It Was Nearly Daybreak

 

          As is often the case when a person has left a task undone, Ralph slept fitfully that night. He remembered that Cherry was sleeping between himself and Ramona, but still he flung his big arms one way and then the other. He kicked at the quilt. He snored and coughed. Words kept running through his mind. “La Fin and Adieu.” Over and over.  He had no idea what they meant or why they were coming to him relentlessly.
            Finally, he woke completely and took a big deep breath. He was glad to be awake and sitting up on his side of ther homemade bed. His memory kicked in and he started to remember what he had been dreaming. He laughed out loud and shook his head.
            “Hey, Ramona,” he stage whispered. “Are you awake?”
            “I’m not exactly asleep Ralph, you’ve been thrashing around like a moose all night,” said patient she. She sighed, admitting to herself that this night was over even though the stars were still in the sky outside of the cave.
            “Let’s let Twigg and Cherry and the cats sleep and go outside and stir up the fire, baby,” said Ralph.
            So, as silently as parents everywhere have always done, they slipped out of the cave, and tenderly shut the big green door behind themselves. They listened for sounds inside, didn’t here anything and went to the fire pit, settling in on one of the logs. Ramona tossed some small bits of half burned wood into the center of the coals and a small fire flared up.
            “What is it Ralph,” Ramona said sitting back down beside him. “Here we are.”
            “I’ve been dreaming. All night!”
            “Ralph! You always dream! This is not unusual,” said Ramona.
            “You remember Maurice. No one could forget Maurice! I know! Well, you know I sent him to Skykomish to hop a freight heading east because he wanted to go home.”
            “Yeah, I know.”
            “Well, I had a dream about him! It was almost unbelievable. It went on and on and on! It started with him meeting a kitten in the box car, a kitten named Sleeky Sue!  This is after he slipped and broke his other fang out! I’m not kidding. They made friends! How is this possible?”
            “Wow, she must have been a special kitten,” said Ramona, “and a brave one, if she knew anything about Maurice.”
            “Yeah, then you remember that Folkie Joe guy that came to the party on a horse with Maurice? The guy with the ratty old guitar who didn’t say much? They met him, and Sue came up with a plan for them to all travel together to Maurice’s home in Missouri.  Joe had written a bunch of C&W songs, that’s country and western honey, and Sue thought they should try to be a band together!
            “They did perform together at a grocery store in Kansas, or some place all flat like that, made some money and Maurice told a lady he was Albanian!  It just gets crazier and crazier. It was like this story went on for months.
            “Joe’s songs caught on and he got kinda rich, and they were all living together in a fancy apartment in Branson.  Maurice and Sue learned to read, and Maurice cooked and did laundry, and then Joe got them an ice cream shop by a college!
            “Ramona, I do not understand where all this comes from,” said Ralph.
            “Well, sweety, I think there are two choices.  It is your feral imagination having a party in your head all night, or, baby, somehow you just know,” said Ramona. “I would tend towards thinking the second.”
            “It was fun, but do you have any idea what La Fin and Adieu mean?”
            “Nope, no idea,” said Ramona. “English is one thing.  I don’t know what that is. But I do know one thing for sure. Day after tomorrow Constance and Ferdy are getting married, and you my dear old thing are supposed to say something and tie the knot for them. How’s it going?  I have tried not to pester you about it, but the day is nearly here.”’
            “I don’t know what to say, I guess,” said Ralph. “What would you say, if you were me? I don’t really understand why they want me. It’s not the way we did it.”
            “I know. New ideas come at us all the time. Well, what I would suggest is that you stand them up in front of the guests and pray a Forest blessing over them.  The words will come to you when you set your mind to that.  Don’t worry. Then, have them make promises to each other in their own words in front of everyone and the Maker and that will seal the deal.  Whatever they say doesn’t matter as much as the fact that they will be standing up together with that intention, Ralph. Don’t worry. It will be good. Trust that.”
            Ralph nodded and said, “good enough for me.  I can do that.”
            They sat together by the fire for a while, yawning a little, and waiting for the sun to come up. Then Ralph gathered some big branches from last winter’s windfall and broke them into convenient lengths  He brought them to Ramona, and she made a hotter fire than before. She made some oatcakes like Thaga had taught her, cooking them on a sheet of metal over the fire.
            They got the kids and cats up. The family had oatcakes, and the cats had left over fish from the day before. Forest people just drink water. Sometimes they drink it hot if it’s cold outside.
            After breakfast they all had a lazy walk to the river where they had a little soak and swim, Cherry hanging on to Ramona. Then they walked laughing back up to the clearing. Berry and Bob ranged out ahead of them, scaring birds up into the sky, and bunnies into the underbrush.
            When they got back home, Maeve was walking importantly up and down one of the logs by the fire, talking to herself.  She perked up when she saw them arriving. She flew to Ralph’s left shoulder, to talk right into his ear.
            “I have a message for all of you from Thaga and Ooog. The mailman in a truck, you know, has brought a package to them!  But it’s for you!  They want you to come right over, right now!” Who knew that Ooog and Thaga were on the mail route?
            “Maeve,” said Ralph, “tell them we’re coming.  Right now. We’re all clean and ready!”
            Maeve shot off to do as she was bidden. They followed closely behind her.
            When they got to the house Thaga ushered them right in to the kitchen where a large box was sitting on the table. It had some awkward lettering on it saying “to Ralph and family, care of Thaga at her address.  The return address just said Maurice, etc etc, Branson, MO. Thaga read it out loud.
            The box felt very cold. It gave off a chilly mist.
Thaga handed Ralph a knife and he cut it open. Inside there was the remains of some dry ice, which was almost all evaporated and a large cardboard tub.
            On the tub was written “Raspberry, Green Sriracha, pecan and vanilla.”
        “Open it! Open it!” said Maeve who was hopping around on the table, having beaten them to the house. So, Ralph pulled the lid off the tub. Ooog sniffed at it and said, “what in the world…  I think we’re supposed to eat it!”
            Thaga got bowls and spoons and a big serving spoon and handed that to Ramona who dished some out for everyone, including Maeve and Berry and Bob. This was their first ice cream, but they knew what to do with it. Now, since Thaga does get mail, but does not have a freezer, they had to finish the tub! It was delicious, with a little snap to it!
            “Say, Thaga, do you have any idea what La Fin and Adieu means?” asked Ralph.
            “It’s French, Ralph. It means ‘the end and goodbye.’ Why?”
            “Oh, it was something in a dream,” said Ralph. Then he winked at Ramona, keeping his big mouth shut.