In all my years of wearing
dresses, I had never dressed myself. Ginny had done that
for me. I stood, surrounded by bushes, wondering how I
was going to get my pink dress off. There were so many
buttons in the back and most of them were out of my reach.
I hated to ask Todd for help but seemed to have no other
choice.
I peeked through the bushes. He wasn"t at the
wagon. When I saw the horses weren"t there either, I knew I
would have to wait until he returned with them. I sighed. I
wasn"t used to waiting. I paced back and forth, anxious for
the horses to be done drinking and eating.
I really needed to learn patience. At home, my every
desire was met immediately by the servants. How did
someone learn to wait and like it? As I turned to pace in the
other direction, something moved on the ground. A snake! I
tried to scream but couldn"t find my voice. I stumbled
51
Falling In Love With Her Husband
backwards and fell on my rear end. My hat flew off my head
and I heard my dress tear in the side. The snake, more
frightened of me than I was of him, slithered out of the
bushes. I took a deep breath, relieved it hadn"t been
poisonous.
I stood up to examine the tear in my dress. This was
the only pretty dress I had taken with me, and I had no idea
how I could repair the damage. I wiped the tear that fell on
my cheek and frowned when I realized I had dirt on my
hands. I didn"t have to look down at my dress to know it
was dirty as well. I quickly wiped my hands and cheek on
the clean part of my dress.
I decided I wouldn"t tell Todd how hard and
confusing this new life was for me in case he decided I
couldn"t handle it and took me back to my parents. I would
rather roll around in the mud than face Kent and Rebecca. I
forced back my tears and ripped the dress and six out of
eight petticoats off of me. I was tired of being hot and
sweaty. I could handle two petticoats much better than the
mountain of eight of them. Besides, no one could tell how
many I wore anyway.
My sudden determination prompted me to put on my
other dress. I couldn"t button some of the top buttons, so I
decided it was time to get Todd"s help. I peered out of the
bushes and breathed a sigh of relief when I saw him hitching
up the horses. As soon as he was done, I called out his
name. Even though no one was around us for miles, I
couldn"t go out into the open without all of the buttons
fastened.
He walked to me, careful to keep his eyes on my
face. I blushed, grateful for his consideration.
“I can"t button my top buttons in the back of this
dress. Can you help me?”
He nodded shyly. I smiled to myself as I felt his
hands tremble as he fastened the rest of the buttons. It was
a relief to know I wasn"t the only one who was nervous.
52
Falling In Love With Her Husband
When he was done, he spotted the torn and dirty dress and
petticoats on the ground next to my hat.
“Have some problems?” he grinned good-naturedly.
My face flushed hot from embarrassment. “I didn"t
like that dress anyway,” I lied as I picked them up.
“I could carry those for you, if you"d like,” he offered,
probably trying not to laugh.
“I can handle this myself,” I stiffly responded.
I hastened past him and threw the clothes into the
back of the wagon. I hopped up into the front, glad to be
able to move around freely. Unable to make eye contact, I
stared at the ground as Todd got in beside me and urged
the horses to start moving. We rode in silence for awhile.
The sun was hot but it suddenly occurred to me that I wasn"t
wearing a hat or carrying my parasol. I closed my eyes and
enjoyed the freedom of letting the sunlight hit my face.
Later that afternoon, he said, “We should be entering
the next town soon. I think we should stop there for the
night. What do you think?”
“You"re asking me if I want to stay in the next town
tonight?” I couldn"t remember ever being asked if I wanted
to do
dresses, I had never dressed myself. Ginny had done that
for me. I stood, surrounded by bushes, wondering how I
was going to get my pink dress off. There were so many
buttons in the back and most of them were out of my reach.
I hated to ask Todd for help but seemed to have no other
choice.
I peeked through the bushes. He wasn"t at the
wagon. When I saw the horses weren"t there either, I knew I
would have to wait until he returned with them. I sighed. I
wasn"t used to waiting. I paced back and forth, anxious for
the horses to be done drinking and eating.
I really needed to learn patience. At home, my every
desire was met immediately by the servants. How did
someone learn to wait and like it? As I turned to pace in the
other direction, something moved on the ground. A snake! I
tried to scream but couldn"t find my voice. I stumbled
51
Falling In Love With Her Husband
backwards and fell on my rear end. My hat flew off my head
and I heard my dress tear in the side. The snake, more
frightened of me than I was of him, slithered out of the
bushes. I took a deep breath, relieved it hadn"t been
poisonous.
I stood up to examine the tear in my dress. This was
the only pretty dress I had taken with me, and I had no idea
how I could repair the damage. I wiped the tear that fell on
my cheek and frowned when I realized I had dirt on my
hands. I didn"t have to look down at my dress to know it
was dirty as well. I quickly wiped my hands and cheek on
the clean part of my dress.
I decided I wouldn"t tell Todd how hard and
confusing this new life was for me in case he decided I
couldn"t handle it and took me back to my parents. I would
rather roll around in the mud than face Kent and Rebecca. I
forced back my tears and ripped the dress and six out of
eight petticoats off of me. I was tired of being hot and
sweaty. I could handle two petticoats much better than the
mountain of eight of them. Besides, no one could tell how
many I wore anyway.
My sudden determination prompted me to put on my
other dress. I couldn"t button some of the top buttons, so I
decided it was time to get Todd"s help. I peered out of the
bushes and breathed a sigh of relief when I saw him hitching
up the horses. As soon as he was done, I called out his
name. Even though no one was around us for miles, I
couldn"t go out into the open without all of the buttons
fastened.
He walked to me, careful to keep his eyes on my
face. I blushed, grateful for his consideration.
“I can"t button my top buttons in the back of this
dress. Can you help me?”
He nodded shyly. I smiled to myself as I felt his
hands tremble as he fastened the rest of the buttons. It was
a relief to know I wasn"t the only one who was nervous.
52
Falling In Love With Her Husband
When he was done, he spotted the torn and dirty dress and
petticoats on the ground next to my hat.
“Have some problems?” he grinned good-naturedly.
My face flushed hot from embarrassment. “I didn"t
like that dress anyway,” I lied as I picked them up.
“I could carry those for you, if you"d like,” he offered,
probably trying not to laugh.
“I can handle this myself,” I stiffly responded.
I hastened past him and threw the clothes into the
back of the wagon. I hopped up into the front, glad to be
able to move around freely. Unable to make eye contact, I
stared at the ground as Todd got in beside me and urged
the horses to start moving. We rode in silence for awhile.
The sun was hot but it suddenly occurred to me that I wasn"t
wearing a hat or carrying my parasol. I closed my eyes and
enjoyed the freedom of letting the sunlight hit my face.
Later that afternoon, he said, “We should be entering
the next town soon. I think we should stop there for the
night. What do you think?”
“You"re asking me if I want to stay in the next town
tonight?” I couldn"t remember ever being asked if I wanted
to do
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