I don't know about you, but I'm enjoying some cold winter weather with a little bit of snow on the ground. :) Not enough to do anything but look pretty, but it's here.
I'm actually getting this ready to post on Thursday afternoon because on Friday morning my sister and I will be heading over to my brother's house early, like before 7 AM early, to babysit all the kids except Nephew #4. They are taking him to a hospital a few hours away to see about his arm. Poor guy. He injured it back in October but after an x-ray were told it wasn't broken. It turns out, it is. And it's not healed yet. So . . . Please pray for him. He's almost 4. We'll be there until they get home. And no one knows when that will be.
I've had a lovely time actually getting to write this week! I'm so enjoying jumping back into this story. I have a feeling it's going to be longer than 60k words. You don't mind, do you? I didn't think so. Actually I have no idea how long this story is going to turn out. But I'm pretty sure I'm on the downhill side. Now, since I wasn't sure what to post today and didn't have time to go find one of my old stories to re-post, I decided to take the advise of a reader and drive you all crazy. Ready? I'm going to pull a section from my book "Finding Joy" and let you all tell me what you think.
Finding Joy
a snippet
A little while later, as the family sat around on the tarp and had their breakfast of granola bars and slightly warm juice, Mr. and Mrs. Martin discussed where to start on the enormous task of cleaning. In the light of the morning sun, the place looked worse than the night before, and Paige was overwhelmed.
“There are a few things that need done right away,” Zach remarked. “The bathroom needs cleaned and the kitchen should be scrubbed.”
“But the kitchen is so big!” Paige looked around in dismay.
“That’s why we’re going to start by cleaning the places where the fridge and the stove go. If we can get places for them, we’ll be able to enjoy cooked meals instead of just peanut butter sandwiches.”
“I like peanut butter sandwiches,” Gina put in.
“Would you like them breakfast, lunch, and dinner?”
After thinking about it a moment, Gina slowly shook her head. “No. Let’s get the fridge and stove.”
“I’m glad we brought cleaning supplies,” Paige remarked. “But I don’t think we have enough.”
“Once we get the place for the kitchen appliances ready, I’ll go into town and pick them up, and I’ll buy more of whatever else we need at the same time.”
Paige was about to speak, but a sudden harsh ringing shattered the stillness and made everyone jump.
Gina’s eyes were as wide as saucers. “What’s that?” she gasped into a moment of quiet.
The ring came again and Zach sprang up. “A telephone! I’ll buy ice cream for the person who finds it and answers it before they hang up.”
Instantly Paige and Gina were on their feet. All three of them converged on a small hallway that led from the kitchen to the dining room. They hadn’t really noticed it before. There, hanging on the wall, was an old phone. Almost breathless, Zach picked up the receiver and said, “Hello?”
Gina pressed close to her mom as they stood and listened to the one sided conversation.
“Yes, it is. . . . We did. Thank you. . . . We were just talking about that. . . . Well, I was hoping to get places cleaned for them today and . . . I see. That would be very kind. I can’t pay but . . .” Zach smiled and gave a little chuckle. “Sure . . . I won’t turn down that kind of offer. And I’m sure my wife would appreciate it too.”
Gina tugged at his arm. “Ask about a cat,” she whispered.
“Um, my daughter wants to know if we can rent a cat for a few weeks. . . . Yeah, I’m talking feline here. She thought it would be a good way to get rid of the mice in the house. . . . No.”
There was a longer pause this time, and Gina shifted from one foot to the other impatiently.
“Yep. Thank you. We’ll see you later then. . . . Uh huh. Good bye.”
As Zach replaced the receiver, making some remark about the phone being one with a cord, his wife and daughter, impatient to know who was on the phone, interrupted.
“Who was that and what did they want?” Paige demanded. “Isn’t it awfully early to be calling strangers at this time of morning?”
“Did they have a cat, Daddy?” questioned Gina. “Can we rent one?”
