Calico Horses and the Patchwork Trail (34 page)

Chapter 53

Monday, August 4th:

I did my meditation this morning really early just like Mom told me. I was just beginning to wake and it seemed easier because I wasn’t distracted.

I tried something new today, asking to connect with a spirit of a horse. Slowly a bright light appeared. It grew bigger and bigger and it felt like the sun coming closer and closer. It was a powder blue-colored light that began to sort of move in and out as if it were breathing. A strong thought came to me that it was a horse that had died and was now a spirit. I asked what had happened to it. The light somehow spoke to me with thoughts and said, “My story is the story of all—we are one.” Then I asked the big blue light, “Are you saying that tame or wild, the life of all horses are the same, that they are all one?”

“YES,” it said, “WE are all one. You are part of us.” The light then grew larger and brighter and said, “Everyone should respect, honor, and love all animals—not just family pets. We are all one.” I then asked the light how I could know if it was the spirit of a horse that I could ask for and recognize in my meditations. Then the light spoke to me with thoughts and said, “Lift up your hand.” I felt kind of stupid but I lifted my hand and sensed something strange—it felt just like the hot breath of the horses at camp. I thanked the spirit and told it I would try my best to tell everyone what it had told me. Then everything went black.

Carrie looked over her journal and re-read what she had written. People will think I’m nuts, she thought. Did I really speak with a horse today? Yes, I did, she remembered, closing the book. Flannel looked up and yawned. Carrie thought back to the meditation and what she had just learned. Are dogs and horses the same? The light had said everyone needed to show the same respect and love to all animals, not just family pets. Hmm, she thought. Do I treat them the same? She rolled over and gazed out the window toward the Calico Mountains. They were soft and hazy and were a beautiful shade of powder blue. She stared at them in wonder and sighed: I’ve never seen them this color before; they seem different today. She couldn’t wait to tell Milla about her meditation.

Why in the world did I ask to speak with a dead horse? she wondered. I’ve never thought I could speak with an animal before, but somehow during the meditation it just felt like the right thing to do. I must be crazy. I hope Milla doesn’t laugh at me, she thought, glancing at the clock. Hearing the gurgling sound of her mom’s coffee pot reminded her of New Jersey school days and how she would race through breakfast to catch the bus on the corner—the one with a seat waiting for her next to Shannon. Summer was almost over and Carrie was dreading the day she would have to be the new kid in school. She had tried a few times to bring up her fears with her mom, but she had just waved her hand and brushed it off. “You’ll be fine,” her mom had said, “and besides, you have loads of friends at camp who will show you around school.”

Somehow her mom still didn’t get that camp was filled with kids of all ages and from all over the area. It wasn’t as if they would all be in her class. Parents could be really clueless at times. She decided to talk to Mrs. Preston about it. Maybe she would understand—after all she was way cooler than any other adults Carrie had met.

“Hurry up. We’re meeting everyone at the library this morning,” came Brenda’s garbled voice through foamy toothpaste. Carrie nodded and began filling a cereal bowl with Flannel’s kibble.

“Why are you using one of our good bowls for the dog?” Brenda asked.

“She’s one of us and deserves to be treated with respect,” Carrie replied.

“Um, yeah, right. Then I hope she takes a shift at washing dishes tonight,” Brenda said. Kids could be so clueless at times, she thought, as she watched the collie gobbling down her breakfast.

They arrived at the library to find Milla, Mrs. Preston, Tracey, and Mac at their usual corner. Several weeks had passed since they began meeting and each of them had fallen into a routine. Mac was studying a book on raising caterpillars, Tracey was reading about dragons and unicorns, and Mrs. Preston was staring at the computer screen as if it would magically introduce her to her long lost ancestors. Milla, meanwhile, was seated at the computer next to her taking notes, as she too was searching for any information that would lead to the identity of her great-grandfather. Carrie slipped into the seat beside Milla and nudged her.

“Hey,” whispered Milla.

“Hey,” Carrie replied. “We gotta talk,” she added. “I’ll fill you in on the ride to camp.”

