The Mandie Collection (17 page)

“And we wanted to show her the kittens,” Mandie said with a sigh.

“They’ll still be here then,” Joe reminded her.

“If they don’t get carried around again,” Celia added.

Liza came to the doorway of the parlor and said, “Miz Lizbeth, de food be on de table.”

“Thank you, Liza,” Elizabeth Shaw said, rising and looking at the others. “Shall we go eat now?”

“And then get off to church before it gets worse outside,” Mrs. Taft said.

Since there were so many guests, Aunt Lou had served breakfast in the dining room rather than the breakfast room. A blazing fire in the huge open fireplace warmed the room, and the odor of freshly baked biscuits and ham filled the air. John Shaw returned thanks and Liza began filling the coffee cups at each plate.

“Are you going to let us see this dress Aunt Lou has made for your graduation?” Jonathan asked, looking at Mandie across the table.

“See my graduation dress? No, no, no! No one sees it until I put it on for the graduation exercises,” Mandie replied.

“That’s strange. What’s so secretive about this?” Joe asked.

“No one sees anyone else’s dress beforehand,” Mandie explained. “Otherwise someone might see someone else’s dress and decide to go copy it. And Miss Hope finally got Miss Prudence to allow us to have our own different dresses. We don’t have to dress alike for graduation anymore.”

Jonathan looked at Joe, winked, and asked, “Do you think we could all get different suits for our graduation at the schools we go to?”

“Nope, too late for me,” Joe said. “I have already graduated from school, remember? And when I graduate from college it will be a cap and gown I’ll have to wear, just like everyone else’s.”

Sallie turned to Celia and asked, “And do you have a different dress for the graduation, too?”

Celia nodded and replied, “Yes, mine will be different, also. I don’t have it made yet, but it won’t be like Mandie’s.”

“Does everyone try to look at everyone else’s dress?” Dimar asked.

“Yes, if they can find them. We aren’t going to bring our dresses to the school until the last minute and then we will guard them so no one can see them,” Mandie replied. “I hope you and Sallie can come to our graduation in May.”

Dimar smiled and said, “I will try very hard to do that.”

“And I will see that my grandfather brings me to the school to the graduation ceremony,” said Sallie. Looking across the table at Riley O’Neal, she said, “This is something we should do for the Cherokee school, have a big graduation day. The children would be happy to do that.”

“Yes, you are right. We’ll plan something when we get back home,” Riley O’Neal replied.

Mandie was anxious to see her dress and began wishing the day away until time to do that. She was sure she would have the most beautiful dress in the school because Aunt Lou was the most wonderful seamstress around.

And gradution day was not so far off.

After the hurried church service, which the minister shortened because of the increasing snow, everyone returned to the Shaws’ house and had a meal that was prepared the day before and warmed up in the warmer of the huge iron cookstove. The leftovers would be their supper.

Later Mandie and Celia and Sallie went up to Aunt Lou’s sewing room where Mandie’s graduation dress was hanging. The boys were emphatically told they must remain downstairs, and no peeking at this special dress. Joe, Jonathan, and Dimar sat in a corner in the parlor, waiting.

When Mandie opened the door to the room, Aunt Lou was busy getting pins out of a drawer. Mandie rushed forward to look at the dress.

“Oh, Aunt Lou, it’s absolutely the most beautiful dress I have ever seen,” Mandie exclaimed.

“Yes, it is,” Celia agreed.

“Most beautiful,” Sallie added.

Mandie carefully inspected the rows of pastel ribbons that were threaded through eyelets in the skirt of the white silk dress, and also through the neckline and the sleeves. Tiny pastel flowers were embroidered around the top and the hemline of the dress. A multicolored sash, made of tiny strands of matching ribbons, hung around the waistline.

Tears came into Mandie’s blue eyes as she looked up at Aunt Lou. And as the big woman turned to smile at her, Mandie threw her arms around her and began to cry.

