Winds of Change (The Surveyor's Daughters Book 4) by Vicki Hunt Budge

Author:Vicki Hunt Budge [Budge, Vicki Hunt]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Publisher: Eastwood Press
Published: 2019-10-29T00:00:00+00:00

7

Two days later, Cora stopped at the neighbor’s home on the way into Clover Creek to clean for Mrs. Stribling. The sun, still low in the eastern sky, promised another beautiful day, and the air smelled like lilacs and freshly cut alfalfa. Cora had talked to the Gardners’ closest neighbor on Sunday, and told Mrs. Tanner about the Howell sister’s plan for their dress shop. Mrs. Tanner had requested that she stop by to pick up her outgrown dresses.

“Come in, my dear,” Mrs. Tanner said when she opened her front door. She led Cora into her parlor where two of her former best dresses and one dark blue skirt lay across the sofa. She scooped a lovely pink pastel with red and pink applique into her arms and caressed it. “Oh, I hate to part with this dress. This dress was like a dear friend to me. I always felt so pretty when I wore it.”

“Mrs. Tanner, if you’d rather not—”

Mrs. Tanner laid the dress in Cora’s arms. “Don’t give it another thought, my dear,” she said, standing back and placing her hands on her hips. “I’m just a silly old lady being sentimental, that’s all. As much as I love this dress, I’ll never lose all this weight I’ve gained and fit into it in a hundred years. Why, the seams aren’t even wide enough for one of the Howell girls to remake it for me.”

“You’re very generous,” Cora said, not knowing what else to say.

“The material is in perfect condition, and I’m sure those girls can gussy this up with a newer style and trimming.” Mrs. Tanner stood back and eyed the dress as though she had visions of her own about how the remade dress would look. “I was tempted to snip all these mother-of-pearl buttons off and keep them, but I decided not to.”

Mrs. Tanner’s ears turned red at her confession. “I couldn’t do it,” she said. “The buttons must stay with the dress however it turns out.”

Cora smiled as she accepted the skirt and the other dress that Mrs. Tanner placed in her arms. “Don’t forget that Margie or Rose will make you another dress for only the cost of the material because of your donation.”

“Oh, I remember! And I’m so excited. My fingers are to old sew anymore.” Mrs. Tanner’s face suddenly lit up as if she had a wonderful idea. “Ask the Howell girls to save a few of these buttons for my new dress if they don’t use them all. Just two or three so that I’ll have shiny sweet memories of me when I was younger and thinner.”

“I love that idea,” Cora said. “There’re so many buttons here. I’m sure Margie or Rose will be happy to save some for your new dress.”

“Those Howell girls are surely impressive,” Mrs. Tanner said. “I have come to admire that whole family and how they’ve worked together and thrived over the years. I can’t wait to see what they create with my dresses.”

Mrs. Tanner

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