Past Forward- A Serial Novel: Episode 15 (4 page)

At home, the pup bounced around the barn as Willow pulled out the cultivator and then collapsed in exhaustion on a pile of straw.
Chad followed her to the field she planned to
“
plow
”
and smiled to himself as she cheered at the softness of the earth.
“
That rain last night helped me sleep well
,
and now look what it
’
s done.
We have easy soil to turn over
.”

He
’
d never seen anything like it.
A large wheel propelled prongs that dug up the earth as she pushed it along wheelbarrow style.
Chad was sure it was never intended to replace a regular plow
,
but of course, Willow and her mother had no way to get gasoline for fuel
-
powered machines.
After seeing her fight and struggle across the short side of the field for several minutes, he called her to him.

Uncertain of how committed she was to her old-fashioned ways of doing things, he jammed his fists into his pockets and stammered ineffectively a few times.
“
I was thinking
—”

“
Chad, what
’
s wrong?
”

“
It
’
s killing me to watch you work yourself like that.
You could plow that whole field in a few hours instead of a week if you had proper tools
.”

“
What
’
s wrong with my cultivator?
”

Frustration nearly overcame him but he kicked a dirt clod with his shoe and continued as calmly as he could manage.
“
It requires so much of you
,
Willow.
You
’
d be done with that row by now if you had a motorized one.
It
’
d save so much time and hard work
—”

“
But what would I do with all that time I saved?
”
The question was more of a tease than a serious inquiry.

“
Spend it with me, for one thing.
You could just double your production with half the work
.”
As a concession to her lifestyle, he added,
“
If not motorized, then we at least need two of those things so we can take turns breaking ground
—one ‘plowing’
and
the other
following behind.
I assume it
’
s going to take more than one pass…
”

“
Where can we find one of these motor ones you
’
re talking
about?
Maybe we can use the motor for the first pass and then mine for the second
.”

Excited, Chad hugged her and pulled his keys from his pocket.
“
I
’
ll find one to rent.
We can see if you like it
.”
He kissed her briefly
,
jogged toward the barn
,
and retraced his steps.
“
I think that was a little weak…
”

By the time Chad arrived with a tiller, Willow had made two full passes across the field.
She watched as he started the tiller and slowly, yet much more quickly than she
’
d managed, made a full row across the field.
After about twenty feet, she grabbed her tiller and followed.
Chad was right.
It was much easier to follow after the machine
broke the ground
first.

At lunch
time, Willow, covered in dirt and sweat, scrubbed in the summer kitchen, made two huge sandwiches
,
and poured the last of the lemonade into glasses.
Seated on the back porch
,
feeding scraps to the pup, she turned to an exhausted Chad and began discussing the tiller.
“
Ok, so how expensive are those things?
Would we need to own one
once this is tilled
?
It should be easier to do next time, right
?
What about
—”

“
Whoa
,
l
ass
.
W
e don
’
t have to
decide to buy
one of these things today
.”

After another bite, Willow continued her vocalized thought processes.
“
Well, I keep thinking of the gas.
It
would
become expensive to use it for something so easy to do
—”

“
Easy?
It
’
s brutal.
I almost ached just watching you force that thing through the dirt
.”

“
It
’
s work.
Work is hard.
I don
’
t understand why it
’
s so bad?
”
The confusion in her voice was familiar
—
and genuine.

Chad
’
s fists found his pockets again.
“
Willow, we were brought up in entirely different worlds.
Where you did whatever was necessary, no matter how physically taxing, my friends and family looked for the path of least resistance to get the same job done.
You made your candles
;
we bought ours.
You hand tilled your acres of soil, we rented one of those things for our flower beds
.”

“
And worked more hours somewhere else to pay for it?
”

He shrugged to show that
he wasn
’
t angry at her.
Her observations were valid and he found that as he considered it, accurate.
His father had traded one kind of work for ease in doing another.
Both were still work
,
and his father had chosen the work he enjoyed most which was exactly what Willow did every day.

“
You
’
re right.
I think I understand now
.”

“
Well,
”
she said rinsing her glass in the sink and washing her hands.
“
I don
’
t.
That
’
s ok, I
’
m getting used to it
.”

Pulling Willow to him, Chad wrapped his arms around her.
“
You
’
re right.
Dad did the work he preferred in order to make work he didn
’
t enjoy easier.
You
’
re doing the work
you prefer.
I wasn
’
t brought up to enjoy it
,
so I naturally try to find a way to make it easier
.”

It was a huge breakthrough in understanding for both of them.
As much as they enjoyed their relationship,
some aspects still
required both of them to step back and consider that there
were other ways
to see
things
.
Neither way was necessarily superior
,
but what was familiar was usually preferred
,
and their comfort zones were on nearly opposite poles.

“
I think it
’
s simple,
”
Willow finally said.

“
Oh you do?
”
Just as he realized th
at she might feel patronized by the amusement in his tone
, she spoke.

“
Of course.
When I
’
m working alone, I do what is familiar and comfortable for me.
When you work with me, you do what you do however you prefer
to do it
.
Why should either of us overhaul anything?
Doing both worked for the field.
It
’
ll work for other things too
.”

Chad grabbed his gloves and pulled them on as he led her out of the barn.
“
Why didn
’
t someone tell me I was marrying a practical genius?
”