Page 30 of Hope’s Enduring Echo
Etta
If Etta lived to be a hundred, she would likely still remember that third week of July 1915. She discovered the Lord’s presence in a deeper sense than ever before by tapping into His strength to endure Claude’s downward spiral after realizing they couldn’t afford to go to Pueblo. She walked the entire seven-mile-long pipeline from one end to the other all five days and got home in time to put a decent supper on the table, proving a physical strength she hadn’t known she possessed. And, of much lesser importance, she discovered the difference shoes made. The final two days of the week, even after all that walking, her feet didn’t hurt badly enough to need a soak in hot water.
Her greatest joy all week long was sending Jennie off each afternoon with Leo. Claude hadn’t wanted the two young peopleroaming the hills alone, but Etta trusted her daughter and she trusted Leo. She no longer trusted Claude’s ability to make rational decisions. Even though Etta returned from the route by herself each day and Jennie and Leo arrived together hours later, he never questioned it. Either he didn’t reason that the two were traipsing or he’d ceased to care. Either way, she was grateful the young people could continue their friendship. Time with Leo did Jennie good, and Etta enjoyed chatting with him over supper.
Three different days, the pair returned giddy about new findings. Leo decided not to collect them, though, which suited Etta. She didn’t care to play hostess to old bones. Instead, he marked their locations with flags Mr. DeWeece had given him. “He’ll be so surprised when he comes out tomorrow and sees the small army of flags dotting the rise,” Leo told the family on Friday evening while they ate creamed peas and chopped ham over potatoes. “They all seem to be parts of a leg, but I agree with him now that they’re most likely not from an allosaurus. The allosaurus walked on two legs. The parts we’ve found this week seem to be the smaller bones from feet and toes, which means this creature likely walked on all fours.”
Jennie listened, wide-eyed and attentive. She seemed to soak in all Leo said, and Etta smiled to herself, envisioning her daughter applying the same focus in a classroom in the fall. Maybe after she finished high school, she’d even go to college. She should be given the opportunity to grow and develop her talents. Considering their financial status and Claude’s situation, maybe Etta shouldn’t allow herself to contemplate something so lofty, but she couldn’t help it. A girl with Jennie’s intelligence and passion for learning could accomplish just about anything.
Etta lifted the water pitcher from the middle of the table and refilled Claude’s glass, then her own. “Have you done drawings of those bones for Mr. DeWeece, too, sweetheart?”
Jennie shook her head. “I wanted to, but it takes time to do a decent sketch. The locations are far enough from the cabin that I wouldn’t make it home before dark if I took the time to draw them. It’ll have to wait until I can spend a full day. Or”—she hunched her shoulders and grimaced—“several days. There are quite a few little pieces. Like Leo said, we’ve got about a dozen flags waving up there.”
Leo wiped his mouth with his napkin and draped it over his empty plate. “I spoke with Mr. DeWeece on the telephone this morning. He and I plan to make use of the handcar again tomorrow and come out ahead of the train. We can get a lot of ground covered in those extra three hours. May Jennie go with us? If we do come upon the bulk of the skeleton, Mr. DeWeece will want a rendering of its location to add to the portfolio.”
Etta pushed a pea back and forth on her plate, observing Claude from the corners of her eyes. Was he listening to their conversation? “I have no objection to her going. How many drawings does he want?”
He shrugged. “He hasn’t given a specific number, but he said the more illustrations the better. He’ll use all of them for his personal records, but he also wants lots of options to send with the article he intends to write. Initially, he planned to query Scientific American, but there’s a new periodical soon to release called The Scientific Monthly. Since they’re gathering articles for its upcoming editions, he might submit to it first.”
Etta experienced a delight-filled shiver despite the warmth of the stove-heated room. “Jennie’s drawings will really appear in a published magazine?” Was Leo right that such an honor could earn college scholarship money? Maybe the dream of college for her daughter wasn’t so far-fetched after all.
“Yes, ma’am, if there’s space and the editors like the drawings enough.”
Those were very big ifs, but Etta’s heart continued to flutter in hopefulness. She put her hand over Claude’s wrist. “Honey, did you hear what Leo said? Mr. DeWeece wants to send Jennie’s drawings to a magazine. She could get published. Isn’t that exciting?”
Claude looked up from his plate and sent his gaze around the table as if he only just realized he wasn’t eating by himself. “Drawings of what?”
“The dinosaur bones, Daddy.” Jennie’s lips quivered in a hesitant smile. “The one Rex found and all the others Leo found.”
“Oh.” His brows pinched together. “Didja find more bones, Leo?”
“Yes, he did, Daddy.” Jennie’s voice was kind yet subdued, the tone she’d used with Claude all week. “Quite a few of them on the ridge south and west of the cabin, just like you predicted he might.”
It pained Etta to see Claude slip so far away from them after his desire to go to Pueblo was squashed, and it must hurt Jennie, too. But the girl seemed to have gained control of her wavering emotions and maintained an even, positive front for her father. She was growing in maturity.
Etta’s pride swelled anew. She patted Claude’s wrist, hoping to keep him engaged in their conversation. “They just might find the whole skeleton of a dinosaur up there, Claude. Wouldn’t that be something?”
Claude stared at her for a moment, his face expressionless but his eyes seeming to search for something. “Find the whole skeleton?” He slurred the question, extending each word as if uncertain he was pronouncing it correctly.
“That’s right.” Etta chose a perky tone to offset his dismal one.