“Sounds important,” Milla whispered. “Everything okay?”

“Um, yeah, if talking to dead horses is okay,” Carrie replied in a loud whisper. Mrs. Preston, overhearing the conversation, turned and stared at them. Carrie put her head down and began to fumble with her backpack.

Brenda sat beside Mrs. Preston and the two women compared notes. They had located many relatives who once lived in Nevada and had traced many back to Scotland. They had even found the name of the ship some had come over on, and a deed to a parcel of land that was purchased in Connecticut. Brenda enjoyed lending her expertise. It was fun to watch her new friend’s excitement as she discovered her family from the 1700s.

“I cannot believe all that we have found,” whispered Mrs. Preston. “I feel as if I have all of these new relatives.” Brenda smiled and nodded, as she understood the connection. All of her own ancestry research had taught her so much. History wasn’t just old photos and newspaper clippings—it was filled with people who lived and breathed and laughed and cried. Some of them had accomplished great things and many had suffered great pains, but they were all connected. Each had their own journey and story to tell and somehow their stories had become a part of hers.

“Oh, my gosh, I think this is him,” said Milla. “Look, look—I think I found him!” Mrs. Preston and Brenda leaned over Milla and stared at the computer. “It might be,” Brenda said. “Let’s look at it more closely. Milla sat holding her breath as Brenda began to scroll through the U.S. Census that Milla had just located. The names of all of her grandfather’s siblings were listed.

“This appears to be your grandfather and all of his brothers and sisters, but they aren’t with their parents. Look—they are living with another family.”

“That’s odd,” Mrs. Preston said. “They are living with a McLeary family. I think that’s the same people on
my
family tree.”

Brenda looked at the document more closely. “It says ‘nephew’ beside the name of your grandfather. So they are living with an aunt and uncle.

Mrs. Preston was now very excited. “Yes, look at this!” she said. “Right here—Anna and Ian McLeary. That’s the same family! Look! It’s even the same city and county of my McLearys!”

“Shhhh,” came a voice from behind a large desk.

“What does this mean?” Milla asked, ignoring the shushing voice.

“Wow,” Brenda said. “I don’t want to get any hopes up, but you two might be related.”

Milla and Mrs. Preston stared at each other. Carrie looked up at her mom, who was patting Milla on the back. Milla blinked at the computer screen. Mrs. Preston shook her head.

“Your grandmother and I were such good friends. I can’t believe she may have married one of my relatives. This is utterly amazing.”

“Well, we don’t know anything yet,” Brenda said. “Let’s take it slow and see if we can find any more information linking these two families.” The two women huddled around their computer while Milla watched, no longer able to join in. She was thinking of her grandmother and what this new information implied. Grandma had spent years watching her husband endlessly searching for any information about his father. Her own dad had been staying up very late glued to the computer trying to connect the dots. After all of these years of not knowing where they had come from, could it really have led to a family that lived in the same town?

She heard Carrie’s voice drift in. “Are you okay, Mil?”

“I need some air. I’m feeling a bit dizzy,” Milla said, pointing to the door.

Carrie thought of her meditation and its message of
we are all one
. Milla thought of the 1830 McLeary and Spencer families living together under the same roof in Carson City.

Mac and Tracey looked up, hoping to get an invite from the older kids. “Can we come too?” Mac asked, hopefully.

“Sure,” Carrie answered.

“You’re one of us,” Milla said.

“Cool,” said Tracey, closing her book.

“Wait until you hear about horned caterpillars,” Mac said. “You’re gonna love it!”

“Wait ’til you hear about talking horses,” Carrie said with a laugh.

“Shhh,” came the voice behind the big desk.

“Shhh,” replied the children.

Chapter 54

“Australia? For how long? Why Australia? This doesn’t sound like you at all. Are you sure the sun hasn’t fried your brain?” Sam asked as she propped herself up on a pillow. The ringing telephone had woken her abruptly and she yawned, wiping the sleep from her eyes.

