A Handful of Time by Kit Pearson Page B

more rigid with age. And he was quite a bit older than Mama, you know. I sometimes wonder if she only married him because …”
    â€œBecause why?” prompted Patricia, now interested again. It was so convenient, the way Aunt Ginnie was willing to gossip about the Reids. She could learn a lot.
    â€œBecause she was trying to recover from losing her first fiancé. Mama was engaged to Father’s younger brother, but he died of polio, which was a common disease in those days. She loved him very much—she’s talked about him to me. She still does, sometimes. I think she never got over him.”
    â€œWhat was—what was his name?” asked Patricia, guessing the answer.
    â€œWilfred. Now, that’s a name you never hear anymore. Maggie, no! You’re too far out!” Aunt Ginnie jumped up and ran down to the water.
    Patricia sat dreamily on her towel. That explained why the watch was inscribed with the name Wilfred. But how did it come to be hidden under the floor? If she kept visiting the past, maybe she would find out. It was like reading an incredibly absorbing book; she wanted to discover all she could about the Reids.
    Rosemary cooed beside her and Patricia picked her up, holding her hand behind the baby’s neck the way Aunt Ginnie had shown her. Rosemary was a silky warm lump. Her hair smelled like vanilla. She blew a raspberry at Patricia—her latest trick—and Patricia blew one back. She hoisted the fat baby over her shoulder and held her close, as if she were guarding her secret. This afternoon she would wind the watch and go back again.
    B UT AFTER LUNCH Aunt Ginnie had other plans. “Patricia, dear, do you feel ready to learn how to paddle the canoe? The lake’s so calm today it would be a good time for Kelly to give you a lesson.”
    Both Patricia and Kelly looked crestfallen, but Aunt Ginnie stilled their objections. “It’s something you should know, Patricia. Don’t you want to learn?”
    She did—though not this afternoon. But there was nothing she could do about it. They had to gather up paddles and life jackets and carry them down to the beach.
    â€œDon’t you dare work on the fort without me!” Kelly shouted after Trevor, who pushed past them on the path.
    â€œWe can if we want to!” he yelled back.
    â€œI hope you’re a fast learner,” Kelly muttered as she tugged the canoe across the pebbles. “Then we can waste just one afternoon on this. They’ll ruin that fort without me.”
    Once Patricia had resigned herself to having a canoe lesson, she began to enjoy it. Kelly didn’t know she had been observing someone paddle only yesterday.
    â€œDon’t sit—kneel with your legs apart and lean against the thwart,” commanded Kelly. “That’s right.” She looked surprised when her cousin immediately took the correct position in the bow Patricia picked up her paddle and put her right hand over the top and her left one around the middle. When Kelly pushed off, she slipped the paddle in the water and lifted it out. The canoe moved forward.
    â€œHey! I thought you didn’t know how to do this! You sure couldn’t when you dumped it. Has someone else been teaching you?” Kelly looked suspicious.
    Patricia flushed. “I’ve been watching you from the shore.” Again she dipped in her paddle the way she’d copied Ruth. It made only a slight splash.
    â€œThat’s pretty good,” said Kelly grudgingly. “You catch on fast. Don’t put it in so deep and try to get a rhythm. One two, one two …”
    With both of them paddling, the canoe glided so swiftly that it left a gurgling wake behind. Then Kelly showed Patricia how to turn her paddle for the “J” stroke. “That’s how I steer. Then it doesn’t matter which side you paddle on. Here, I’ll stop and we’ll switch positions. You steer now.”
    Carefully