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Now, the day after Ralph and
Maeve had vanquished what was left of the giant, Monstrous, it happened to be a
beautiful spring day. The air was warming. Birds were busily building nests high
up in the canopy. A lot of them were just rackety crows, but still, birds. Squirrels
chased each other around the mighty trunks of those Douglas Firs and Cedars.
When it did rain it was a gentle diffident shower of raindrops. The wind poked into everyone’s business, as usual, but gently. Each day was a tad longer than the last. There were actual flowers!
Little did Ralph and company know, but love was in the air again.
Last fall Ralph had set Benny, the big goofy trickster of Concrete and Rasar Park, in charge of keeping order around town and in the park. Benny had found Lily, the damsel in distress, in the Skagit River, and the kids had fallen for each other as cute as could be.
Benny brought his love to meet Ralph, and during the night they talked. They talked about how Benny wanted to have his own Firekeeper. Lily, obviously.
Ralph told Benny that Lily was a little young, and that she needed to build up confidence and competence. He pointed out Ramona’s obvious serene ability in all things. He told Benny to go back to Concrete and to make himself useful to Lily’s Mama and Daddy.
He also said Benny should spend the time making a house of some kind, maybe like Mama and Daddy’s Basket House woven of living saplings and cut branches and cedar bark. And then, if all went well, and Benny didn’t mess it up somehow, they could come back, with Mama and Daddy, and there would be a wedding!
Benny had a lot to think about. So did Lily. He hadn’t quite gotten around to asking her yet. Sometimes things seem obvious to guys, but not to girls. Girls need to know.
Therefore, Benny had walked Lily back to Concrete to accomplish all.
He walked the park at least once a day. He did a couple of loops through town per day. One day he scared a group of French tourists who were posing it up in America on motorcycles. He didn’t do anything but appear. Their rapid departure made him yearn a bit for the days of old. He sighed, but he had put away childish things. Mostly.
But he spent most of the fall and winter hanging around helping Mama and Daddy. He gathered firewood. He caught fish. He even caught some pheasants. He carried things. He brought in new nesting materials.
One day in January, when it wasn’t very snowy, he and Daddy took a little walk further out into the forest than where the Basket House was located. Daddy was looking for a circle of living saplings. He found one, and together they built another Basket House. Benny filled it with dry grasses and moss. He still needed to make a clay fire bowl. All was almost in readiness. Even Lily’s parents were lined up and ready.
But Benny still hadn’t asked Lily the all important question. This had not escaped Lily’s attention.
For her part, Lily had been doing the cooking at home, for the learning experience. She could turn a handful of Filberts into a kind of bread with the best of them. She learned how to clean and prepare and cook birds, small mammals, large mammals, and fish.
Every late afternoon, Mama and Daddy, with Benny and Lily had dinner together. With so many critics, Lily learned rapidly how to keep the customers happy.
At last it was spring. Anybody could see that. So Benny decided that it was time to go back to the Home Clearing with Lily, and with Mama and Daddy also.
This time the hike to Ralph’s place didn’t take four days. They walked straight there and spent only one night up in trees. One pair spent that night up in each of two trees. There was no dilly dallying on the way.
Just as Ramona was scrubbing the morning oatmeal off of the wooden bowls in a bucket of river water with a brush made of a folded bunch of stiff dry grass, the merry party appeared.
“Hello, Benny and Lily! These must be your parents, Lily!” said Ramona, coming to greet them. Lily indicated that this was the fact.
“We love your beautiful daughter, and Benny too!” said Ramona. Mama and Daddy murmured thanks.
Mama and Daddy told Ramona their Saslingua names during the introductions. They met Twigg and Cherry. Bob and Berry stayed a little bit out of the way, just watching.
“Twigg,” said Ramona, “why don’t you take Daddy and Benny out to see your father at his log? Lily and Mama and I will stay here with Cherry and the cats!”
So, what it all boiled down to was this: Twigg took the men up into the forest to find Ralph at his thinking place and the ladies stayed by the fire to talk about things and stuff.
In a couple of shakes of a white tailed deer’s tail, or what we would call a couple of hours give or take, the men and Twigg came back with bundles of dogwood flowers and such, and some of Ralph’s stash of beer.
In that same couple of hours the ladies had been making some wedding cakes out of nut flour, raisins, butter and eggs. Essentially cookies. Ramona also made a very large pot of coffee in her big blue enameled pot. Things were looking pretty festive.
