"Love in the Great Pine Woods" by Gratiana Lovelace (2015-2016) (Completed)

Ch. 26 (PG-13, D): Making Peace with the Mountain

"Love in the Great Pine Woods", Ch. 26 (PG-13, D): Making Peace with the Mountain, March 10, 2016 by Gratiana Lovelace (Post #885)

[From time to time, I will illustrate my story characters with: Richard Armitage as Sam Wakeforest, Marcia Gay Harden as Sam's older sister Tessa Wakeforest Shoop Delaney, and Emily Deschanel as Tessa's sister-in-law Olivia Delaney Wakeforest, Viola Davis as Pauletta Perkins, Cicely Tyson as Nellie Newton, Anna Sophia Robb as Alice Trent, Kevin Spacey as Roger Delaney, Sam Heughan as Todd Wakeforest, Idris Elba as Dominic Perkins and others as noted.]

Authors Content Note: "Love in the Great Pine Woods" is a mature love story with dramatic themes of love and relationships. It will mostly be at the PG and PG-13 movie levels. Specific chapters or passages may have a further rating of: L for language, D for dramatic emotions, and S for sensual themes. And I will rate the chapters accordingly. If you are unable or unwilling to attend a movie with the ratings that I provide for a chapter, then please do not read that chapter. This is my disclaimer. And as is my habit, I will summarize the previous chapter's events at the beginning of the next chapter.

Authors Recap from the Previous Chapter: On a regular Monday, March 28th, 1956, Sam and Olivia enjoyed a lazy and sensual morning at home—their first in a long while, now that her morning sickness has mostly abated as she enters her fourth month of pregnancy. They are looking forward to a happy future with their first child on the way. And Sam's sister Tessa and brother-in-law Roger are also growing their family with their foster children whom they hope to adopt, fourteen year old Alice and twenty three month old Bobby.

"Love in the Great Pine Woods", Ch. 26 (PG-13, D): Making Peace with the Mountain

They say that nothing is certain in life, "but death and taxes". Well, maybe the more morbid folks say that considering everyone just had to submit theirs on Friday April 15, 1956—that April 15th date being newly established the previous year [(2]. Of course, banker Roger Delaney appreciates this normalized tax day that allowed four months for taxpayers and accountants alike—not to mention bankers and businessmen—to prepare and submit their tax documents. He would.

But for Tessa Wakeforest Shoop Delaney, the only thing certain in her life is her joy in finally becoming a mother with her and her husband Roger's foster children Alice and Bobby Trent. And they will formalize their adoption of the children at the end of May—coinciding with Bobby's 2nd birthday. But for now, they will host an extended family birthday party for Alice's 15th birthday on Saturday, April 16th.

Tessa had asked Alice what kind of party she wanted, and the still on the reticent side Alice said that a party with the Wakeforest County Orphanage school children would be enough—since she sees the children every morning when she takes her math and science lessons with School Principal Pauletta Perkins, then Alice helps out with craft and story time with the little ones. And Tessa honored Alice's request with a lovely cupcake and games school party with the little ones yesterday, Friday, April 15, 1956—tax day.

But Tessa also has planned a big family midday picnic inside at Delaney Manor, today Saturday April 16, 1956—with sledding afterward for the last time this snow season up on Wakeforest Mountain, with hot cider and cookies at the repaired cabin of Sam's and Olivia's.

Sam was quite pleased that the cabin itself had sustained minimal damage in the avalanche—but for the back porch needing to be shored up and the back kitchen door window to the outside having to be replaced. But the generator shed had to be completely rebuilt with a more solid four sided cinder block and brick structure—along with a new generator for the electricity. And those repairs were long ago made and the cabin became [habitable] again.