A Reason to Stay

Chapter five

Payton saw the cabin coming into view. It was a split log, two room cabin. A covered porch welcomed you in the front and then ran down the middle of the cabin to the back. The covered porch split the cabin into two sections. One side was the living quarters the other sleeping quarters. It looked big to her and she was pleased. “It don't look so bad.” she said. There was a smoke house and well on the left side, a horse trough and hitching rail to the front of the house. The yard was fenced off and so was a tiny garden area. A nice barn stood directly in front of the house, about 100 feet away. Pins and a corral flanked the barn. It was a very nice set up. The fields were green and lush. A windmill stood tall in the middle of the field and she realized he was able to water the field without hauling water in by hand. What a blessing for him.

Joshua slowed the wagon, “Don't get too excited you haven't seen the inside yet.” he told her.

Payton already felt excited, she had never seen such a large size cabin. “Did you build this yourself?” she asked.

“Yes.” it was a single word answer.

“Its so big. Much bigger than the other cabins in the area. Of course the houses in town are very nice but this is the nicest cabin I've seen around.”

Joshua nodded, “I had a lot of time to work on it before Liza and I were allowed to marry. I hope it's okay.”

“Okay?” Payton gasp, “It's just so big and nice.” They were in the farm yard and only a few feet from the house. “The porch is so big. I'll bet it's just perfect in the late afternoons to sit and enjoy the breeze when the house feels hot and stuffy. The children will love to play there.”

Joshua smiled at her. When the wagon came to a stop the children were both still sleeping. “Should we go on in and you can see what's waiting for you before we wake the kids.” Payton agreed and let him help her down. She followed him up the steps and into the left side first. “This is the living area.” he said and heard her in take of breath.

“I'm sorry.” Payton said as she looked around the room. It was dim inside the room but she could see the mess that awaited her. Dust covered everything. She could see cobwebs in every corner and crack. They covered everything that they possibly could. There were large black stains on the floor, which was covered in a layer of dirt also. She couldn't let her children play in this room.

They went from the living area to the dining/kitchen area, through the open doorway connecting the two rooms. Both rooms had glass pain windows but they were black and no light was shining through. The kitchen wasn't any cleaner. A table sat in the middle of the floor covered with dirt. One chair sat at the table. Two others were stacked in the corner but she could tell they were both broken. The kitchen did have a nice wood cook stove. There was a basin but no hand pump like at Doris' house. The basin was dirty and so were the dishes inside it. Joshua apologized again and then asked, “Should we move to the other side of the cabin?”

Payton wasn't sure if she wanted to see anymore but told him, “Lead the way.” She saw that the first room held a bed, a real bed. She gasp and Joshua mistook it as more shock at the state of the room.

“I'm sorry, Payton. I shouldn't have brought you here yet.”

Payton rushed over to the bed. The blankets were filthy but she had brought her quilts and they would work for tonight. “How wonderful!” she said. He had a real, store bought mattress. It was a rope bed but it was still a bed and she was thankful. There was a pot belly stove between the two rooms in a large doorway. The second room was set up much like the first. A wash stand sat under the window and there were pegs behind the door to hang clothing on.