Boy On A Farm

Part 11

"Being rude is easy. It does not take any effort and is a sign of weakness and insecurity. Kindness shows great self-discipline and strong self esteem. Being kind is not always easy when dealing with rude people. Kindness is a sign of a person who has done a lot of personal work and has come to a great self-understanding and wisdom. Choose to be kind over being right, and you'll be right every time because kindness is a sign of STRENGTH"

Those words still struck a chord in Ruth even after all these years. Ruth had found that quote somewhere in the house just before the car accident. She had kept the piece of paper because it was in her mother's handwritten. Ruth had no clue where her mother had found it, but it comforted Ruth and brought tears to her eyes because seeing her mother's handwriting made her miss her every single time.

Ruth stuck the paper back in her filing cabinet and slowly slid the heavy drawer shut. Ruth was sitting in the basement in the furnace room under the stairs where her father had always done the books. The small desk was still in there and so was the filing cabinet. Ruth's mother had always teased her father about sitting in his own little corner, but all her father ever did was smile and say how he liked the peace and quiet.

A shadow made Ruth look up. She smiled as Ian stuck his head in the room. Ian shook his head before he squeezed himself in the room. Ruth moved her drink so that Ian would not knock it over with his elbow.

"This seemed a lot bigger when we were kids."

Ruth laughed. "I always thought it funny how father would always sit in here. He looked so out of place and it could not have been very comfortable."

Ian ran a hand through his hair which was beginning to curl about his ears because of how often he wore a hat. "Yeah, but he loved being in here. I remember how Dad always had time for us kids and he enjoyed showing us what he was doing."

Ruth pulled out an old ledger that her father had written in. She opened it up and ran her hand lovingly down the page. The page was filled with her father's cramped handwriting and interspersed within his handwriting was her mother's small cursive handwriting. Ian leaned over and ran a finger down the page. He was looking at the numbers. Ruth watched Ian as he looked at the figures.

"I didn't realize the farm had that much money. Mom and Dad never acted like we had this much money." Ian paused in his observation to glance at Ruth.

Ruth shrugged. "They were humble Ian. Money meant nothing to them. We children were more important to them and that is where their wealth laid. Remember how they always saw that we had clothes to wear and food to eat."

Ian nodded as he straightened up. "Yeah and they let us join in as many activities as we wanted to."

Ruth tugged the ledger out from underneath Ian's hand and closed it. She stuck it back in the filing cabinet. Her back hurt so Ruth stretched and twisted in her chair causing her back to pop. Ian watched her closely before he reached forward and tugged on her platinum blonde hair. Ruth smacked Ian's hand making him grin.

"I always wondered how you became so towheaded."

"I'm adopted remember."

Ian shook his head as he chuckled. "You can't fool me. You look remarkably like Mom used to when she was younger."

Ruth gave a sad smile. "And no one can deny that you were father's son."

Ian grabbed Ruth by the wrist and tugged. Ruth let Ian tug her out of the chair and out of the furnace room. Ruth snagged the light as she was pulled from the room. Ian kept hold of Ruth's wrist and they climbed the stairs.

"Where are we going?"

Ruth inquired as Ian pulled her through the house and out the front door. Ian turned with a mischievous glint in his eye. Ruth eyed her brother with trepidation.

"I do not like the look on your face. Last time you had that look, we got in trouble."

Ian laughed. "I promise that I will not get us into trouble. I have a surprise for you."

Ruth's eyebrows went up as Ian pulled a bandana out of his back pocket. Ian dropped Ruth's hand so that he could tie the bandana around her eyes. Ruth felt the wind as Ian waved a hand in front of her eyes. He took her by the hand and began leading her blindfolded away from the house.

"Where are we going?"

"Just you wait and see."

Ruth kept pestering Ian with questions but he always danced around the issue of what he was up to. Ruth soon lost her sense of direction because Ian would stop every so often and spin her in a circle. After who knew how long, Ian pulled Ruth to a stop. His hands settled on her shoulders as Ian stood behind her.

"Keep your eyes closed okay."

Ruth nodded and dutifully shut her eyes. Ian removed the blindfold before he whispered in her ear.

"Open your eyes."

Ruth opened her eyes. She stared in shocked surprise at what lay before her. In the middle of the alfalfa field sat a wooden stump with a board sat on it. Over the board was their mother's favorite tablecloth. The improvised table was full of their grandmother's finest china. Four square hay bales with blankets draped over them served as seats. Two picnic baskets full of food sat waiting to be emptied. Several bottles of wine were cooling in a bucket of ice. Torches surrounded the area to keep the mosquitoes away and soft music played from a hidden source. Philip and Louis stood off to the side waiting and watching.

Ruth gaped at the picnic spread out before her. She was speechless. Tears burned in her eyes as she spun around to face Ian. Ian dropped his hands and gave Ruth a sheepish look.

"I promised you a tea party when we were kids. I'm sorry it took me so long to set it up for you."

Ruth gave a squeal of delight as she threw her arms around Ian. Ian laughed as he hugged Ruth tight. Ruth squeezed Ian back as hard as she could before she pulled away. Her eyes took in everything as she all but skipped to one of the hay bales. A giggle escaped Ruth as Ian helped Ruth sit down.

Ian sat across from her while Philip and Lois sat in the other chairs. Ruth clapped her hands together as Ian began pulling out the food that their mother had always made whenever they had picnicked in the alfalfa fields. Ruth tilted her head slightly so that she could hear the music better. Her smile grew as she recognized the melody of the Blue Danube Waltz. It had been her mother's favorite song. Her father had always played it during their picnics together.

"Thank you so much for this Ian."

Ian gave Ruth a brotherly smile as he stole a strawberry off her plate. Ruth retaliated by stealing one off of his. Philip and Louis just shook their heads as they guarded their plates from theft. Ruth leaned over and surprised everyone by pecking Louis on the cheek. He looked so startled that Ruth burst out laughing. Ruth winked at him before she gave Philip a kiss.

Night fell as they wined and dined under the stars. Laughter came easily and there was no break in talking as the four shared stories of their childhood. Lightning bugs came out and danced about the field. Ruth ended up cuddled up next to Philip as the night progressed. Happiness lifted Ruth's heart and made her forget how hard the past few years had been.

A full moon rose as the four gathered up their picnic and headed towards the house. The dishes would be put in the sink and any leftover food would be carefully stored in the fridge. They all withdrew to settle underneath the mulberry trees. They all talked late into the night until one by one, they grew quiet and fell asleep.