Laughing, Zach held up his hands in surrender. “Hold it! I’ll confess everything if you’ll let me out of this narrow tunnel”
“That’s what we can call this hall, Mom! We’ll call it the tunnel!” chortled Gina in glee. “Then we’ll have a hallway and a tunnel.”
“Did you want to hear about that phone call?” Zach pretended to growl.
Giving a skip, Gina landed on the tarp and sat down on her rolled up sleeping bag. “Yep.” And lifting her dark eyes, she stared right at her father until he laughed.
“That was Mr. Davis. He’s the man that was mowing the fields here last year after his dad passed away. He’s letting us use one of his empty storage units in town for our furniture. Anyway, he was calling to see if we wanted him to bring out the stove and fridge. And his wife wanted to bring supper for us tonight, but it would have to go in the fridge and then be put in the oven later.”
“So we have to get them today,” Paige said.
“The cat, Daddy. Did they have a cat?”
“He said he’d see what he could come up with.”
“A cat?” Paige looked from her husband to her daughter in disbelief.
Turning to her mom, Gina made haste to explain her idea of renting a cat just for a few days to get rid of the mice. “Wouldn’t you rather have one cat in the house for a few days than many mice for a long time?” she asked anxiously. She knew her mom disliked cats greatly.
“I suppose so. But,” and Paige put up her hands as though to stop a flow of words, “can we please not talk about either one right now? We need to get to work.”
“Right.” Zach gave a decided nod. “Can you pack up the food, Hon? Gina and I’ll take the sleeping bags and pillows back to the truck. They’ll stay cleaner that way,” he added seeing his wife’s puzzled expression. “We’ll take the tarp out too. I think it’ll be easier to work without trying to keep it clean.”
Before long the Martin family were all at work. Gina had helped her dad open as many windows as they could so that the breeze would freshen the house. A few of the windows seemed stuck and these they didn’t spend time messing with. “We’ll work on them later,” Zach said.
The water in the kitchen sink was clear and Paige filled a bucket with hot soapy water. They decided to all work in the kitchen, so that maybe the fridge and stove could be put in place when Mr. Davis brought them over. Cobwebs were swept from the ceiling, and then the floor was thoroughly swept. “I know it’ll just get dirty again,” Paige confessed, with an apologetic look on her face, when Zach raised an eyebrow, “but I just can’t stand to walk on such a dirty floor any longer!”
“Go right ahead, Hon.” Zach gave her a quick kiss and handed Gina a rag. “Okay, Sunny Girl, let’s get at these walls.”
“There are a few things that need done right away,” Zach remarked. “The bathroom needs cleaned and the kitchen should be scrubbed.”
“But the kitchen is so big!” Paige looked around in dismay.
“That’s why we’re going to start by cleaning the places where the fridge and the stove go. If we can get places for them, we’ll be able to enjoy cooked meals instead of just peanut butter sandwiches.”
“I like peanut butter sandwiches,” Gina put in.
“Would you like them breakfast, lunch, and dinner?”
After thinking about it a moment, Gina slowly shook her head. “No. Let’s get the fridge and stove.”
“I’m glad we brought cleaning supplies,” Paige remarked. “But I don’t think we have enough.”
“Once we get the place for the kitchen appliances ready, I’ll go into town and pick them up, and I’ll buy more of whatever else we need at the same time.”
Paige was about to speak, but a sudden harsh ringing shattered the stillness and made everyone jump.
Gina’s eyes were as wide as saucers. “What’s that?” she gasped into a moment of quiet.
The ring came again and Zach sprang up. “A telephone! I’ll buy ice cream for the person who finds it and answers it before they hang up.”
Instantly Paige and Gina were on their feet. All three of them converged on a small hallway that led from the kitchen to the dining room. They hadn’t really noticed it before. There, hanging on the wall, was an old phone. Almost breathless, Zach picked up the receiver and said, “Hello?”
Gina pressed close to her mom as they stood and listened to the one sided conversation.