He shook his head, his eyebrows forming a deep crevice. “More folks’ll be comin’, then. To dig it up an’ carry it off. Don’t need more folks out here, Etta. Don’t want ’em.”
Weeks had passed since his last outburst. Was one building now? Both Leo and Jennie were also watching him, apprehension evident in their stiff bearings.
Etta rubbed his arm. “It’ll be folks we already know. Just Leo and Mr. DeWeece. There’s no need to worry.”
Claude stared at her for another few seconds, then stood. “Where’s that dog?”
The sudden change threw Etta. It took a moment for her to process the question. The answer might very well inspire aggravation, but she said, “I put him out in the shed so we could eat in peace.” Rags had developed a bad habit of sitting beside Claude’s chair and begging, something they’d never tolerated from Rex. The pup needed to learn better manners, and Claude needed to break his habit of spoiling him.
Without a word, Claude limped across the room and out the door.
Leo watched him go, then turned to Etta. “Mr. DeWeece will bring a team of excavators out if we find a fairly intact skeleton. It could take as long as two or three weeks for them to remove and catalog each bone for transport to the warehouse Mr. DeWeece uses to store the specimens he finds. Will their coming across this area be too much for Mr. Ward? I don’t want to cause further harm.”
Etta sat back in her chair and looked past Leo to the grounds beyond the open cabin door. “Leo, if I thought telling you to give up the search would make Claude better, I’d do it. It would be selfish of me, knowing how much the discovery means to you, but I’d do it.” She met Leo’s sympathetic gaze. “But whether Mr. DeWeece brings a team out here or not, unless God works a miracle, Claude isn’t going to change. So do what you need to do to find the skeleton.”
The young man’s eyes glinted. “Just don’t stack the bones in your house, right?”
She appreciated his attempt at humor—clearly, he wanted to reduce the tension still hovering after Claude’s odd behavior—but she couldn’t respond in kind. Not with Claude wandering out there in an almost trancelike state. She gave him a quick nod and stood. “Excuse me. I’m…” She hurried out the door in search of her husband.
Jennie
After five afternoons of enjoying Leo’s undivided company for several hours, Jennie had a hard time sharing him with Mr. DeWeece on Saturday. The men’s acquaintanceship was short, but the two were completely at ease with each other. She supposed it shouldn’t surprise her. Leo was a very personable young man. He’d won her family’s favor—well, hers and Mama’s—in a single visit. Part of her had hoped his ease with her was unique to her, making her someone special. But after observing him with Mr. DeWeece, she realized he was comfortable with everyone he encountered. Maybe because he was comfortable with himself.
She followed the men, listening to their conversation but staying quiet, letting her thoughts roam. Before Daddy banished Leo from coming around, she’d promised to pray for Leo’s father to accept his son’s choice of career. Since then, she’d continued to pray for Reverend Day to change his stance. Leo’s lighthearted attitude on this summer Saturday indicated he didn’t have a care in the world. She truly hoped the father and son had mended their fences. She also truly hoped she and Daddy would one day completely mend theirs.
If only they could take Daddy to the doctor in Pueblo. He fell deeper in despondence each day since he expressed desire to go and then had the opportunity snatched away. Mama and Jennie were still holding on to hope, but Daddy had none. No wonder he was so sad all the time. Without hope, there was no real reason to live. Somehow they had to help Daddy grab hope. Even if it was only the echo of their hope, it would be enough. After all, she’d stood in Mama’s hope-echo and eventually it penetrated. How to get him to reach for it—that was the greatest challenge.
“Oh, my…”
Mr. DeWeece’s awed murmur pulled Jennie from her thoughts. The two men had stopped, and she moved up beside Leo. Then she understood Mr. DeWeece’s astonishment. From this angle, the dots of red looked like bright poppies blooming in a mountain meadow. They stood out even against the profusion of wildflowers peppering the ridge.
Leo chuckled. “I told you we found a bunch of bones.”
“You did, but I hadn’t imagined…”
Jennie peeked past Leo to the businessman. “We put numbers on the flags so you’ll know the order we found them. I wrote down the numbers with the date for your records, too.” Her record taking for the waterway men had prompted the idea. “When I draw the bones, I’ll have the right date to put with each picture.”
Mr. DeWeece gave her a bright smile. “Excellent thinking.” He clapped Leo on the shoulder. “All right, future paleontologist, you decide. Should we spend today recording the coordinates for each of these finds, or search for more bones?”
Jennie chorused with Leo, “Search for more.” They looked at each other and grinned.
Mr. DeWeece rocked with laughter. “Very well. It’s unanimous. Let’s continue on.”
At the businessman’s suggestion, they fanned out across the landscape, staying close enough to talk while they searched but far enough apart to cover three times as much territory. The climb got steeper the farther they went, yet Jennie was able to continue without a great deal of difficulty. Walking the line must have strengthened her muscles more than she’d realized. Taking over the linewalker’s responsibility hadn’t been easy, but she appreciated the benefit today. Would she look back someday at the difficult journey she and Mama were walking with Daddy and find reasons to appreciate it?
“Mr. DeWeece! Jennie! Come and see!”
Jennie whirled toward Leo’s voice. The curve of the hillside hid most of him from view, but she saw his waving hands. She ran as fast as the landscape allowed in his direction, her heart pounding in eagerness. He’d exhibited excitement over the single bones they’d discovered, but his shout held an element of delight far beyond what she’d heard before.
Even before she saw it, she already believed it. He’d found the skeleton.