Ralph, and Daddy, and Benny were buoyant, making jokes and laughing.
Ramona and Mama were all atwitter, giggling and smiling secret smiles.
“It looks like the time has come,” said Ralph, smiling at everyone.
Twigg and Cherry sat watching everything attentively.
“Last fall,” said Ralph, “I set some goals for Benny. What I hear from Daddy here is that all has been accomplished. He has done his duties in the park and in town. He has made himself useful to Lily’s parents. And he had made a lovely little Basket House in the woods near her parents, for himself and Lily. This is all great!
“Daddy and Mama agree that Benny is a very fine fellow! I say we get on with the wedding!”
Ramona and Mama put some dogwood blossoms in Lily’s hair and handed her a nice bunch to hold. They made a little crown of fir for Benny and put it on his head. It seemed like there was nothing else to do to get ready.
Maeve had appeared at some point. She wasn’t talking. Yet. But she watched from a nearby branch. She walked up and down the branch, making some soft gurgles and asides.
“Benny and Lily, come over here. Will you stand by the fire facing me?” said Ralph. His thought was to have them make their own promises, as he usually did when conducting weddings.
But first he had to ask, “Lily, do you want to marry Benny, to be his Firekeeper and his true love for life?”
Lily looked all around at her parents and then Ralph, and then she looked at Benny. She said, “I love him, but he has never asked me to marry him!”
Benny immediately perceived that he had left out the “if she agrees” part of the whole long preparation. His eyes opened wide, and he gulped a few times.
Benny then said, “Lily, I wanted you so badly that I forgot the most important thing! Now, Lily will you marry me? Will you marry me today, right here and now?”
Lily laughed, and sighed a bit, and said, “yes Benny, I will marry you right here and now!”
All the older ones, and Twigg and Cherry too, sighed a great sigh of relief and joy. And then Ralph helped them make their promises to each other.
The beer was drunk, the coffee was too, and the nut and raisin cookies, were nibbled. Congratulations were offered. It was lovely.
Maeve laughed from her branch, saying “evermore” quietly to herself, since she was a sentimental old bird. She didn't say it, but she remembered when Ferdie had done the same thing.
After the wedding, later in the day, they all had dinner together because Ramona had roasted a good deal of that young buck that Ralph had caught the day before.
And that is how Benny and Lily got married!
When it did rain it was a gentle diffident shower of raindrops. The wind poked into everyone’s business, as usual, but gently. Each day was a tad longer than the last. There were actual flowers!
Little did Ralph and company know, but love was in the air again.
Last fall Ralph had set Benny, the big goofy trickster of Concrete and Rasar Park, in charge of keeping order around town and in the park. Benny had found Lily, the damsel in distress, in the Skagit River, and the kids had fallen for each other as cute as could be.
Benny brought his love to meet Ralph, and during the night they talked. They talked about how Benny wanted to have his own Firekeeper. Lily, obviously.
Ralph told Benny that Lily was a little young, and that she needed to build up confidence and competence. He pointed out Ramona’s obvious serene ability in all things. He told Benny to go back to Concrete and to make himself useful to Lily’s Mama and Daddy.
He also said Benny should spend the time making a house of some kind, maybe like Mama and Daddy’s Basket House woven of living saplings and cut branches and cedar bark. And then, if all went well, and Benny didn’t mess it up somehow, they could come back, with Mama and Daddy, and there would be a wedding!
Benny had a lot to think about. So did Lily. He hadn’t quite gotten around to asking her yet. Sometimes things seem obvious to guys, but not to girls. Girls need to know.
Therefore, Benny had walked Lily back to Concrete to accomplish all.
He walked the park at least once a day. He did a couple of loops through town per day. One day he scared a group of French tourists who were posing it up in America on motorcycles. He didn’t do anything but appear. Their rapid departure made him yearn a bit for the days of old. He sighed, but he had put away childish things. Mostly.
But he spent most of the fall and winter hanging around helping Mama and Daddy. He gathered firewood. He caught fish. He even caught some pheasants. He carried things. He brought in new nesting materials.
One day in January, when it wasn’t very snowy, he and Daddy took a little walk further out into the forest than where the Basket House was located. Daddy was looking for a circle of living saplings. He found one, and together they built another Basket House. Benny filled it with dry grasses and moss. He still needed to make a clay fire bowl. All was almost in readiness. Even Lily’s parents were lined up and ready.
