurse and a darn good
friend.  There are a lot of people who don’t want to
lose you, Millie.”

Giving him a small, sad smile, Millie took the bags
and turned to leave.  Handing the ticket to the
attendant she turned to look back at him, standing
with his hands in his pocket, looking sadder than she
had ever seen Paul look before.  Without a second
thought she dropped her bag and closed the distance
between them, pulling him into a fierce hug.

“I don’t know what I’m going to do, Paul, but I
promise you’ll be the first to know when I do decide.”

Smiling at her Paul hugged her back and kissed her
cheek.  “Call to let us know you got there in one
piece, okay?”

Nodding, “I will.”

Turning away once more Millie picked up her bag and
headed out toward the plane, stopping only once to
wave goodbye before disappearing into the plane. 
Finding her seat Millie looked out the window and saw
him staring at the plane; tears began to prick at her
eyes once again, for what seemed like the millionth
time in the last three days.  It felt as though she
was running away, away from the problems, the pain,
the memories.  But Millie needed some time to think
and all she could think about in the hospital was the
pain of her little shadow missing from her life.

Rummaging through her bags Millie found her tissue
sitting atop a package she didn’t recognize.  Pulling
it out she suddenly remembered the day she had left to
come to Chile, standing in the airport with Grandma
Catherine.  

‘If the time ever comes when you don’t think that you
are making a difference anymore I want you to read
this book before you make a decision about your
future.’

How had she known?  How had Grandma Catherine known
that Millie would find herself in that very situation?
 Looking down at the package in her hand Millie
realized that the time had come, that it was now. 
Setting her bag back onto the floor Millie ran her
hands over the edge of the paper, looking for the seam
to open it.


*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


Chapter Seven


Pulling back the edge of the paper Millie frowned when
she saw that it was actually two books, both looking
very old.  Attached to the cover of one of the books
was a small piece of paper with a note addressed to
Millie.

‘Darling Millie; I had a feeling that there might come
a time when you would doubt your decision’s. It is a
flaw that seems to run in our family.  I pray that you
have not made your decision yet as I know that this
will help you to realize how great and beautiful an
asset you are to this world.  Love Grandma Catherine.’

Even more confused than before Millie opened the first
book and began to read.

‘Dear Diary; Today I leave for a place I have never
heard of before.  It is a small little place called
Cutter Gap, in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee.  Ever
since I heard miss Alice Henderson speaking of her
home I knew that was where I wanted to go, I only pray
that God will grant me the strength to endure whatever
obstacles I will meet along the way.  My father has
just told me it is time to go.  Bless me Father, for I
am scared.’

The entry was signed ‘Christy’ and Millie realized
that this was the diary of her Great Grandmother
Christy MacNeil.  Millie had grown up hearing the
adventures of her Great Grandmother from Grandma
Catherine, and she had always wished she could be as
brave and daring as her ancestor had been.  Sitting in
her seat aboard the small plane bound for America
Millie wondered why Grandma Catherine had given her
these to read.  Unsure, but curious, Millie read on.


*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


“Ladies and Gentlemen the plane will be landing in
Houston shortly.  Please make sure your tray tables
are back in their upright position and your carryon
bags are tucked under your seat.  Thank you and enjoy
the rest of your flight.”

As Millie marked her place in the diary she was
surprised to feel tears on her cheeks.  Reading about
the trials her great grandmother had gone through made
her wish she had known the woman all the more so.  And
the people she wrote about!  Alice Henderson,
Fairlight Spencer, Mountie O’Teale, Tommy O’Malley;
there were so many inspiring people that Millie had
read about in just the one year of her great
grandmother’s life in Cutter Gap.

And her trials… Millie wondered at her ability to go
on.  But Christy had put it quite right when she had
written, ‘There is nothing I do that I do without God
granting me the power to do so.’  Reading about being
taken hostage, working side by side with the doctor to
perform surgery in the backwoods of Tennessee,
moonshiner’s, mistaken identity, Millie couldn’t help
but think that it was the script to a TV show instead
of someone’s real life.  As the plane landed Millie
had moved to get her bag when the flight attendant’s
voice filled the air one last time.  

“Ladies and Gentlemen for those of you who may be
transferring to flight one eighty seven to Chicago I’m
sorry to tell you that your flight has been delayed
due to a mechanical problem.  Your patience is
appreciated in this problem and we shall inform you as
soon as your flight is ready for boarding.  Thank
you.”

Sighing Millie exited the plane and settled her
belongings into one of the rows by the windows.  After
taking a few moments to stretch her legs she sat down
in a chair and began to read again.  


*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Chapter Eight



‘July 17, 1914’

‘Dear Diary; Today I married the man I love.  From
this day on Christy Rudd Huddleston is no more. 
Christy Rudd MacNeil.  Mrs. Neil MacNeil.  I have to
laugh as I love to write it, love to see it in
writing, but most of all I love to hear it spoken
aloud.  The wedding day could not have been more
beautiful, the sun shining brightly, not a cloud in
the sky.  Mother, Father, and George arrived a few
days before the wedding and I thought for sure that
Mother would begin to take over the planning, but she
didn’t.  That was when I discovered what Neil had
done.  And to think he never said a word about calling
Father and asking him to speak to mother.  Just one of
the many reasons I love him so much, he’s always
looking out for me.’

