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#Post#: 1310--------------------------------------------------
Just Some Love
DIR By: Maggie Flannery
Date: September 16, 2012, 8:03 pm
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Hopefully this link banner works. I know you've used Emmy Rossum
in your banners so I've just borrowed her for a bit, haha. Hope
you don't mind. I had her pictured in my mind as I'm writing.
I'll be posting very soon never fear! :D
HTML http://i1155.photobucket.com/albums/p555/rmbarrettchase/bannermountainview22.jpg
#Post#: 1311--------------------------------------------------
Re: Just Some Love
DIR By: Wolfy
Date: September 17, 2012, 4:27 pm
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That is a lovely banner! I'm a huge fan of them both so it's
nice to see their faces in this story and I can't wait for the
first update! :D
#Post#: 1312--------------------------------------------------
Re: Just Some Love
DIR By: Maggie Flannery
Date: September 17, 2012, 9:40 pm
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Author's Note : *Disclaimer* - Please know that this is a work
of pure fiction. I'm but a humble writer and I don't make a cent
from these works, I just write them for my own and the enjoyment
of others. I do not mean in anyway to infringe upon the famous
individuals/characters that are mentioned within the work. I
only own the original characters unless otherwise stated. If you
would like to post my work please contact me and I will gladly
grant permission as long as my name is mentioned and the
disclaimer (above) is posted along with the piece. I don't bite,
I promise. :-)
Harlan Kentucky November of 1973
"It's a proven fact that two men equipped with guns have got
nothing on a Kentucky woman carrying a stick." - author unknown
Somewhere off in the distance I heard the wind howl and
the steady pattering of rain on the tin roof just above my head.
Autumn had finally come to the Hills of Harlan Kentucky but this
year it seemed even more cold and depressing. The first chill of
the year had settled into the house making me burrow ever deeper
under the quilts. The fire in the coal stove over in the kitchen
finally must have burned down to nothing and Mama hadn't gotten
up yet to stoke it. I shuddered as I thought about getting up
out of the nice warm bed I'd made for myself. Times were tough
and money was tight all over but in the county of Harlan people
had to sinch the belt one loop tighter with every passing month.
I'd heard tell that over in Pikeville girls were getting married
at sixteen just so their families would have an extra income to
make ends meet. People from the big cities looked at our life
like we were backward and foreign. For us, the people that
called these hills home, it was just life and it always would
be. Those big city people didn't know or care to ever find out
how we made a go of things while our fathers, husbands, and
brothers toiled down in the deep, dark coal mines, as long as
those rich people had power for their nice big houses they were
happy. For some reason they thought we were all missing teeth or
stupid, that we sat around all day whittling on the front porch.
It was true that some of the older people couldn't read or write
but there were a few of us that had graduated high school,
myself included. I was the oldest of three and it looked like I
was only one to be lucky enough to go to school. My younger
sisters Fern and Annie didn't have any urge to go so Mama said
their time was better spent at home helping her around the
house. Given the fact that they were only three and five I made
a point of teaching them their letters and numbers and socked
away some money from my odd jobs around the town for their
school things when the time came. I gave the rest to Mama to put
toward our food bill. Our area had only just been granted extra
coal for heat and finally got our own eletrical feeds into each
house. We still didn't have the luxury of running water or a
real toilet yet, the people from Cumberland Coal Company keep
telling us we'll have it next year. So in the mean time we're
making due with trips to the communal water pump and still using
our family outhouse. Daddy had just been added to the night
shift three nights a week on top of his daily work and we're
hoping we'll make enough to cover our debt at the company store.
With five mouths to feed and a meager income our needs were put
first and our wants were put out to pasture. We never lacked for
the crucial things and we always had an abundance of love, but
love didn't buy oatmeal and love couldn't fix the patch in the
roof that was getting bigger and bigger. If anyone asked us "Are
you really happy here?" We'd just smile and nod because it was
the only life we'd all ever known. That how life is in these
parts, the company owns you and when you get too broken down to
work you're cast off like an old rag another person ready to
step in and take your place. Your family doesn't fare too well
either, the minute the news is broken to the family is the
minute they have to collect their things and move out and may
the Lord help you if your husband has a debt with the store,
then it comes out of the man's last paycheck the rest is given
to the family to try and scrap by on. You're told you don't have
to leave but you can't stay here.
I heard the front door creak open in the kitchen and the heavy
thud of Daddy's boots shuffling across the ancient wood floor.