But Benny still hadn’t asked Lily the all important question. This had not escaped Lily’s attention.
For her part, Lily had been doing the cooking at home, for the learning experience. She could turn a handful of Filberts into a kind of bread with the best of them. She learned how to clean and prepare and cook birds, small mammals, large mammals, and fish.
Every late afternoon, Mama and Daddy, with Benny and Lily had dinner together. With so many critics, Lily learned rapidly how to keep the customers happy.
At last it was spring. Anybody could see that. So Benny decided that it was time to go back to the Home Clearing with Lily, and with Mama and Daddy also.
This time the hike to Ralph’s place didn’t take four days. They walked straight there and spent only one night up in trees. One pair spent that night up in each of two trees. There was no dilly dallying on the way.
Just as Ramona was scrubbing the morning oatmeal off of the wooden bowls in a bucket of river water with a brush made of a folded bunch of stiff dry grass, the merry party appeared.
“Hello, Benny and Lily! These must be your parents, Lily!” said Ramona, coming to greet them. Lily indicated that this was the fact.
“We love your beautiful daughter, and Benny too!” said Ramona. Mama and Daddy murmured thanks.
Mama and Daddy told Ramona their Saslingua names during the introductions. They met Twigg and Cherry. Bob and Berry stayed a little bit out of the way, just watching.
“Twigg,” said Ramona, “why don’t you take Daddy and Benny out to see your father at his log? Lily and Mama and I will stay here with Cherry and the cats!”
So, what it all boiled down to was this: Twigg took the men up into the forest to find Ralph at his thinking place and the ladies stayed by the fire to talk about things and stuff.
In a couple of shakes of a white tailed deer’s tail, or what we would call a couple of hours give or take, the men and Twigg came back with bundles of dogwood flowers and such, and some of Ralph’s stash of beer.
In that same couple of hours the ladies had been making some wedding cakes out of nut flour, raisins, butter and eggs. Essentially cookies. Ramona also made a very large pot of coffee in her big blue enameled pot. Things were looking pretty festive.
Ralph, and Daddy, and Benny were buoyant, making jokes and laughing.
Ramona and Mama were all atwitter, giggling and smiling secret smiles.
“It looks like the time has come,” said Ralph, smiling at everyone.
Twigg and Cherry sat watching everything attentively.
“Last fall,” said Ralph, “I set some goals for Benny. What I hear from Daddy here is that all has been accomplished. He has done his duties in the park and in town. He has made himself useful to Lily’s parents. And he had made a lovely little Basket House in the woods near her parents, for himself and Lily. This is all great!
“Daddy and Mama agree that Benny is a very fine fellow! I say we get on with the wedding!”
Ramona and Mama put some dogwood blossoms in Lily’s hair and handed her a nice bunch to hold. They made a little crown of fir for Benny and put it on his head. It seemed like there was nothing else to do to get ready.
Maeve had appeared at some point. She wasn’t talking. Yet. But she watched from a nearby branch. She walked up and down the branch, making some soft gurgles and asides.
“Benny and Lily, come over here. Will you stand by the fire facing me?” said Ralph. His thought was to have them make their own promises, as he usually did when conducting weddings.
But first he had to ask, “Lily, do you want to marry Benny, to be his Firekeeper and his true love for life?”
Lily looked all around at her parents and then Ralph, and then she looked at Benny. She said, “I love him, but he has never asked me to marry him!”
Benny immediately perceived that he had left out the “if she agrees” part of the whole long preparation. His eyes opened wide, and he gulped a few times.
Benny then said, “Lily, I wanted you so badly that I forgot the most important thing! Now, Lily will you marry me? Will you marry me today, right here and now?”
Lily laughed, and sighed a bit, and said, “yes Benny, I will marry you right here and now!”
All the older ones, and Twigg and Cherry too, sighed a great sigh of relief and joy. And then Ralph helped them make their promises to each other.
The beer was drunk, the coffee was too, and the nut and raisin cookies, were nibbled. Congratulations were offered. It was lovely.
Maeve laughed from her branch, saying “evermore” quietly to herself, since she was a sentimental old bird. She didn't say it, but she remembered when Ferdie had done the same thing.
After the wedding, later in the day, they all had dinner together because Ramona had roasted a good deal of that young buck that Ralph had caught the day before.
And that is how Benny and Lily got married!
💕
🌸
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