Page 5 - MailOrderBrideFlipBook

casting a bright orange flame into the sky. The dawning colors, along with the fleeing shadows of the night, gave the awakening day a sense of excitement. The cool aroma that lingered from the long, but now expiring winter, made the air fresh and exhilarating. The quiet lapping of the water along the shore was broken only by geese overhead, honking their way farther north. Still mumbling under his breath, Jim eased himself onto an old crate that was sitting on the dock. “I can’t believe I let you drag me down here at five-o-clock on a Saturday morning.” Looking past Jim, Eli saw a solitary figure approaching the dock. “Here comes Whitman. I’ll ask him about the boat’s arrival.” He hurried toward Whitman, meeting him before he even got onto the dock. “Mr. Harris, I was wondering if you could boat me what tell the time is coming in?” Whitman waved his hand and drawled, “Calm down, boy. You’re making no sense at all.” Whitman, who never seemed to get excited about anything, put his hand on Eli’s shoulder. “Now, why don’t you start over?” Eli took a deep breath. “This is the big day!” “Oh, is the bell for the church supposed to arrive today?” Whitman asked. “It’s more important than that,” Eli replied as they continued to walk across the dock. “More important than the church bell?” Whitman asked. “Is that shipment of toilet paper arriving? It’s been a pretty rough road since we ran out. Pretty much defoliated the whole town.” By this time they had reached Jim, and he couldn’t be 2