Sisters of the Great War by Suzanne Feldman

Author:Suzanne Feldman
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: MIRA Books
Published: 2021-08-20T17:04:12+00:00

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

For Elise, Christmas came without a tree or decorations. For her, Christmas came in a box from home. Inside was a note. Hope you are doing well—write more often! Share this with your sister. Love, Father and Grandpa

The box was bigger than any of the other boxes that had come for the Ambulance Corps, and Elise dug in with relish. There were a dozen pairs of woolen socks—enough to share with Ruth—and two scarves. There was a sheepskin hat with fleece on the inside, and she put it on as soon as she got it out of the box. The hat had warm, thick earflaps that made all the other women jealous, which made Elise grin because her choice of clothing had never ever made another woman jealous. There were two heavy sweaters, homemade jam and a big tin of cookies. She wished there was a long letter, not just the note, but even when she searched the box thoroughly, she didn’t find one.

The other drivers were making delighted noises over their own boxes. Hera had gotten a new dress, a practical one, with pockets and a high, warm neck. It still had a modern look, and as she modeled the dress, stretching it out across her body without actually disrobing in the chilly barracks, she moved like she was dancing, which made everyone laugh.

Elise stuffed six pairs of socks, one of the scarves, a sweater and half of the goodies into the box and put on her coat. It was a mile to Ruth’s hospital, but since driving the ambulances for personal reasons was forbidden, she would walk there. She hitched the box up on her hip and set out.

By now she was used to the snow and the frozen mud of the road and the heaps of ashes the soldiers threw down for traction on the ice. She trudged along under the gray sky, through the dirty snow, trying hard to think of a Christmas song, and finally came up with “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen.” She got through the chorus, in her mind, not singing aloud, because that just wasn’t appropriate for this weather or this place, and discovered that she couldn’t remember the words for the entire song. What was stuck in her head was the chorus. “O tidings of comfort and joy, comfort and joy.” Elise slogged onward and thought about how uncomfortable and joyless she was and how Christmas here was little more than a mean joke. She shifted the box to her other hip and kept going. She hoped Ruth was in a better mood.

By the time she got to the door of the hospital, her boots were crusted with slush, and it was snowing again. There was an ambulance parked in front of the hospital, driverless, without patients, and she wondered what was going on. Then she heard the singing coming from inside.

Elise opened the door to see every soldier in the ward clustered at the far end, singing “Silent Night” in perfect harmony.

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