New Yesterdays by Jim L Wright - HTML preview

Chapter 12

"Come in, come in, and welcome!" Seamus pumped Jim's hand until he thought for sure it would be wrung off. He had been planning to pay Seamus a visit for some time. The Indians spoke very highly of him and the boy was quite anxious to make his acquaintance.

When he finally pulled free of Seamus' rough, calloused hand, he began to look around the room in wonder. It was quite pretty, actually. The two windows of the front room were done up in pretty calico fabric that was a profusion of pink and blue flowers. The gentle breeze caused them to flutter around the sills. There was a large, comfortable looking sofa with lots of rolled and carved wood and matching tables in the center of the room facing the fireplace. It was flanked all around with lamps and chairs, all of which looked very comfortable. It was a warm and inviting room that had a lived-in look about it.

The bookshelves on either side of the fireplace held many fine-looking books, books that Jim thought he'd give his eye teeth to get his hands on. Thanks to his father's encouragement, he'd always been a voracious reader. He peered through the archway into the even warmer and more inviting kitchen that was dominated by a giant wood cook stove and longed to go in and poke through the nooks and crannies. He could hear Bridie bustling about preparing the evening meal.

Seamus led Jim to one of the side chairs and asked him to sit. "I'll just get us a nice cuppa tea so we can visit for a bit. You know, we don't get many white visitors around here. Every couple of months or so I go into Cross Plains for a few supplies and to catch up on the news. The rest of the time I see only the Indians."

Jim could hear him chatting with his wife as she puttered about in the kitchen preparing the tea. He took advantage of the time to look at the books on the shelves. Most of the titles meant nothing to him, but he saw The Swiss Family Robinson and Sense and Sensibility and

recognized them instantly. Seeing the books and realizing that Seamus was a reader made him feel more comfortable with the older man.

"Ah, so you're a reader, then lad?" Seamus startled him as he re-entered the parlor.

"Yes Sir, I love to read. Back home I used to read all the time." The host smiled benignly at the boy

"Back home, yes, tell me about back home."

"Well, there's not much to tell. We live right behind your place over near the creek and my grandparents live across the trail near the new planting ground we've been clearing. Of course, it's not a trail in my time but a proper road. Not a highway, mind you, but just a road."

"My grandfather farms all this area in corn and cotton and he has a garden out back of his house. You know that mulberry tree over there? It is so big on my side and it's split into two trees; lightning might've hit it, I reckon. We climb up in it and play all the time and when the berries are ripe and fall on the ground our feet get stained purple. Mother about has a fit about that, but we can't help stepping on them!" Seamus smiled at the boy’s recollections.

"Tell me about Cross Plains. Does it grow into a fine big city or just stay the way it is right now?"

"It's not a big city, that's for sure, and they changed the name to Piedmont. I’m not sure how many people live there, maybe 5,000 or so. It has a cotton mill that spins yarn for making clothes and a couple of schools. One is for the white kids and one for the colored kids. There are lots of stores on the main street where you can find about anything you would want."

Seamus wondered whether there were any saloons in the town.

"You can't buy whiskey anywhere around here unless you go to the Georgia line" Jim recalled "They call it a dry county."

"It must be a wonderful place you come from, I can't begin to imagine it. The Indians have told me many times about the portal that leads to another world, but to tell the truth I never really believed it. When Sequoya told me about a boy who had come from the other side, I was very excited to meet you and hear all about what your life is like there."

They spent the next hour swapping tales. Seamus told Jim how he and his father had come here from Ireland after the English had taken their farm. Jim told him stories about his exploits with his brothers and cousins. Suddenly, Jim remembered Seamus' family name.

"Your name is McCarley. I'll bet you are an ancestor of mine. My grandmother's name is McCarley. She always talks about the Irish and she won't let me have anything to do with anything she considers English. I think they are the only thing she hates in the entire world!"

Bridie interrupted their chat; "Supper's ready, wash your dirty hands and get in here and eat."

Jim sat stunned for a couple of seconds, "That's exactly what my Mawmaw always says every time she's ready for us to eat! She says those exact same words!"

The Irish couple smiled at him and Seamus draped his arm over the boy's shoulder as they walked to the kitchen for supper. "It smells delicious!" Jim declared.

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