The 8th Soul

Gardening

~Mazzee~

"No, not like that," I instruct Ayanna, "you can't just tug on it. You need to twist it." I demonstrate by twisting the apple and pulling it from the branch, adding it to the already full basket. I pick the other two baskets up off the ground and start to make my way back to the house.

Halfway there, I stop in the middle of the tomatoes and peppers and turn around. I'm not surprised to see my youngest sister still struggling with another apple. She has one foot propped hard against the tree trunk as she tugs at the fruit.

I sigh and call to her, "Aya! Forget it, we have enough for now. Let's go back to the house." I gesture to our run-down two-story ahead of me.

She suddenly lets go of the apple, causing her to fall backward, flat onto the ground. I hear her loud sigh as she pulls herself up, brushing the dirt off her rose colored dress, and runs to meet me. I hand her a basket of beans and carrots and we make our way back, winding through the garden paths.

"You won't get them if you keep trying to pull them off that way," I say.

She nods her head and shrugs, "I know." She closes her mouth, then opens it again like she wants to say more.

Ayanna stops and turns to me, "I just want to be as good as you are, Maz. Everyone in the village is amazed by your garden," she gestures to the four acres of land that are under my care.

I smile. "Thank you Aya," I say and stroke her long blonde hair. Mother says she is like me in every way: her hair, the millions of tiny freckles on her pale face, her kindness and determination, even her stubbornness. Everything except her eyes, a bright blue, while mine are a deep, rosy purple.

I set my baskets down and kneel to her height, my baby blue dress pressing into the soft soil. "Why don't you come out with me again tomorrow?" I suggest, "Just you and me. We'll be out here all day."

Ayanna's face lights up, "Really?" she asks excitedly, "Will you teach me everything?"

I laugh, "Yes, everything."

She smiles again and runs the rest of the way the to the house, struggling with her full basket of veggies.

I bite my lip.

Everything...

Picking up my baskets, I follow her home.

***

I open the back door and walk into a madhouse: my twin sisters are in the living room fighting over a doll, three of my brothers are running around the kitchen trying to tackle each other, and my baby brother is wailing, clinging to my mother's hip.

"Mazzee!" my mother cries, rushing over to me as I set my baskets on the counter next to Ayanna's.

"Yes, Nan-" I start to ask her what she needs, but she cuts me off, thrusting baby Eddie and a bottle into my arms.

"Please feed him," she pleads. My mother grabs handfuls of fresh fruits and veggies from the baskets and hurries back over to the stove where she is making a stew. My mother is the best cook in our village, and quite possibly in all of Gorchwill, with the help of my gardening skills.

I prop Eddie up in the crook of my arm and start bouncing on my toes. The bottle shuts him up and he no longer cries.

"Thanks, love," my mother smiles, "Do you think you could help with...all of this?" She gestures to the madness around us.

"I'll do my best," I shrug and walk over to the girls. Ayanna has joined them and now they're just yelling at eachother.

"Girls! GIRLS!" I yell, "Enough!" All three of them look up at me. Being the oldest at 17, I have to set an example, step up to help mother, and take my father's place. My father died last year after being severely ill for many months. Now it is just my mother, my three sisters, four brothers, and me. Just us. Large families are common here in Gorchwill. It is the most peaceful Purview. We live on little and love a lot.