‘Especially since that night when the O’Malley
brothers came looking for me.  When Neil had found me
in the kitchen cupboard he pulled me out into his arms
and hasn’t let go since.  If he himself is not with me
then someone else is, be it Miss Alice, Fairlight, or
one of the children.  I believe he may even have the
entire cove keeping an eye on me!  But, then, it was
what I needed.  Until we received word that the
O’Malley brothers were locked away in jail I never
felt completely safe, not even I the mission house
itself.  But Neil has been like a rock, my stronghold
through all of this, comforting my fear even though I
could see his still raging in his eyes.’

‘Never were words more true than when he told me that
the eyes are the windows to the soul.  I can see so
much in those blue eyes of his, his pain, his fear,
his love, and his determination.  When he has lost a
patient I can see the sadness that fills them, joy
when he has saved someone from deaths door.  This man
that I love, my husband, carry’s the health of an
entire community on his shoulders.  I pray that I can
support him so that he in turn may support them.’

‘February 21, 1915’

‘It has been two weeks since I have seen Neil.  I’ve
never been more worried.  He had to leave for Low Gap
to assist a family who’s only child had fallen ill. 
But that was two weeks ago and I’ve yet to hear from
him.  I have to admit that I’m getting more and more
worried about him.  Tommy had offered to go in search
of him but with Zady so near the end of her pregnancy
I knew he needed to be there for her.  I can still
remember the day Jeb had agreed to letting them marry.
 I don’t think I’d ever seen Tommy, or Zady, smile and
laugh as much as they had that day.  After getting
married on the third of August they had barely a month
of wedded bliss before Zady realized she was pregnant.
 As happy as I am for them I can’t help but wonder
when I will feel the same joy Zady does.’

‘Neil and I have been married for eight months and
I’ve yet to conceive a child.  What if I find that I
can’t?  I see the sadness in Neil’s eyes when he
checks on Zady, I can see it when he deals with the
children.  How disappointed he must be in me.  Every
night I pray that I will become a mother but so far my
prayers have gone unanswered.  Why?  Why can’t I be a
mother in more than just my dreams?’

Running her fingers over the yellowed pages Millie
could see little water droplets that had mixed with
her penciled words and suddenly realized that she had
been crying as she wrote her words.  Staring out the
window for a moment Millie wondered how she would have
felt, had she been in such a position.  Wanting
something so badly but not being able to acheive it.


*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Chapter Nine


‘September 19, 1915’

‘Something has happened, and I’m not sure how to feel
about it.  He’s a beautiful little boy that has
burrowed so deeply into my life I cannot imagine
having ever lived without him.  He is my son, yet even
though I love him with all of my heart I feel guilty
about being so happy.  How can I feel such joy and
love when the only reason he is in my life springs
from such heartache and despair?’

‘Three months ago a young woman came to the mission,
very sick, very beaten, and very, very pregnant.  Neil
did everything he could for her but it was obvious
that she was dying, we could all see it.  Jessica,
that was her name, had been beaten to within an inch
of her life by her husband.  After wandering in the
woods for who knows how long she stumbled onto the
mission yard and we had been caring for her ever
since.  A few days after she came to our mission she
died, just after Neil was able to save her baby.’

‘My little boy.’

‘We named him Shane and adopted him into our lives,
our home, and our family.  I am a mother, it’s what
I’ve always wanted, but I can’t quite get rid of the
shadow that lurks in the corner of my joy.  A woman
died so that Neil may have a son.  I wasn’t able to
give him a son, but I can raise our son in the best
way I can.  I pray that it’s enough.’


‘January 27, 1915’

‘Shane spoke!  Neil and I were sitting by the fire
playing with little Shane when he said Pa!  He
actually said Pa; Neil and I were amazed, to say the
least.  As unsure as I was in the beginning about
being able to be a good mother to Shane the truth is I
can’t seem to imagine a life without him.  Everyday
that he learns something new he teaches me about a
small pleasure I’d forgotten.’

‘Life as a mother is not what I expected it to be.  I
assumed it would be about keeping a child safe,
teaching them, cleaning them, caring for them; but it
is so very much more.  As much as he learns from me I
learn from him.  It’s not simply caring for him, but
it is loving him, breathing him, living for him. 
Shane is my first thought when I wake and my last
before I sleep.  I see Neil playing with him by the
fire and I get this incredible feeling of joy, this
bittersweet joy that fills my heart.’

‘I can’t help but think of everything that Margaret
missed out on, giving up on her life with Neil so
quickly.  He fills the role of a father so very
completely it is hard to describe.  I’ve seen Neil in
the roll of man, doctor, enemy, friend, lover, and
husband.  And now that I have seen him in the role of
a father it is so easy to forget the other aspects of
the man I love.  We are a family in every way that
matters.  

‘And that is enough for me.’


‘March 2, 1915’

‘I’m almost too scared to write what I have recently
discovered for fear it may not find its fulfillment. 
Neil is not here; he’s gone for a month to care for
the people in Low Gap and Cataleechie.  I wish he
could be here to tell me if what I dream is true or
not.  I have already spoken with Miss Alice but she
tells me it is too early to tell; though the symptoms
do make her think it is true.  Dear God, please let
Neil come home soon.  I cannot bear this fear of what
may not be for much longer.’


‘April 13, 1915’

‘I’m pregnant!’


*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Chapter Ten


‘December 1, 1915’

‘So much has happened recently I do no know where to
begin.  First I must tell you, Tommy and Zady are
expecting again, she realized it only a month or two
ago.  Their daughter, Grace, is not even a year old
yet and already they will have a second child.  But
Tommy has been doing well for his family.  He built
another room onto his family’s cabin for Zady and he
and they live there with his mother and sisters.’