“Your father and I have decided we aren’t getting any younger and we want to go see some kangaroos. We’re going with a group from the club. Oh, you should see the cute outfit I just got for the trip,” Sam’s mom said.

“Dad wants to see kangaroos? Does he know how long he’ll be on that plane? Can’t you just rent a movie about Australia?” Sam asked, trying to get over the shock.

“Samantha, I don’t understand this tone at all. We thought you would be happy that we are finally doing something exciting. We ran that old B&B for ages and now it’s our time to do something fun.”

“I’m sorry, Mom, you kind of woke me. It’s early here and I’m still in a fog. I’m happy for you both; it’s just out of the blue. You and Dad have never traveled abroad before and Australia seems so far away.”

“Well, I’m sorry we woke you but I have my yoga class in a few minutes and I wanted to tell you the news. Here’s your father. Bye, sweetie.”

Yoga classes? When did her mother start taking yoga classes? Maybe I’m still dreaming, Sam thought as she stared at the orange ball of fluff sleeping beside her. Max opened one eye and decided to sleep in. He buried his head into his chest and rolled into a tight ball, falling back to sleep.

“Hiya, Sam. How are you, honey? Did mom tell you our big news…about us going to the big Down Under?”

“Uh, yeah, I heard about the trip to the big Down Under, Dad.”

“Well, what do you think?”

“I think I’m shocked. I’m happy for you guys, but to tell you the truth, Dad, I just never imagined you and Mom going so far away.”

“Far? It’s not that far. I’ll probably sleep most of the time, and Jack and Bill will be there with their wives and we’ll all have a blast,” he said, laughing. “Well, we won’t keep you—you probably have work to do. Your mom couldn’t wait to call and tell you the big news. I’m off to drive Bill to his skydiving class. Talk to you soon. We love you, honey. Bye, bye.”

“Bye, Dad,” Sam said and hung up the phone. She fell back into her pillows and closed her eyes. Who were these people? Yoga…skydiving…Australia…my parents? No way. My parents sit in front of the TV and watch the world go by, or at least they used to. Why does this bother me? she wondered. I should be happy for them, but this is really bugging me. She rolled onto her side and punched her fist into the pillow. I can’t believe them. Can they afford trips to Australia? Max quickly stood up, sensing the tension in the room. He slowly walked to the front of the bed and stared at Sam.

“What are you looking at?” Sam said grumpily. Max yawned and began cleaning himself. “I’m going for my morning walk,” she added in a huff. “We’re fresh out of yoga classes today.” The light in the room grew brighter as the sun came up.

Sam looked at Max, who stopped cleaning himself to stare at her. The ray of light coming through the window seemed to highlight the ends of his fur, causing him to glow. She was reminded of when he was a kitten and used to sit on her bed, anxiously awaiting his morning breakfast. The color of his coat was much lighter as a kitten; today, as he sat blinking at her, she was suddenly aware of how much older he had become. She reached over and stroked the cat. Max began purring and licked her hand. As she felt his soft coat a thought came to her: my parents are beginning to feel like two people instead of parents. I’m grown now, they’re getting older, and we’re all adults. They don’t need to watch over me and I don’t need to watch over them. It’s that simple—they’re just two people calling to share their excitement. Sam turned and looked at the phone. Should I call them back, she wondered? She quickly dialed the number and heard her mother’s voice say, “Hello?”

“Hi, Mom, it’s me. I just wanted to tell you how thrilled I am for you and Dad. Really, it all sounds so great. Do you have time to tell me more about your plans?”

Devon pulled into the driveway of the Musical Mustangs Bed & Breakfast, switched off the engine, and picked up the package his daughter had wrapped to give to Sam. As he got out of the truck he was struck with how beautiful the inn looked with its fresh coat of paint and new awnings. Wow, they have really done a great job fixing up this old place, he thought. The signpost had been removed and a fresh hole was dug, ready and waiting for the replacement that was propped up alongside the front porch. A small gecko popped its head out of the hole and looked at Devon. The front door swung open and out came Max, followed by Sam. The gecko quickly turned and fled. “Good morning,” Sam said with a smile.