by Cynthia L Parker

Created on: November 05, 2008

Jeremiah and Sarah would be married forty years in the fall. Theirs was Jeremiah's second marriage. His first wife had died in childbirth, along with the baby, only a year after they were married. It had taken Jeremiah six months to decide that Sarah would be his second wife, but it took him five years to court her to the satisfaction of her father. Sarah was seventeen when they married; Jeremiah was thirty-two.

He and Sarah had raised four children of their own, three sons and one daughter. All of their children were grown and the three boys had married girls from neighboring communities and settled nearby on the mountain. Their daughter had moved off the mountain when she was sixteen and was a school teacher in a town more than a hundred miles away. Sarah missed her terribly, but she kept busy spoiling the grandchildren that her sons brought to visit her at least once a month.

The homestead on which they lived was located at the top of the mountain. The clearing was rather large and their cabin sat square in the middle of it. To the left was the plot of land that Jeremiah kept tilled and planted with the crops that kept them self-sufficient. At the far side of the field, at the edge of the woods, was a creek that flowed down the mountain at such a pace that even in the coldest winter its waters were not stopped by ice. To the right of the house was an open meadow full of sweet, green grasses that fed their milk cow in the spring and summer. Beautiful wild flowers grew here and it was a wonderful playground for the children. Behind the cabin was a small area that Sarah used as an herb garden and just beyond that was the barn and hen house. In front of the cabin was a large open area that sloped down to the woods and a line of tall, sturdy oaks. Jeremiah had one rule for her when he brought her here as his bride. She was never to venture "beyond the trees." Sarah had once made the mistake of asking why he had this rule. Jeremiah had back-handed her across the jaw, sending her flying into the wall by the stove. Sarah had been sure to never question him again.

Now Sarah often found herself on the homestead alone. Jeremiah often roamed the woods, hunting and trapping, or collecting the sing (ginseng) that would bring them the coin they needed for items they could not produce on their farm. Sarah could only keep herself so busy tending the gardens and cleaning house. Lately she found herself sitting on the front porch, staring off into the distance at the line of

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