‘John and Bessie have married as well as Ruby Mae and
Rob.  All of my older children are marrying, too early
for my taste, but they are marrying for love.  That is
the least I could have hoped for.’

‘David too has married.  The young woman who came to
teach the school after I had to leave, Dr Ferrand
refused to allow me to continue teaching laying claim
to the fact that I would need to care for my children,
fell in love with our friendly preacher and they
married not long after.  They are happy together, and
suit each other much better than I could ever have
been with David.  I think he realizes that now.’

‘But the greatest news of all, the joy that has filled
our cabin, our home, is that of our newest member. 
Catherine MacNeil.  My daughter.  Our daughter.  She
has the fairest skin and the reddest hair that I have
ever seen.  And blue eyes that are crystal clear as
the river.  Shane has taken to her with all the love
of an older brother and I know that God, his love
shining through to us in every way, has blessed our
family.’


‘October 17, 1917’

‘From this point on I am going to tie my daughter to
the railing!’

‘Never before has my heart stopped so suddenly or so
terrifyingly!  I turned my back on her for one moment
and Catherine disappeared from the cabin.  Never
before have I been so terrified as I was at that
moment.  Thankfully Neil happened upon her as he was
coming up the path.  I don’t know what I would have
done if he hadn’t.  The thought of my little girl lost
in the woods is more than I could ever deal with. 
Neil keeps trying to tell me that everything will be
all right, that I shouldn’t cling to her so tightly,
but I can’t seem to stop the fear from keeping her
close to me.’

‘Shane never caused me so much heartache or fear
before.  Catherine has been a handful and a half ever
since she began to move about on her own.  There are
days she wears me out faster than when I used to
handle a schoolroom full of students!’

‘Speaking of my former students… Their families are
growing by leaps and bounds.  Every time I see them at
least one of them is pregnant again.  John and Bessie
have two children, twin boys, and Bessie if currently
pregnant with their third child.  She’s hoping for a
girl this time.  Ruby Mae and Rob are also expecting,
their first.  As for Tommy and Zady, I’m afraid they
had a tragedy recently.  Zady lost their daughter to
what Neil called a breach birth.  We came very close
to loosing Zady as well, much too much to close, but
Neil and Miss Alice managed to bring her back to
safety.  It was a scare for the entire cove.’

‘Something that I hadn’t thought of when marrying
Neil, is how much closer it would bond me to the
people of the cove.  Hearing bout their trials and
tribulations, the illness that strikes at each and
every family… it has made me feel closer to them than
I had ever thought possible.  More times than I can
remember people have stopped by our cabin, sometimes
travelling as much as twenty miles, to thank Neil for
his help.  I see their love for him, and his work,
shining out from their eyes and I can’t help but be
affected by that love.’

‘Everyday I have no choice but to thank God for
bringing me here, to Cutter Gap, to my home that I
will cherish for as long as I live.  When I first came
here it was hard, like trying to walk into the wind
during the storm, but I faced the wind with God’s help
and the rewards have been greater than I could ever
have found in any other role I could have played.  I
have gone from being a daughter of two wonderful
parents to being a mother, a wife, a teacher, a sister
and a friend.’

‘They are my people.’


*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Chapter Eleven


Sitting in the terminal of the airport Millie took a
deep breath, staring at the yellowed pages in her
hand.  The last line she had read kept running through
her mind.  ‘They are my people.’  Looking up she
stared out the window at the planes sitting a various
terminals and running down the runway.  In the deepest
crevice of her heart Millie knew she felt the same way
her great grandmother Christy had.  The people of the
five villages were her friends, her extended family;
she loved them.

“Ladies and Gentlemen.  Those of you waiting for
Flight 187 to Chicago please come to the gate and we
will begin boarding the plane.”

Blinking Millie pulled herself from her reverie and
reached down to grab the bag sitting by her feet. 
Hooking it over her shoulder Millie moved toward the
gate, through the walkway and settled herself into her
seat.  Reaching into her bag she pulled out a small
photo album that she carried with her, filled with
pictures of those closest to her.  Though the first
few pictures were of her family the rest of the pages
were filled with pictures of the people she had left
behind in Chile.  Turning the page her eyes fell on
the smiling face of Mara looking back up at her. 
Feeling the tears begin to break past her barriers
Millie slammed the album shut, stuffing it back into
the bag.

Taking a deep breath she turned her attention back to
the diary in her hands even as the plane began to taxi
down the runway.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

‘August 28, 1920’

‘Something terrible has happened.  There was a fire. 
I can barely see to write what needs to be written. 
The summer has been terribly dry, a drought drying up
everything.  And last month it broke loose on a
terrible fire in Asheville.  I received a call at the
mission house from my brother George.’

‘My parents are dead.’

‘In one moment I have lost both my mother and my
father.  My family has been cut in half.  I look at my
daughter and my son and I realize that they will never
get to see their grandparents again.  But most of all
I feel so much sadness that my unborn son or daughter
will never get to know their grandparents.’

‘Neil has been very loving and kind in helping me to
deal with this but I don’t know how to continue.  My
parents are dead, how can I deal with such a thing as
that?  They’re dead.  Dead.  My parents are dead.  The
people who gave me life, the mother and father loved
me and raised me, are gone forever.’

‘I miss them so much!’

Running her fingers over the paper Millie felt the
small bumps where the paper had been wet and dried. 
She was crying again, and Millie understood all too
well.  She’d lost someone she’d loved.  Christy had
lost her parents just like she herself had lost Mara.

