Dovetail: A Novel by Karen McQuestion

Author:Karen McQuestion [McQuestion, Karen]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-03-09T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

1916

Was there any smell better than sun-dried laundry? Alice thought it was worth the work just to be able to take in the freshness once it was dry. She lifted a damp sheet and pinned it on the line, still clutching the other end with her free hand. Sheets could be tricky. One slip, and the sheet would fall to the ground, and then the whole washing process would have to be done over again. That was a mistake no one was apt to make twice.

Laundry day was her least favorite day of the week, but when the weather was nice, it more than made up for it. Alice sang as she worked, glad for the gentle breeze and the feel of the sun on her face.

The apron tied around her middle held a pocketful of wooden clothespins, the same pins that doubled as little people when Daisy wanted to create whole towns on the kitchen floor while Alice cooked dinner. Pearl always tried to shoo their youngest sister away, saying she was underfoot and might cause someone to trip, but Alice had the last word in the kitchen, and so Daisy stayed. She liked having her little one close by. Knowing where Daisy was and seeing her happily occupied was reassuring.

As if Alice’s thoughts had conjured her, Daisy’s face popped up over the other side of the clothesline. “Alice, look at me! I’m a giant,” she said, giggling madly. The sun illuminated her crazy curls, making a halo effect.

“Daisy!” Alice shrieked in mock surprise. “How did you get up so high? Did you grow when I wasn’t looking?” She opened her mouth and pressed her hands to her cheeks in pretend amazement.

“No, Alice. I didn’t growed any bigger. John is holding me up!” Daisy yelled.

John’s face suddenly came up alongside Daisy’s. “My apologies if we scared you. I was just following Miss Daisy’s plan.”

Alice ducked through the gap in the sheets to join them on the other side. John lowered Daisy to the ground. “I do not scare that easily,” she said with a smile. She handed the empty wicker basket to Daisy. “If you would please put this on the front porch for me, I’d be ever so grateful.”

Daisy smiled up at her. The child loved to help. “Can I play boat captain?”

“Yes, you may.”

The basket was nearly as big as Daisy, but the little girl managed to keep it off the ground as she headed toward the porch. John took a step toward the child, but Alice put out an arm to stop him. “Don’t help her,” she said. “I know the temptation to step in and offer assistance, but she needs to learn to do things on her own.”

“I’m sorry.”

She faced him, her eyes kind. “You don’t have to be sorry. You didn’t know. I just have to teach her all the lessons my mother taught me, and it begins with learning to do for herself. Not a day goes by that I don’t think about my mother and everything I learned from her.

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