He was wheezing something awful this morning and I reached over
to get my worn hand me down sweater and shrugged it on while
slipping my feet into a worn woolen house slippers. I poked my
head around the corner and looked at my father it seemed like
he'd aged a hundred years since I'd last seen him the day
before. He was all covered in coal soot the only thing that had
any color were his eyes, they never seemed to change from their
vivid green.
"Delilah you go on back to bed..."
He rasped between deep wheezes and sputters.
"No, you most certainly won't. I was up anyways and you just sit
tight. Mama saved you some dinner, it's in the ice box if you
want it."
My father chuckled in between coughs as he stood up tall like an
oak tree, still stoop shouldered from working hunched over in
the mines. He went over to the ice box to get his dinner and
inspected with a keen eye.
"You made dinner again I see. Your Mama's sick again ain't she?"
My mother had been overcome with terrible stomachaches for the
better part of a year and no one knew why she could hardly keep
anything down, so it fell on me to keep up the house and get
each meal on the table while tending to my mother and sisters.
"I..uh...Yes, she says they're getting worse. I've got to take
her to the doctor tomorrow, that's the only day the clinic'll
take us."
I shook my head as I threw my hair over my shoulder and grabbed
the old water pails from their hook by the door and slipped on a
pair of galoshes and ventured out into the cold grey Kentucky
morning. The cold air took my breathe away as I walked briskley
down the well worn path, the pinks and purples of the fading
night sky my only company on the long walk toward the water
pump. After four trips back and forth the wash tub was finally
filled with fresh hot water and Mama was up long enough to help
Daddy get cleaned up. I went about getting changed and then
setting up breakfast inbetween getting up Annie and Fern.
Fern was the first one up and the first to complain about her
breakfast, as usual as I tried to brush her hair free of snarles
and knots.
"Aww, Lilah, ain't we ever gonna have anything else 'sides
oatmeal for breakfast? You know I can't hardly stand it."
She whined as I finished brushing her hair and braiding it down
her back like Mama used to do for me. Annie just grabbed at my
jeans and the tail of my shirt.
"There isn't any such word as ain't, Fern. Just say aren't.
We're going into town today to go shopping so don't worry.
You'll be happy to have that oatmeal once we get going today.
It's going to be a long time before we have lunch."
Annie sat down at the table and wolfed her down and eyed my bowl
with hungry eyes. I reached over the table and scraped my
oatmeal into her bowl without another word.
"Mama said we ain't supposed to do that, Lilah!"
Fern whispered as pushed her own food around in her bowl then
finally taking a pensive bite.
I leaned over and looked her in the eye and whispered just so
she could hear me.
"I'd rather see you two eat, now hush up and eat."
Daddy had nodded off to sleep on the old couch just before we
got ready to leave, Mama was back in bed oblivious to the world,
and Fern, Annie, and I were ready for our venture into the town.
I bundled the girls up with their heavy coats, grabbed the cash
and script book from the old coffee can from the shelf above the
stove and we ventured out into cold mid morning with our
shopping list in hand. I swiftly checked the back pocket of my
jeans to make sure I had my bank book on me.
About two miles down the dirt road Annie started to whine about
having tired legs so I ended up carrying her while she snivled
and Fern lollygagged
behind me kicking rocks.
"Fern Elizabeth Shipton you so much as scuff those shoes
Daddy'll tan your hide. Now come on over here and hold my hand.
There's a truck coming."
I said as I attmpted to get Annie's fingers out of my hair. Fern
grabbed my hand and I was shocked at how cold her hands her. I
looked down to see that she didn't have her mittens on and I
sighed. I stopped and reached into my coat pocket and found my
pair. I shifted Annie onto my hip and bent down slightly to help
Fern into the mittens.
"You sounded just like Mama when you sighed, Lilah. You're only
eighteen but you ain't supposed to sound like an old lady yet. I
mean, it's ok if you do, you're always going to be Lilah to me."
I rolled my eyes and tried not to smile at the half compliment
luckily before she could say anything else Fern's attention was
quickly diverted by the honking of an approaching truck.
"Silas!"
Fern yelped and Annie waved madly as the beat up blue chevy came
closer to us and stopped with the window rolling down ever so
slowly.
"Hey there you Shipton girls. Too cold to be walking out on a
day like this. Hop in and I'll give you a lift. Looks like it's
grocery day."
I sighed as a I brushed my hair over my shoulder and helped the
girls into the cab before settling in myself and thanking Si
with a peck on the cheek.
"How ever did you know, Si?"