“Miss?”

Jumping at the feel of a hand on her shoulder Millie
looked across the aisle at the woman smiling softly at
her.  Millie saw concern in the woman’s eyes and drew
her brow in confusion.

“I’m sorry honey, I didn’t mean to intrude but I
couldn’t help but notice you were crying.  Is
everything all right?”

Putting a hand to her cheek Millie felt the warm
wetness of her tears.  Wiping them away she smiled at
the woman.  “I’ll be fine, thank you.”

Watching her for a moment the woman shook her head. 
“No, I don’t think so, dear.  Why don’t you tell me
what’s bothering you?  Perhaps I can help.  My name is
Ruby.”

“It’s a beautiful name.”

“Oh thank you, I was named for my great grandmother. 
She began my family line.  My great grandmother,
grandmother, mother and I are meeting at the airport
when we land.  We try to meet together once a year
when we are able.”

For the rest of the plane trip Ruby and Millie
chatted, Ruby telling her about her vacation time in
Chile.  When the plane finally landed at the airport
the two women disembarked, still speaking and were
walking through the terminal when someone called out
Ruby’s name.  Turning she laughed at the sight of the
three old women waiting for her.  

“Come on, I’ll introduce you to them.”

Laughing Ruby pulled on Millie’s hand, her energy
seemingly boundless, and dragged her over to the trio
of waiting women.  After hugging and kissing each one
she turned to Millie with a grin.

“This is my mother, AnnMarie Kilmartin, my grandmother
Mary O’Connell.  And this beautiful young woman right
here is the beginning of my family line.  Granny, I
want you to meet a friend of mine, Millie Jensen. 
Millie, this is my great grandma, RubyMae Allen.”


*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Chapter Twelve


Millie stared at the old woman with incomprehension. 
Trying to guess her age Millie would put her in her
hundreds if not more.  Surely it was impossible…
wasn’t it?

“Land sakes child, you look like ya dun seen a ghost!”

Staring Millie tried to gather her wits about her. 
“Your name is RubyMae Allen?”

“Sure it is.  It’s been that way since I married my
man.  I don’t see no reason ta change it, do you?”

Millie didn’t know whether to laugh or to cry. 
Pulling out the diary she turned to the entry from
RubyMae and Rob’s wedding, to the page with the sketch
of the happy couple.  “Mrs. Allen, is this you?”

Taking the book RubyMae’s eyes widened even as they
filled with tears.  “Lordy…” she whispered.  “Whar’d
you get this book?”

“It belonged to my great grandmother, Christy
MacNeil.”  Millie sank down to her knees next to the
old woman.  “You’re… you’re her student aren’t you? 
The one that boarded at the mission house with them?”

RubyMae nodded, tears in her eyes.  “You her kin?”

Nodding, “I’m her great granddaughter.”

A spark came into the old woman’s eyes and the grip on
her hands tightened.  “Well then come with us, girl,
we gots us some talkin’ ta do,” she smiled.

Smiling Millie got to her feet again but shook her
head.  “I’m afraid I can’t Mrs. Allen.  I have to make
my flight home in half an hour.”

“Now ain’t that a shame.  Well we can talk till then,
raght?”

“Right,” Millie laughed.  While the other three went
off to get some coffee Millie and RubyMae sat together
in the terminal.  “Please, Mrs. Allen, tell me about
my great grandmother.”

“Miz Christy, she wasn’t real big but she had the
biggest heart you’d ever imagine.  Thar was this one
time when we thought she was dead… I felt like my
heart was gonna break right in two.  But we got her
back.  Doc Neil dun found her in th’cave.  It took a
while ‘fore she got back ta her old self but she did. 
Then ‘course thar was th’time when…”

For all the time they had Millie and RubyMae talked
about Christy, her life, her spirit, the woman she
was.  Finally, their time up, they had to say goodbye.
 Hugging the old woman goodbye Millie waved to the
other three and sprinted for the gate to board the
final flight home.  Once she was seated in her chair
Millie at back and thought over everything RubyMae had
told her about her great grandmother, the way she had
lived her life with an unquenchable zeal for living,
for love, and for God.

A bittersweet sadness began to creep into her heart. 
Millie wished she was able to meet her grandmother, to
spend a few hours with her the way Ruby did with
RubyMae.  But then, sitting in her seat, Millie
realized that she could; even though her means were a
little different, she could know her great
grandmother.

Opening the diary Millie sat back and began to read.


*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


Chapter Thirteen

‘July 17, 1929’

‘Fifteen years ago today I married a man that can
infuriate me with one word, make me smile with the
smallest touch, make my blood boil without even
realizing it, and make me fall in love with him all
over again just by stepping into the room.’

‘Happy Anniversary My Love.’


*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


Chapter Fourteen

‘January 12, 1933’

‘It’s my worst fear come true.’

‘All right, it’s not my worst fear but it ranks pretty
close.  Shane has decided he wants to go west, to be a
cowboy.  He leaves tomorrow for Texas.  For the last
five years he has studied with Neil learning to be a
doctor, though he has never showed any interest in
college.  I had wished that someday he would follow in
Neil’s footsteps but I guess it is not to be.’

‘Catherine on the other hand has followed in mine. 
When Nancy and David moved back to Boston she took the
position of teacher in the mission school.  Sadly, the
school will be closing at the end of the school year. 
The children are going to be forced to attend the
school in El Pano or not attend at all.  I worry that
too many of the families will decide not to send their
children to the school.’

