The Gift by Pamela Warren Page A

you
can probably handle Cajun music as well.”
    “That might be fun, Zak. I think I’d like to give it a
try,” she said.
    When they got back from their trip to Boston, Maggie
started listening to some of Zak’s records of Cajun and zydeco music. She tried
to absorb the style and learn some of the songs. Most of lyrics were in French,
but Maggie had taken seven years of French in high school and college so she
didn’t have too much trouble following the words. Then she tried playing along,
first on the mandolin and then on the fiddle. She felt that she was having some
difficulty with the fiddle techniques which seemed pretty foreign to someone
who was used to playing classical music. Most of all she was having trouble
getting the bowing rhythms down. Zak listened to her practice and suggested
that sometime she should ask Jesse, the fiddler in his zydeco band, for help.
He was sure that he would be able to give her some tips.

.
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Chapter 8
     
    About a month after Maggie and Zak returned
from their trip to Boston, Zak’s mother invited them over for Sunday afternoon
dinner. They were usually tired on Sunday because they were recovering from
their Saturday night gig, but they agreed to come over if she had dinner in the
late afternoon. When they got there, Zak’s brother Caleb and his children were
in the yard throwing a Frisbee for their dog Mojo. Zak went over to play with
them while Maggie went into the kitchen to help Zak’s mother prepare dinner. She
seemed to have everything under control, there was a turkey roasting in the
oven and potatoes and beans cooking on the stove. Zak’s mother gave Maggie a
brief hug and then conspiratorially whispered in her ear to follow her into the
dining room. Zak’s mother went over to a hutch and took out a large wooden box
from a bottom drawer. She laid it out on the dining room table and opened it to
display its contents. It was filled with silverware.
    “Zak’s grandmother wanted him to have this when he
married,” Zak’s mother said. “Caleb already got silver from my husband’s
family. I didn’t want to give this to Zak until I thought he was ready to
settle down. You know, I talked to Zak last week and asked him when you two
were going to get married. He said that neither of you really believed in
marriage, that you didn’t need a piece of paper to show your commitment. He
told me that if he was going to marry anyone then it would be you, but he
didn’t see the need unless you were going to have kids, and he wasn’t ready for
that for a while.”
    Maggie told Zak’s mother that she agreed with him. She
said it would be too difficult to have a family when they were constantly on
the road going to gigs. Zak’s mother looked disappointed.
    “Well, I told Zak not to wait too long, I’m not getting
any younger and I’d like to see my grandchildren. In the meantime, I thought
you might enjoy having the silver. I know that Zak doesn’t care anything about
it, but I thought you might appreciate it.”
    Maggie was overwhelmed by the generous gift and thanked
Zak’s mother for her thoughtfulness.  Just then, Zak walked in from the back
yard looking for Maggie. His mother explained that she wanted Zak and Maggie to
take his grandmother’s silver. Zak put his arm around his mother and kissed her
on top of her head. He thanked her, and told her that they would take good care
of it.
    When they drove back home later that evening, Zak was
thoughtful.
    “My mother must really like you Maggie. She’s never done
anything like that before.”
    He gave her a sideways glance and told her that his
mother had been asking when they were going to get married. He was turning
thirty in a couple of weeks and his family had decided that it was time for him
to settle down.
    Maggie looked a little flustered. She had only known Zak
for five months. She loved him, but she didn’t feel ready to settle down.
    “I’m not sure I’m ready yet,