Kathleen sat in her room with a tearstained letter and a broken heart. This was the second time she had broken her heart. She had sworn she’d never have to break it again, but the lad had made her feel like a real person again. When he left her world and walked onto the battlefield he was lost forever. He was perfect for Kathleen. He owned a darling little farmhouse in Hampshire. They were to be married once he returned from the war. Fate, however, said the he would not be coming home.
As Kathleen cried her heart out, she reread the letter for the millionth time.
April 24, 1812
To: Miss Kathleen Johnson,
I regret to inform you that Matthew Balfore went missing in action about a month ago. He is assumed to have fought at Waterloo where Napoleon fell, but his actual whereabouts are unknown. He is assumed to have departed this life and moved on to Paradise.
General Peterson
General Peterson was Matthew’s closest friend. He would have been Matthew’s best man. Before the war he was known as Nathaniel Peterson.
Sobs of anger and sorrow swept through Kathleen. She was angry at Matthew for leaving and for dying. She was angry at General Peterson for telling her a month after he fiancé’s departure. She was sorry she had not actually married Matthew the month before he left. She was sorry she did not die too.
“Kathleen! Kathleen! General Peterson is here! The war is over! Soon we should expect Matthew and a wedding in June!” Carrie called her sister. She knew not of the contents of the letter. “Kathleeeeeen!” screeched Carrie as she stood under the stairs. “Come down, come down! We are to have tea with General Peterson. Oh, I almost forgot! Mandy, Roselyn, and Althea are here too!” Kathleen sighed at her sister’s habit of raising her voice to an unladylike volume. She would never learn.
“I’m coming, Carrie.” sighed Kathleen as she stood on wobbly knees and made her way to the basin of water. I will not tell her of Matthew’s passing yet . I’ll wait until I absolutely need to tell anyone. If I say anything I’ll burst into tears again. She thought as she splashed her face with water and dried it with a clean hand towel.
Composure is everything now. Keep my head high and allow no tears to be seen. Just smile and nod. Thoughts passed through her head as she stately on still wobbly knees walked down the stairs to her awaiting friends and sister.
“There you are! Now get your shawl we are about to take a lovely walk to the village.” Carrie spoke in a much to loud voice.
“Carrie, friends, please do excuse me this once. I have some things I need to do here at home. Perhaps I can journey out later and meet you at say, um, the Mercantile?” Hopefully asked Kathleen.
“Of course. If you wish it.” General Peterson spoke with an understanding that shot over everyone else’s heads.
“Yes, of course. We can indeed meet you at the Mercantile. See you then?” Carrie finally spoke in a more genteel manner.
“Thank you, indeed. I am most obliged.” Kathleen replied as the party left.
With an aching heart she sat at the pianoforte in the parlour. Idly her fingers past over the black and white keys as tears slid down her face. With a very heavy heart she began to play her father’s favorite tune. However, at the third cord she burst into loud sobs. She couldn’t play another note. Weakly she made her way back to her room on the second floor.
I have to move on no matter how it hurts. I have to make it through today. Oh, Father in Heaven help me with my sorrow. I cannot move on with out you. I cannot survive with you, God. Show me what I am to do now. My life is in your hands, Father. Silently Kathleen prayed to her Father in Heaven. She knew that without Him she could not stop her flowing tears or even make it through the next few days.
Now I must go for a walk and meet my sister and friends at the Mercantile. First thing to do is clean up. Then inform Father of my whereabouts. Then walk. Yes, that is what I need to do. Then tomorrow inform my parents of Matthew’s death. Oh, God help me. Kathleen thought as she burst in to another flood of tears at the thought of Matthew’s name.
Within another few minutes the tears upon her face stopped for the moment. Then she stood and took a few steps, but with dizziness and fatigue she fell forward and it her head on a footstool. The knock took her out of the world for a few hours.
“Kathleen? Oh my goodness! General Peterson! Somebody get some help! Kathleen has hit her head on the footstool! Someone get the doctor!” Carrie shouted out to the people down stairs.
“I’ll run down the physician’s office at once! Should I call on anyone else you should need?” General Peterson was all servant mode for the moment.
“Oh, I don’t know. Oh, I do know my mother is down at the Bakers for tea; get her. Get Father from the Thomson’s too. And Aunt Maryweather is at the town hall. We need her too.” Carrie fretted as she carefully, with the help of General Peterson, place Kathleen on the bed.
Kathleen moaned her pain as Carrie and General Peterson moved her. Traces of wet tears still were on her face, even her pillow was damp with tears. Her sister wondered the cause of them all. She knew that they couldn’t be from hitting her head, yet she posed no questions.
________________________________________________________________________
Matthew Balfore ran for his life as shots were fired behind him by the enemy. He was covered in ash, dirt, and sweat. He had seen many things while he was here. He knew real sorrow. He knew what it was like to lose a close friend, a friend shot and killed, and a neighbor stabbed to death at the mercy of his captor. These were not pretty sights, indeed, but Matthew had endured them.
No comments:
Post a Comment