‘Both Miss Alice and I tried to talk Dr Ferrand out of
closing the school but he revealed that the mission
had run out of funds, there was no alternative.  That
was when he revealed that the entire mission was going
to be shut down.  He offered Miss Alice a chance to
relocate to another mission but she turned him down,
she wanted to stay here in Cutter Gap.’

‘That was when we thought Cutter Gap was going to keep
on the track it was already on.  Though many of the
families had stayed, just as many had left.  The
Allen’s were still running the mill but they had been
forced to take on a big city partner who had weaseled
his way into running the mill with the latest
technique and Bob and Rob have become mere workers
where once they had run the mill.  Jeb Spencer still
makes honey but John and Bessie have moved their
family to the city and taken a job in the factory.’

‘Tommy and Zady are still in the cove, Tommy has
turned his small family farm into a money making farm.
 He grows corn during the summer, apples and
persimmons for the fall, and hunts game, selling the
fur, during the winter.  It’s a hard life, there are a
few times when they’ve gone without, but for the most
part they do well.’

‘As for my family, we are doing well enough.  Neil has
published several papers on his trachoma research as
well as patenting his treatment that was first used
treat Becky.  The money from that as well as the grant
for more research has been allowing him to continue to
treat those families left in the cove.  But I’m afraid
that we may not be able to stay here much longer. 
There have been more and more demands from the
hospital granting Neil’s research for him to move out
to a more modern hospital in the city.  I’m afraid he
may not be able to hold out much longer.’

“Ladies and gentlemen thank you for flying with us, I
hope you have enjoyed your trip welcome home.”

Looking up Millie realized that they had landed
already; she’d been so absorbed in reading that she
hadn’t even realized it.  Marking her place in the
diary Millie scrambled to gather her bags and hurried
down the walkway into the airport.  She was heading
towards the luggage pickup when she heard a voice call
her name, a voice that she had missed dearly.

“Grandma Catherine!” she laughed.  Dropping her bag
she ran to the old woman and hugged her with all her
might.  “I’ve missed you so much!”

“Millie,” Catherine smiled as she hugged her favorite
granddaughter tightly.  After a moment Catherine
pulled away to smile at the young woman.  “Come on,
your mother has a big dinner all ready and waiting for
you.”

Laughing Millie gathered her dropped sack and pulled
her luggage from the rack before following her
grandmother out to a waiting taxicab.  Settled into
the back seat as the driver negotiated the roads
Millie turned to Catherine with a small smile, “How
did you know, Grandma?”

A knowing smile graced the old woman’s face.  “You’re
much too like her for it too have been otherwise. 
Though I must say I am sorry it had to be something as
drastic as you wrote about in your last letter.” 
Taking Millie’s smooth hand in her own wrinkled one
Catherine was silent for a moment.  “The first time I
saw you in the backyard of Diane’s home I knew you
were of the same cloth.  My mother was a young girl,
only a few years older than you at the time, when she
organized the children to build a playhouse for them. 
When I saw you trying to do the same thing for you and
your friends…”

She tailed off but Millie could finish the thought on
her own.  ‘A cut of the same cloth…’ She was right.

“I met an old friend of yours in Chicago,” Millie
smiled.

“In Chicago?” Catherine repeated, confusion in her
eyes.  “I don’t know anyone in Chicago.”

“Now you do.”

Smiling Millie told Catherine about meeting up with
RubyMae Allen and willingly passed on the information
that she had learned about the old woman.  The two
women were still laughing over an old story of
RubyMae’s hijinks when the cab pulled into the
driveway.  Getting out Catherine paid the driver while
Millie collected her bags from the trunk.  

“Grandma,” she said, holding the woman back for a
moment.  Turning Catherine faced her grandchild.  “I’m
not sure of anything right now.  I just don’t know
if…”

“It’s all right child,” she smiled reassuringly. 
“Today is simply a day to relax.  Tomorrow you can
work on your problem.  It will keep for the night.”

Kissing Millie’s cheek the two women moved up the
stone walkway and entered the small brick house Millie
had grown up in.


*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


Chapter Fifteen

‘February 28, 1936’

‘I find it hard to believe we have lived in the city
for a year now.  Not a day passes that I don’t miss my
home in Cutter Gap, our cabin surrounded by the woods,
a river for a front yard and a forest for a back. 
However today is not a day for sad reflection but
rather today is a day for happy memories to be made.’

‘My daughter is married.’

‘My little girl is now a wife to a handsome young man.
 It was a beautiful ceremony and God granted us a
beautiful day to match, the sun shining brightly and
the slightest of breezes to mask the heat of the
summer.  Catherine looked simply divine in her gown
and I know they will be happy together.  I only wish
that Shane had been here with us.  Sadly he couldn’t
leave the ranch, his responsibilities as Foreman
simply wouldn’t let him leave.’

‘My children are all grown up.’

“What are you readin’?”

Glancing up Millie saw her little brother approaching
and smiled at him.  “A book.”

Grinning he waved goodbye and hopped onto his bike,
racing off to meet this friends at the coffee shop. 
Millie couldn’t believe how much he had grown since
she had left.  In one year he had shot up to the point
where he now towered over her while she had been used
to doing it to him.  One more year and he would have a
license, three years and he would be in college. 
Sighing she laid the book on her chest and stared at
the cloudy sky above her.

With a sudden pain in her heart Millie thought about
all the experiences Mara would never get to know. 
Going to school, driving, her first kiss, her own
family, seeing her children grow up and learn the same
things she had.  Silent tears streamed from her eyes
as she thought about the little girl.  Picking up the
book once more she flipped backwards until she found a
passage she had already read.