Si grinned that devil may care grin of his and shook out a
cigarette from the pack he had up on the dashboard and let it
dangle from his bottom lip as he lit it.
"Well, the hand made shopping bags of yours gave it away. But I
know lots of things about you Lilah my dear. Lots of things. "
I felt myself blush a crimson shade as Fern asked me what he
meant and why was I blushing she protested when I told her to
hush.
Silas Culver was one of the younger guys that worked down in the
mines with my father, he'd been transfered from the Lynch County
mine when it shut down two years ago and we'd come to be more
then just passing acquainances. With his dark hair and deep
brown soulful eyes he'd made me melt with just one hello. Now,
if my Daddy had found out what was going on out in the woods at
night he would have been fit to be tied and Si would be never be
heard from again. There was only three years between us so it
wasn't such a huge gap and people around Harlan never really
talked about age differences. Silas had asked me in September to
marry him and I had agreed but we decided to break the news to
my parents tonight over dinner hopefully they were both awake
and feeling up to par for some good news for a change.
As we pulled into the parking lot of the company store Fern
and Annie were bouncing up and down in between Silas and I
babbling about what they wanted to look at first. My head was
spinning as I totaled up what I could spend and how much it
would be to hold us over until Daddy's next pay day. I'd come
to the conclusion that fifty dollars would be pleanty if I stuck
to the list and didn't give in to Fern and Annie's protests for
wanting something. That would give me ninety dollars to cover
Mama's appointment tomorrow. I said a silent prayer that she
wouldn't be prescribed anything because she could barely keep
down water at this point.
"Penny for your thoughts there, Lilah."
Si said as he wrapped an arm around my waist and pulled me in
for a hug. I settled in for a second until Annie got a little
restless and I went over to the shopping basket area and pulled
out.
"Oh trust me, with as many thoughts as I've got swirling around
in my head right now you'd be a millionaire, Si. Fern! Put that
down please, You don't need it. I'll make you one when we get
home."
Fern sighed as she tossed the rag dolls she was playing with
back into the bin and walked over to me.
"I need you to go on over to the meat counter and ask for two
pounds of stew meat, please. Make sure the butcher doesn't have
his thumb on the scale."
Annie reached out to Si who took her gladly into his arms with a
grin.
"How's my little Annie bug today?"
Annie just grinned wider at Si and grabbed at his Cumberland
Coal ball cap and giggled.
"I'd have a hundred of these if I could, you know, Lilah."
I raised as eyebrow as I picked up a box of corn starch up off
the shelf and put it into the basket.
"Well, I know you would if you could but I certainly can't. Why
don't we just settle on one for now, huh, Si?"
Silas grinned and agreed that it was only right to take it one
step at a time.
"Should we start picking out names now or should we wait until
after we actually get married?"
I dug through the dairy case and picked up two quarts of milk
and put them into the basket and thought for a second. I was
already three months along and hiding it well enough. I was due
in for my check up when Mama was with her regular doctor so it
was kept on the down low.
"Well, why don't you start thinking? I'll cover the next one."
Fern, the queen of popping up at the damnedest moments plopped
her two pounds of stew meat into the basket and looked at me
with an inquisitive expression.
"Thinking of what? What'll you cover, Lilah?"
I looked at Silas as he stood there stammering for a second.
"Uh...Lilah? Why don't you take this one?"
I snickered picked up a carton of eggs and some heavy cream
along with some produce in the marked down bin. I ended up
picking up a box of regular cereal along with the oatmeal and
told myself that it was only because it was marked down. I
spotted Mama's favorite mint and some apples and threw them into
the basket too. Thinking maybe if I made homemade apple sauce
Mama might be able to keep it down.
"Nothing to worry about Fern, you'll know soon enough."
Fern seemed happy enough with my answer to her question and ran
off to say a quick hello to our elderly neighbor Mrs. Critchlow
who seemed to be gossiping with Alvina Finn, one of the town
busy bodies.
Si and I busied ourselves with putting things up on the check
out counter while we were stared at by the uppity check out
girl.
"That'll be twenty nine dollars, even."
The girl, named Candy drawled at me in between snaps of her gum.
I reached into the grocery envelope and pulled out thirty and
handed it over.
