 |
|
| |
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
The parish children collect pinecones and bring them to the church the
week before Christmas. Then cook supervises anyone wanting to help
paint them the next morning. There are always enough volunteers to
make a good display. I usually join them. It s always fun, said
Theodora.
The men servants take a wagon out into the country a few
days before Christmas and gather whatever we need. This year they ll
cut you a tree as well if you wish. I had thought about a tree, but I
don t like the idea of placing candles on it. One person only has to
knock it to set the whole drawing room alight, added Mrs. Ridley.
Yes, I agree. I ve been thinking about using ribbons as
decorations, and to tie red apples to the tree, then giving the apples to
the children and the ribbons to the young women afterward. Since the
berries we use as decorations are red or white do you think it would
look pretty to use red and white ribbons?
Oh yes, that does sound good. I m not quite sure how we ll
tie the apples on though. And we could make some paper flowers for
the tree too, if you like, added Theodora.
What a wonderful idea. Georgina could already see the tree
in her mind, and the smiling faces of the children when they saw it.
She picked up her little writing desk, sat it on her lap, drew out paper
and ink, and began to make a list of the things they needed to buy and
a second list of things they must do. She wanted everything to be just
perfect for Barnabas Mr. Ridley.
****
Barnabas liked living in the vicarage. It was an old building of
mellowed stone set back from the road with a deep vegetable garden
and orchard behind it, a large stable for their horses, and a big grassy
field for the animals to run in. A narrow path led from the house to
the church that adjoined it.
His father had been vicar here before him, and Barnabas
childhood memories were of playing in the garden, learning to ride in
the field, and helping his father in the church. He d always known he
wanted to serve God and the people through the church rather than on
the battlefield.
Being seven years older than Theodora, he d grown up
considering himself to be her protector rather than that she was his
playmate. Besides, by the time she had been old enough to play with
him he was at Eton, reveling in studies of mathematics, Latin, and the
classics. His good friend John Smith, who had shared his Eton and
Oxford years and who remained a close confidante, told him he was
staid beyond his years and needed to mix with ordinary people more,
but Barnabas was happy. In fact, more than happy now that he was
married. His life was as close to perfect as was possible here on Earth.
He was just finishing off a letter to a friend in a distant parish
when he became conscious of far more noise in the house than he was
used to. At a loss to understand why there was so much laughter and
the tramp of heavy boots inside, he sanded his letter, folded it, sealed
it with wax, and laid it aside for one of the grooms to deliver later.
Then he left his study to find out what was happening. He followed
the sounds and came upon what seemed like most of the parish
gathered in the servants hall with newspapers everywhere, several
large tubs of strangely colored liquid, and things spread out to dry on
the table and in front of the fire.
In the center of the chaos was his wife, her hair falling out of
its neat coil, smudges of something gold on her face, her hands
suspiciously reddened, and she was kneeling on the floor surrounded
by children. Some of them definitely not from the parish but poorly
dressed and dirty.
Carefully he wended his way through the crowd until he could
speak to Georgina. What is happening here? he asked much more
mildly than he wanted to. Where was his neat, quiet wife? His
orderly, hushed household? Where had they gone?
Oh, Mr. Ridley, we re having such fun. The children and
some of their families are dying old newspapers red and gold. When
they re dry, we ll use them to make paper chains to decorate the
hallways and this room and paper flowers to decorate the tree. Come
and see the first few we ve made.
She jumped to her feet and led him over to a table in the
corner, which he hadn t noticed at first. Here Theodora and his mama
were wielding scissors, expertly cutting the colored newspapers into
long strips. On the floor beside them were some older children
making these strips into paper chains.
He could scarcely believe his own eyes. His mama was sitting
surrounded by all these people making some frippery paper toy? And
smiling happily at him despite all the noise and mess? Surely this was
not how a vicar s house should be run. His mama seemed to approve
of the activity. He shook his head in disbelief. Yet what could he say?
He could scarcely order all these people out of the house when the
project was well advanced.
He swiveled around slowly, only now looking at the people in
his home. Old Douglas sat on a straight-backed chair by the fire, his
motherless grandchildren at his feet hard at work turning the drying
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
zanotowane.pldoc.pisz.plpdf.pisz.plcs-sysunia.htw.pl
|
| |
|
|
|
| Podobne |
| |
|
| |
|