The page had been so badly waterlogged before it had
dried that most of the words were indistinguishable
but she had been able to discern the most important
ones.

‘… ravaged the cove.  So many dead or dying, I fear …
never recover...  No … hit harder than the O’Teales. 
Wilmer … Isaac … dead.  But as hard as those deaths …
none in the cove that has torn my heart … my little
Mountie.  My sweet … blue eyed girl… buttons… never be
the same again…’

from earlier passages Millie knew the story of Mountie
and her little blue button as well as the place she
had held in Christy’s heart.  Re-reading the passage
Millie felt her eyes fill with tears all over again. 
It was a pain she knew all too well.

Swinging in the hammock Millie curled into as small a
ball as she could and wept.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

“Millie!”

“Yeah mom?” she called from the living room, engrossed
in the diary again.

“Telephone, sweetie.”

Furrowing her brow in curiosity Millie clicked on the
cordless and put it to her ear in time to hear her
mother hang up.  There was a lot of static in the
background but she could just make out a voice in the
background.  “Millie?”

“Hello?”

“Millie, that you?”

“Paul?” she yelled over the static.  “Paul, hi!”

Laughing he answered her hello with his own.  Yelling
over the static of the line they tried to catch up
with each other, she telling him of her trip home and
he of what had happened wile she was gone.

“Listen Millie, I gotta go, can’t tie up the line for
too long,” Paul said at last.  “We miss you down
here,” he said, his voice suddenly serious.

“I miss you too,” she said, her voice hitching at the
catch in her throat.

“Millie, I’m gonna be… so if you … I’ll see …”

“Paul?  Paul I can’t hear you, you’re breaking up! 
Paul?”

An ache filled her chest when she heard the line go
dead, a dial tone replacing the static riddled
conversation.  Sighing she hung up the phone and
turned back to the diary, picking up where she had
left off.

‘March 30, 1941’

‘We’re all so happy for her.  Diane is a beautiful
little girl with big brown eyes just like her father
but the red hair that runs in our family like fire. 
Catherine and Jason have moved back to New York, his
job calling him back much too soon, but it was just as
well.  No sooner had they gone than Shane called to
tell us he was coming for a visit and bringing a
friend with him.’

‘Shannon Kelly.’

‘My stubborn son has married a woman without even
telling me.  I was torn between scolding him and
weeping for joy that he’s finally found a woman he
loves.  In the end I chose to scold him while weeping
for joy.  What a sight I was!  Thankfully Neil took me
away from the room before I made a complete fool of
myself.’

‘Though so many years have passed my husband still
knows just what to do.  He hasn’t changed a bit in all
the years we have been married.  While there are many
more gray hairs, and a few more wrinkles, I have yet
to meet a man a handsome as he is.  There will never
be one, in my opinion.  Never could a man be more to
me than my stubborn Scotsman.’

‘July 1, 1944’

‘My husband has a secret that he won’t tell me.  I
wonder how long it will take for me to find out what
it is?’

‘July 18, 1944’

‘What a wonderful surprise!’

‘For our fortieth anniversary Neil has brought me to
his homeland, Scotland.  This was his secret the
entire time!  That stubborn Scot was teasing me,
making me work to find out something that he had
planned to tell me all along.’

‘But I still love him with all my heart.’

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Opening the door Catherine moved into Millie’s bedroom
to tell her dinner was ready.  The words stopped on
the edge of her lips at the sight of the young woman
sitting cross-legged in the middle of the bed.  Tears
streamed form her eyes in torrents, her watery eyes
staring at the book in her lap.

“Millie, darling what is it?” she said worriedly,
sitting on the edge of the bed and taking Millie’s
hand in her own.

“Oh Grandma!” she cried, her tears still pouring.  

“Millie?” Catherine said, her voice filled with
concern at the young woman’s state.  “Tell me what’s
wrong.”

“This!” she cried, showing the book to the old woman.

Glancing down Catherine recognized the passage before
her eyes had finished reading the words.  Three women
had cried over this page.  Christy, Catherine, and now
Millie had cried over the horrible words penned on
that dreadful page.

‘January14, 1945’

‘The snowy cold is a weather suited for my heart.’

‘Why?  Why did this have to happen now?  It’s not
fair!  It’s simply not right!  Dear God, why have you
done this too me?  There’s nothing left for me to live
for, there’s nothing let for me to carry on for, no
reason at all.’

‘My husband is dead.’


*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Chapter Sixteen

“Oh honey,” Catherine whispered, soothing the sobs
from Millie with a gentle caress.

“What happened Grandma?  How did he die?”

Sighing Catherine took the book and placed it on the
table next to the bed.  Wiping the tears from Millie’s
face she smiled sadly and settled into a better
position.

“My father was a doctor who had never quite been able
to tune out the call of a person in need.  When WWII
broke out he volunteered his services but they said he
was too old.  Nonetheless when a call went out for
civilian medics to treat the wounded that were brought
back to the US he volunteered.  We moved to Washington
and he began to work with the patients there.  It was
awful work but he knew that he was needed so he stuck
it out.”

“The week before there was an announcement that they
needed the best doctors available to head abroad and
pick up the casualties in Europe that were too risky
to make the flight without medical attention.  Very
few men wanted to volunteer but my father was one of
them. Though Mother worried abut him every moment she
knew it was something he had to do.  He promised her
he would be careful but it wasn’t enough.  The flight
home was attacked by some German planes and the plane
crashed into the ocean.”

