Lucinda Story Part III

It was a cold February morning as Lucinda and Aunt Ann left the house, they had finished all the household chores and were going shopping in Westphalia. She and her aunt had made a list last evening of what was needed, just a few items including fabric for a dress.

The year was 1928 and Lucinda had been living with her aunt since her mother, Mary, had passed away. Lucinda was only eight when Mary died and the family had decided the young girl needed a woman's influence. She still saw her father and brother almost every day, very often they would come to dinner at Ann's house and they always came on Sunday to escort the ladies to and from church.

Lucinda's grandmother had moved into the house when Grandpa Pierre died in 1913, but in 1920 Grandma Marie had also died. Now it was just Ann and Lucinda living here. But in the small town of Westphalia the house was never lonely or quiet. There were many family members and friends in this little town. Someone was always coming to call.

Lately one of the most frequent callers was William. He had been "courting" Lucinda for several months and three weeks ago he had asked her to be his wife. Being a respectful young man, he had talked to her father George and asked for his blessing. As William was the son of George's good friend and neighbor Gus, there had been no hesitation. Well almost. As a good father should he questioned the boy on his plans for supporting a wife and family. William explained to his prospective father-in-law about his job at the local farm equipment shop and how he was learning to build and repair the machinery. His future was secure and he felt he could support a family. George happily gave his blessing to the marriage.

All of this brings us back to Lucinda and Ann's shopping trip. They were going to get the material for Lucinda's wedding dress. William and Lucinda would be married in the spring and there was so much to be done before the wedding.

In late May of that year the entire town gathered at Saint Teresa's church for Lucinda and William's wedding. It was a beautiful day, surrounded by family and friends, and the start of a wonderful life for the young couple.
George had given them the small house which had belonged to Pierre and Marie, the perfect home. Each day Lucinda would take care of the house and her garden and William would work at the farm shop.

One day when William came home from work Lucinda asked him to sit down, there was something she wanted to tell him. She handed him a glass of iced tea and said, "Bill, you are going to be a father." At first he just sat there, staring at the glass of tea, then he jumped up, grabbed Lucinda and proceed to dance around the room with her.

Baby John, who everyone would call Jackie, was born in September of 1929. They were now a family and life was good in Westphalia, Kansas.
A few years went by and the young couple were very happy. Lucinda was planning a party to celebrate Jackie's fourth birthday. Ann had been out of town visiting relatives but when she returned she went over to see if she could help with the party.

As soon as she saw Lucinda she knew something was wrong. Lucinda had lost weight and looked pale. Ann immediately insisted that Lucinda go with her to see the town doctor. Lucinda protested that she was just tired from all the party preparations. After awhile she confessed to Ann that she had lost her appetite and wasn't sleeping. She was also being bothered by a cough that would not go away. Ann finally convinced her to see the doctor.

William was working on a piece of equipment at the shop, it had been a very busy day and he was tired but he needed to finish this job. He was deep in concentration but decided to take a short break. When he looked up Ann was standing in front of him.

"William", she said, "Lucinda is very sick, the doctor says it is consumption*, he wants to send her to the sanatorium tomorrow."

To be continued . . .

*In the past tuberculosis was called consumption.


This is a automated post, I am somewhere in the wilds of Idaho and Montana until next week. I hope you enjoy Lucinda's story. This is a repost of a story I wrote last year for Mother's Day. I will be around to catch up with everyone when we get home.