Candy leaned forward and handed me a red debt slip for my
father's mineing supplies and all but sneered for me. I looked
down at the glaring red notice and reached into my back pocket
pulled out my personal bank book and handed her a personal check
from my own savings account. I had scrimped and saved for over a
year to save up over two hundred dollars from my odd jobs, which
included picking slate on some of bigger coal hauls, taking in
laundry, and helping the mine forman's wife around the house. I
hadn't been entirely honest with Mama when I handed her what she
thought was the rest of my money every two weeks. I had skimmed
some to settle debts and put away for Annie and Fern and she was
none the wiser. If she knew anything was going on she turned a
blind eye.
"This should settle up both my father's and Silas Culver's
accounts for the upcoming year, Candy. I'd like you to split it
between them equally."
Candy's eyes bugged at the check as she stood there and nodded.
Si looked at me with a raised eyebrow.
"Consider it your wedding present, Si. Don't you dare say a word
to my father."
Si nodded and crossed his heart before leaning over to kiss me.
"Will you two knock it off! You're embarrassin' me!"
Fern huffed as she grabbed one of the bags along with my hand.
Si shifted Annie to his other hip and grabbed a bag and passed
me the the remaining lighter one. A heavy rain had started to
come down as we all made a run for the truck. Annie squealing
her head off as we all attempted not to get soaked. The drive
home was a quiet one due in part to Annie and Fern nodding off
in the warmth and steady movement of the truck.
"So, what time should I come over to meet my future inlaws?"
Si asked as we turned down the old dirt road and passed a few
now vacant homes.
"I'd say around four if you can, don't you have to work
tonight?"
Silas shook his head as we pulled into the yard and stopped in
front of the front porch.
"Nope, your Dad didn't tell you did he?"
I shook my head as I attempted to ring out my still drenched
hair and not disturb Fern in the process.
"Part of the mine almost came down last night, that's
Cumberland's tenth warning this month alone. Parts of the mine
are flooded already the equipment isn't even up to date. It's
not safe We're taking the law into our own hands and we're
going on strike until our demands are met. Five cents extras, a
half pound of extra coal, and our own soap in the bathhouse
isn't going to cut it anymore, Lilah. Can you do us a favor and
gather up some of the wives at the next church meeting? We're
going to need all the help we can get."
I was pleased that these men were taking a stand for what they
believed in and I wanted to do anything in my power to help.
"Alright, but on one condition. You help me get these two and
the groceries into the house. If you wake them you're going to
have to keep them entertained."
Silas grinned that grin of his that always made me melt.
"Anything for you, Lilah."
#Post#: 1313--------------------------------------------------
Re: Just Some Love
DIR By: Wolfy
Date: September 19, 2012, 10:48 am
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Okies, I read this about half an hour before I went to sleep
last night and if it had been a book, I wouldn't have stopped
reading. It's safe to say that so far it is an excellent story;
the way you started it was perfect and it pulled me right in.
All the characters mentioned are favourites of mine already,
though I favour Delilah and her sweetheart more. Delilah's
little sisters are adorable too. I can only imagine what it must
be like for them all to live in such a way, and some people
today think they have it bad. I can own up to thinking that
myself at times and it's completely unecessary. I think they are
all brave for dealing with it so well, even more so Delilah,
what with taking on all of those jobs at once to earn a decent
amount and pay off debts. I can't wait for the next update! :)
#Post#: 1315--------------------------------------------------
Re: Just Some Love
DIR By: Maggie Flannery
Date: September 19, 2012, 8:22 pm
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Aww why thank you so much! You've inspired me to keep going not
to mention made me blush, haha. I fear that times are only going
to get worse for our dear Delilah and Silas, not to mention
Delilah's sisters. I'm right there with you, Delilah and Silas
have a special place in my heart as well. :) I know exactly what
you're saying, it really puts things into perspective doesn't
it. I mean I think sometimes people take for granted having what
they have and these people were happy just to make do with what
they had. Never fear I'm writing away on the next update dear
constant reader! :) Thank you so much again for reading and
giving such nice feedback. You're awesome my friend!
#Post#: 1316--------------------------------------------------
Re: Just Some Love
DIR By: Wolfy
Date: September 19, 2012, 8:55 pm
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You are most welcome! and apologies for making you blush, haha.
Oh dear, that's not good news, but it does make me want to keep
reading to find out what will happen. Aye, it's definitely
something more people should strive for. When you think about
all the things you have and realise there aren't that many as
lucky as you, it makes you feel kinda silly. Even when you think
you could do better, there's always someone somewhere who is
doing worse than you are so.. it's sad that people complain so
much sometimes. You are welcome! :D I'm very happy to be a
reader and this is yet another story of yours that shines. Can't
wait for the update :D
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