“There were no survivors.”

Tears began anew in Millie’s eyes and she tried to
blink them away.  

“Mother never fully recovered from that horrible day. 
The day we buried him in the ground she was as silent
as a stone.  For every day after that as well until
one day there was a visitor at the door.  A woman who
looked too old to be alive had come to see mother. 
When they laid eyes on each other it was like
something I had never seen before and I doubt I will
ever see again.  Both my mother and the old woman
burst into tears and hugged in the middle of the
living room.  For the next ten minutes all I could see
or hear was the two of them.  It was as though they
had melded into one person, sharing their pain
together.”

“When they separated the woman put her hand to mothers
cheek and said something I will never forget.  She
said ‘Neil lives within the hearts of the people who
loved him, child, thee must never forget that he lives
so long as thee carries him in thy heart.’  As soon as
she said that I knew who she was.  It was Alice
Henderson, my Grandmother from Cutter Gap.”

Millie gasped.  “I had been wondering what had
happened to her,” she said.  “Nothing had been
mentioned about her in quite some time.”

“My mother found it easier not to think about the
people she had left behind.  She said it hurt too much
to remember they lived a life she was no longer
involved in.  But Miss Alice was still alive.  The
next day she and mother went back to my father’s grave
where they prayed together that he was resting
peacefully.  A few days later Miss Alice left to go
back to her cabin in the mountains, taking mothers
love to the people she had left behind.”

“It wasn’t until a year later that we learned she had
died in a fire that consumed the entire cabin and most
of the woods surrounding it.”

“It was at that time that mother and I went back to
the mission house.  That was when she told me of all
the old times she had spent there.  The life she had
lived before marrying, my father.  It was at that
moment that I began to write it all down knowing it
was something that needed to be shared with the
world.”

“I’m glad you did, Grandma Catherine.  I wish I could
have known her.”

“Oh but you did,” Catherine smiled.  “Finish reading
the diary, Millie and you’ll see what I mean.”

Smiling at each other the two women pulled themselves
together before heading down the stairs to eat with
the family that had been waiting for them.  When they
were about to leave the table for coffee in the living
room the doorbell rang, Diane heading out to answer
it.  A few moments later she appeared again, this time
she wasn’t alone.

Looking up to see who their visitor was Millie
shrieked with delight at the sight of the man standing
in the archway.  Jumping up from her chair she
launched herself at him, laughing when he caught her
easily.

“Paul!”

Grinning Paul hugged her tightly.  “Hey Millie!”

Leaning back she looked up at him.  “What are you
doing here?”

“I told you on the phone, Millie, didn’t you hear me?”

“No,” she shook her head.  “You were breaking up so
bad I couldn’t hear you.”

Nodding in understanding he explained.  “Mike asked me
to come up and oversee the supply transfer for the
hospital.  Since I was in the area I figured I’d stop
by and say hi.”  Lowering his voice Paul looked down
to meet Millie’s eyes with his own.  “I missed you,”
he whispered in Spanish.

A throat cleared from behind them and Millie
remembered where they were.  Pulling away she smiled,
a small blush coloring her cheeks.  “Paul, this is my
family.  Guys, this is Paul, he’s the teacher down in
the villages.”

“Welcome Paul,” Diane smiled.  “We were just about to
take our coffee to the living room, would you care to
join us?”

“Thank you, I’d love to.”

The group moved out to the living room.  While the
older ones took the couch and easy chair Millie opted
for a floor cushion and Paul dropped down beside her. 
As the evening passed they talked it along until, one
by one, they started to nod off.  Yawning and smiling
they said goodnight to Millie and Paul.  Diane offered
him the guestroom but he refused with the excuse of a
hotel room across town.  Walking him to the door they
slipped into Spanish out of habit as they said
goodnight.

“Listen I’ve got to go inspect the supplies tomorrow,
did you want to join me?” he asked her.

“Sure,” Millie smiled.  


*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


Chapter Seventeen

Sipping her shake Millie examined the rows of boxes. 
Most of them contained medical supplies but some were
books, pen and paper for the school.  They’d already
checked the inventory and matched it up with their own
list.  While Millie waited in the supply room Paul
went to return to list and confirm delivery times with
the manager.  When he returned they headed back out to
the car.

“Well that’s it,” he smiled.  “Was there anything you
wanted to do while we were out?”

“Nothing I can think of.  You already fixed my
chocolate craving so I’m good to go,” she grinned,
holding up her shake.

Laughing Paul started the car and pulled out onto the
street.  “Well I can’t speak for you but there are a
bunch of things I plan on doing while I’m back in the
states.”

“Like what?”

“Three things.  Go see a movie, eat an entire pizza,
and have a date with the prettiest girl I lay my eyes
on.”

Millie laughed.  “So take the prettiest girl you meet
out for pizza and a movie and you’ll be all set.”

Stopping at a red light Paul looked over at her, a
small smile on his face.  “So is that a yes?”

Shocked Millie fell silent.  He was asking her? 
Looking over at him she could see the uncertainty in
his eyes and it nearly melted her into a puddle. 
“Yeah,” she said softly.  “That’s a yes.”

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

“You want some Ice Cream?”

“You’re hungry again?” Millie groaned.  “We split an
entire large pizza, Paul, I couldn’t eat another
bite!”