“Yes, it is. . . . We did. Thank you. . . . We were just talking about that. . . . Well, I was hoping to get places cleaned for them today and . . . I see. That would be very kind. I can’t pay but . . .” Zach smiled and gave a little chuckle. “Sure . . . I won’t turn down that kind of offer. And I’m sure my wife would appreciate it too.”
Gina tugged at his arm. “Ask about a cat,” she whispered.
“Um, my daughter wants to know if we can rent a cat for a few weeks. . . . Yeah, I’m talking feline here. She thought it would be a good way to get rid of the mice in the house. . . . No.”
There was a longer pause this time, and Gina shifted from one foot to the other impatiently.
“Yep. Thank you. We’ll see you later then. . . . Uh huh. Good bye.”
As Zach replaced the receiver, making some remark about the phone being one with a cord, his wife and daughter, impatient to know who was on the phone, interrupted.
“Who was that and what did they want?” Paige demanded. “Isn’t it awfully early to be calling strangers at this time of morning?”
“Did they have a cat, Daddy?” questioned Gina. “Can we rent one?”
Laughing, Zach held up his hands in surrender. “Hold it! I’ll confess everything if you’ll let me out of this narrow tunnel”
“That’s what we can call this hall, Mom! We’ll call it the tunnel!” chortled Gina in glee. “Then we’ll have a hallway and a tunnel.”
“Did you want to hear about that phone call?” Zach pretended to growl.
Giving a skip, Gina landed on the tarp and sat down on her rolled up sleeping bag. “Yep.” And lifting her dark eyes, she stared right at her father until he laughed.
“That was Mr. Davis. He’s the man that was mowing the fields here last year after his dad passed away. He’s letting us use one of his empty storage units in town for our furniture. Anyway, he was calling to see if we wanted him to bring out the stove and fridge. And his wife wanted to bring supper for us tonight, but it would have to go in the fridge and then be put in the oven later.”
“So we have to get them today,” Paige said.
“The cat, Daddy. Did they have a cat?”
“He said he’d see what he could come up with.”
“A cat?” Paige looked from her husband to her daughter in disbelief.
Turning to her mom, Gina made haste to explain her idea of renting a cat just for a few days to get rid of the mice. “Wouldn’t you rather have one cat in the house for a few days than many mice for a long time?” she asked anxiously. She knew her mom disliked cats greatly.
“I suppose so. But,” and Paige put up her hands as though to stop a flow of words, “can we please not talk about either one right now? We need to get to work.”
“Right.” Zach gave a decided nod. “Can you pack up the food, Hon? Gina and I’ll take the sleeping bags and pillows back to the truck. They’ll stay cleaner that way,” he added seeing his wife’s puzzled expression. “We’ll take the tarp out too. I think it’ll be easier to work without trying to keep it clean.”
Before long the Martin family were all at work. Gina had helped her dad open as many windows as they could so that the breeze would freshen the house. A few of the windows seemed stuck and these they didn’t spend time messing with. “We’ll work on them later,” Zach said.
The water in the kitchen sink was clear and Paige filled a bucket with hot soapy water. They decided to all work in the kitchen, so that maybe the fridge and stove could be put in place when Mr. Davis brought them over. Cobwebs were swept from the ceiling, and then the floor was thoroughly swept. “I know it’ll just get dirty again,” Paige confessed, with an apologetic look on her face, when Zach raised an eyebrow, “but I just can’t stand to walk on such a dirty floor any longer!”
“Go right ahead, Hon.” Zach gave her a quick kiss and handed Gina a rag. “Okay, Sunny Girl, let’s get at these walls.”
So, what did you think?
Do you think you'll enjoy more about the Martins?
You can see my small Pinterest board here.
2 comments:
I found it interesting. Would definitely like to read more. Or I may just have to wait for the book. ;)
Thanks for commenting, Christian. :) Yeah, you may just have to wait for the book. I think you know me too well. ;)
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