Ashokan Farewell by Jeffrey Allen White (read this if .txt) 📕

as he walked into the store and grabbed an apron and threw his books under the counter. He went straight to stocking the shelves his father told him to do the day before. “Thanks for the cover” he said as he passed by.

“She was so pretty, even then.” John realized he again had drifted off. The wind blew harshly against his face. He wanted to be with Claire. He wanted to be warm and with her. Here he was hundreds of miles away freezing to death slowly. It was the most horrible way to die he thought. A huge chunk of snow fell from the trench wall hitting him in the head mercifully sending him back to a dream state.

Chapter 2

The day was cold and but bright. Not a cloud in the sky. Claire could smell the wood burning in her kitchen. She could smell the aroma of bread baking in her stove. There were a few minutes before it would be done. She had checked on it just before coming outside to hang the wash.

There had not been any rain lately or snow. It was a mild winter here in Hammond, Virginia. Back home when she was a child, it was much colder and it snowed much more often. This was a dry winter so far. Claire carried the basket of freshly washed clothes out towards the line that was used to hang them to dry.

Claire knew the weather would not stay this way. There would have a storm or before long. Off in the distance the mountains had their share of fresh snowfall up in the higher elevations, she could see it from her bedroom window when she closed the shutters at night before going to bed. She bent over to pick up a blouse that was blue with vertical white stripes. She remembered how much John liked her in it. He called her a schoolteacher. Claire smiled thinking of him and his playful teasing. She missed him so much. They had only been married less than a year when John’s father was killed and then they sold the mercantile. Not long after that John went off to war along with half the men in town.

She remembered the day when John told her he was going to join up in the army. William and John had been out listening to tales of the spreading war and he came home late and smelled of barrel whiskey. William was far worse than John who only telltale sign of inebriation was his careful walking. Balancing his long lean body as not to sway or fall.

Claire was waiting up for him. She sat in the chair on the porch with a lit lantern by her side. Her body wrapped up in a large quilt that her sisters made for her and John when they were married. She pulled the quilt around her shutting off all openings to the cold winter night air around her body. She was worried about John. There had been talk in town about the Yankees burning down every town they came through and slaughtered the women and children that were left there unprotected, as all their men had gone off to war. Claire did not want to think of war. She did not want to think of anything that would spoil her life. Her life with John.

In the year since they were married, they had to deal with a lot of sorrow. John’s father’s death, the sale of the family business that John’s father and mother started and now the escalating war. It was getting closer and closer to their home and people were becoming more and more frightened with each bit of war news.

The money John received from the mercantile was split up between him and his two sisters; Mary and Sarah who were both married and had children. John’s mother had died when he was ten of small pox. John never spoke much of her, only that she was a very good, fair, even-tempered woman. Claire never asked too much as his eyes would well up and then he would have to make an excuse to leave the room to hide his sorrow.

John was a good man though, in spite of his mother gone when he was so young. His father raised him with the love of two parents and the values he wanted to instill in his family. Giving William money was the right thing to do. Making sure his best friend was rewarded for his many years of employment and loyalty to him and his family.

Mary lived in Evington and was married to Carl Ritter. They had three girls, Ely, Beth and Megan. Carl was a laborer for the railroads and traveled away from home for his work. Sometime weeks at a time. Often repairing the tracks that were blown up by the north. Mary took in sewing to support their income after Carl joined the army. Several months later both John and William joined.

Sarah was the oldest sister with John being the baby and Mary in between. She was raising her boy, Harrison to come into the family business one day just as she raised her younger sister and brother after her mother died. They lived not far from John, just over the ridge right out on the edge of town, next to the church. Sarah’s husband Emmett Smith was the pastor for their church. He was much older than Sarah and always sickly but always managed to make it to his sermon box every Sunday to expound gospel stories and to save the congregations’ poor unfortunate souls. In spite of his fire and brimstone approach to preaching, Emmett was good to Sarah and was a good father to Harrison.

Sarah also worked in the family business and her income was what really supported them all these years. A pastor’s salary was hardly enough for one person, let alone three. Her share of the money from the sale of the mercantile went into an investment in some land, which they in return sold again and made a good deal of profit. She would have gotten a job at the bank after setting up a trust account with the proceeds. She had much experience all those years with her father. They would live a comfortable life.

Claire was pinning the last piece of wash when she heard a wagon in the distance. Turning towards the road, she saw that it was Harrison, Sarah’s fourteen years old son. He was riding the horse and wagon hard and that was unusual for him. He was always a very timid young man who was on the quiet side, not very aggressive or loud.

Picking up the empty basket, she headed for the house and dropped it on the porch as she passed by. She met Harrison as he pulled to a stop.

“Aunt Claire, Mother says to come quick!” Harrison bolted from the wagon to help her on. “We have to hurry!”

“What are you talking about?” Claire had never seen him so anxious. “Is your father all right? Is it your father?” Claire thought that he had become ill or hurt himself.

“No, Father’s fine. Mother says you have to come quickly.” Harrison helped her onto the wagon and jumped up and over Sarah to get to the front. He looked white as a ghost.

“What is it Harrison? What has happened?” Claire pleaded with him to tell her. He only rode the horse harder as they sped off to his house. Claire could not get anything out of him. No matter what she asked, he kept silent. It was an unnerving ride. They hit several rocks in the road and she almost bounced off. Holding tightly on the railing she wished John were here.

Harrison managed a few words but did not make much sense. He was told not to say much by his mother, only that Claire should hurry on over. This was all so unsettling. Thoughts of Emmett and Sarah filled her mind. What could it be? She prayed for an answer.

The wagon took a sudden lurch to the right throwing Harrison into Claire. She held with both hands, which kept them from falling and tossed into the ravine that annexed the road.

“What ever it is, Harrison. Let us get there without any harm to either of us.” Claire was not much older than Harrison was. Perhaps just six-year’s difference. She looked at him and noticed that his face had seemed to age since the last time she had seen him. He looked more mature for some reason. Maybe the gravity of this situation had something to do with it. Maybe he had seen something that was a fright to him.

The sun was overhead now. She worried about her bread but knew that her help was there. Claire had taken in a Negro girl seven months ago. Her name was Eliza and she was a free slave. Just because the country was fighting over slavery, it did not mean everybody practiced it. She treated her well and paid her what she could. A warm house and hot meals gave her the security she only dreamed of. In addition, with John gone off to war, Eliza was a company to her. Someone to talk to, someone to be with. It was a lonely life for most of the women in town. Their husbands off fighting a war not heard from for months and in some cases over a year.

Emmylou Sutter did receive news of her husband. A letter came informing her that he was killed in an accident with a wagon carrying men. He had slipped off somehow and fell between the horses to his death, trampled under the wheels of the wagon.

Claire thought she was not too far from that same fate as Harrison took the horse to a full gallop. The steeple of the church came into view just below the road in front of them. If anything, they would be there very soon. However, each minute was like an hour. How long could they hold on and how long would it be for the horse to overexert itself and become lame?

The road turned into a clearing where they had their church socials every year. Because it was January, the ground was void of grass and flowers. Just bare spots of dirt and winter weeds. John had won the log-splitting contest when they were just