Paul laughed and squeezed her hand lightly.  Walking
through the mall plaza where the pizza shop and movie
theater were located Millie smiled at the sound of his
laughter filling the air.  It had been a nice evening
together.  They’d gotten a pizza before going to see
the movie and now they were heading back towards his
rental car.  It was a new side of Paul that Millie had
seen that evening.  She’d seen the teacher, the man
who fought for the villages, and the joker before,
they were the sides of Paul she knew well.  But
tonight she had begun to see him as a man.

It had been a very nice evening.

Their ride back to her house was comfortably silent
but when he pulled into the driveway Paul asked her to
wait a moment. 

“Listen, Millie, I really had fun tonight.”

“Me too,” she smiled.

“But I’m leaving tomorrow,” he continued as though he
hadn’t heard her.  “Mike knew I was going to be here
and he asked me to give you this.”  Holding out a
small envelope Millie took it from him, both of them
knowing it held a renewal contract for her in Chile. 
“I know you said you needed to think about it all
Millie but I’d be lying if I said I wouldn’t miss you.
 It’s been different since you left.  Before I thought
it was fine, but having you there and now not having
you there… it’s really different.”

“Paul…”

“Just think about it Millie.  We need you down there. 
The people trust you, more so than they trust Lisha. 
You believe in them and they know it.  They believe in
you too.  And so do I.”

“You don’t understand Paul.”

“Yeah I do, Millie.  I loved Mara too.”  Paul sighed. 
“It’s never easy to watch any of them die, especially
when we know that they didn’t have to if we’d had the
right equipment and medicine.  But we have to let it
go.”

“I don’t know if I can just let go, Paul.  It’s too
hard.”

Raking a hand through his hair Paul sighed.  Getting
out of the car they stood in front of the door to the
house.  Before Millie could open the door Paul grabbed
her hand and turned her so that she faced him. 
Lowering his head he kissed her, his lips burning hers
with a scorching heat.  “Don’t give up Millie. 
There’s still so much you can do but you can’t give
up.”

Not letting her say a word he silenced her with
another kiss before turning and getting into the car,
pulling out of the drive way and driving down the
street as fast as he could.  Watching him go Millie
put a hand to her lips, her heart even more confused
than before.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

‘April 22, 1976’

‘Life has certainly thrown me though many twists and
turns through the years.  The ups and downs have been
as vast and as powerful as one of those new roller
coaster that are popping up everywhere.  When I look
back on my younger days I wonder that I ever made it
from one day to the next with such wide-eyed
innocence.  But through it all I have always been able
to count on the one true strength that has always been
there for me.’

‘God Almighty and his eternal love for his people.’

‘I know that without his love I wold never have made
it.  There have been times, too many for my taste,
when I have lost confidence in him, my faith nearly
disappearing with the death or tragedy of that moment.
 But when I have turned my face to him he has always
been there to shine his love down upon me and I have
known that, while I wasn’t looking, it was actually
him who kept my love and faith from disappearing
altogether.’

‘There have been hard times and there have been good
times in my life and through them all I have lived,
growing stronger under the trial’s and gaining
memories of the happy times.  I have seen children
born and I have seen them die.  The circle of life has
never stopped turning and I am merely a part of that
circle.  I Know that I will soon draw my last breath,
it is sooner come than I had hoped.  But I thank God
that I was able to see the birth of my first great
grandchild before leaving this world forever.’

‘They have named her Millicent for her father’s
grandmother and Christina for me.  Millicent Christina
Jensen.  Such a large name for such a tiny little
thing.  But I know she will bear it well.  When I held
the wee thing in my arms she opened her small little
eyes to look up at me and I could see so much in those
crystal blue eyes.  I know she will change as she
grows up but looking at this little angel right now I
see my Neil in her.  She has his looks, as well as my
zest for life, I can tell.  She is a MacNeil, there is
no doubt about it.’

‘This little girl will do great things with her life.’

“Oh,” Millie breathed as she read the passage. 
Blinking she turned the page.

One the next page Millie saw a newspaper clipping.

‘August 17, 1976’

‘Christina Rudd Huddleston MacNeil died in her sleep
tonight.  She is remembered by her family that loved
her dearly and will always carry her in their hearts.’

Millie stared at the book in her hands.  “How did she
know?” she whispered.

“Because she knew you,” came the soft reply.  

Looking up Millie saw Grandma Catherine standing in
the doorway of her bedroom.  Smiling gently Catherine
sat down on the edge of the bed.  

“I remember sitting in the room as she held you and
seeing the way she seemed to bond with you, and you
with her, in that one instant.  Watching you grow up I
could see so much of my mother in you that I felt as
though I had been given a glimpse of her own
childhood.”

Silence fell for a moment.

“She would be very proud of you.”

Millie blinked against the tears in her throat.  “I
hope so.”

Catherine smiled.  “I know so.”

Looking up at her grandmother Millie allowed a tear to
fall.  “I’m scared, Grandma.”

“Of what sweetie?”

“That I won’t have the strength to get past the pain.”

“None of us do.  The strength doesn’t come from within
us; it is given to us as a gift from the one whose
strength never ceases.  Whenever God closes a door he
opens a window.  It’s up to us to find it and go where
it leads us.  The question you need to answer, Millie,
is where does your window lead?”

Looking down at the old, worn leather cover of the
book in her hands Millie wondered what the answer to
the question was.  The window had opened, but could
she find it?  And would she have the faith in God to
pass though it?

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Millie looked out the window to see lush green trees
lining the ground as she listened to the announcement
made in both English and Spanish.

“Ladies and Gentlemen… Welcome to Chile!”


The End

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*



And there you have it.
I hope you enjoyed the entire Life Trilogy!


SEW
Lady S