“Now, now, what fo’ my chile cry?” Aunt Lou asked, patting Mandie’s blond head as she held her tight. Taking a large white handkerchief out of her apron pocket, she wiped at Mandie’s tears.

“Aunt Lou, I love you so much,” Mandie said between sobs as she straightened up and looked up at the old woman. “And I thank you from the bottom of my heart. My dress will be the prettiest of all.”

Aunt Lou cleared her throat and said, “Not de way it looks right now. My chile got to put it on so I kin measure the hem.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Mandie agreed and began removing the dress she was wearing.

Once Mandie had the new dress on, she found it was dragging on the floor. She looked down at it, smiled at Aunt Lou, and said, “It does need a hem, a big hem.”

“I’ll hold the dress up and you just step up right heah on dis chair so I can measure,” the old woman told her, assisting as Mandie stood up on a straight chair.

Celia and Sallie stood watching and smiling. Then when Aunt Lou had pinned up a hem and Mandie began removing the dress, Celia asked, “Aunt Lou, you embroidered all those little flowers on the dress by hand, didn’t you?”

Aunt Lou smiled at her and replied, “I sho’ did, only way to git dem on dere.” She hung the dress back on the hanger.

Mandie buttoned up her dress and asked, “Aunt Lou, when will the dress be finished?”

“I be busy right now wid all de company and everything, but I’ll have it hemmed and ready for you to take back to school with you when you come home for your spring holidays. Now y’all jes’ git on back down dere to de parlor. Dem boys been waitin’ long enough.” She shooed them out the door with her big white apron.

The girls laughed as they hurried back down the stairs to the parlor.

“Well, are you going to at least tell us what it looks like?” Jonathan asked as he and Joe rose when the girls entered the parlor.

“Of course not,” Mandie said with a quick smile. “Then you would know what it looks like, which is a deep dark secret right now.”

“Why bother to ask, Jonathan? You know she’s not going to let us know anything about the dress,” Joe told him, grinning as everyone sat down.

Mandie looked around the room. “Where is everybody?” she asked.

“Various places,” Jonathan replied. “I believe the men went out to your uncle’s workshop.”

“And the ladies went to their rooms to rest awhile,” Joe added.

“I was hoping I could catch Grandmother and try to find out what she has decided about going to Europe,” Mandie said. “Sooner or later I will find out.”

But during the coming week Mandie could not catch her to ask any questions. Then it was Christmas Eve and everyone prepared to go to the service. Mollie was recovered from her cold and was finally allowed to come downstairs.

Mollie went straight to Mandie when Aunt Rebecca brought her into the parlor. “Mandie, did you ever find any leprechauns in this house? Did you?” she asked in a loud whisper as she shyly looked at the other young people.

“No, Mollie, remember I told you before when you came to see me that we don’t have leprechauns here.” Mandie replied, putting an arm around her shoulders as Mollie leaned on Mandie’s lap.

“But maybe leprechauns came to stay after I was here. Could they not have done that? Maybe a few wee ones?” Mollie asked.

“No, Mollie, we will never have leprechauns here,” Mandie replied, and then she had a sudden idea and asked, “Would you like to go back and visit Ireland, where you used to live?”

Mollie quickly straightened up, her eyes wide, and said, “Yes, we must go back to Ireland so I can find a leprechaun. When, Mandie? When can we go?”

Mandie looked at her friends, grinned, and said, “Why don’t you ask Grandmother? She might know when we can go back to Ireland.”

“Mandie!” Celia exclaimed.

Joe and Jonathan grinned at her. Sallie and Dimar listened to the conversation.

“Mandie, that may be a way to find out if we are going to Europe,” Jonathan said in a loud whisper. He glanced at the adults who were sitting on the other side of the huge parlor and carrying on their own conservation.

Mollie looked at Mrs. Taft, who was talking to Senator Morton, and then quickly looked back at Mandie. “When must I ask Grandmother? When, Mandie?”

“Anytime you get ready, Mollie.” Mandie replied.

“Must I ask at this very moment, then?” Mollie asked, uncertain of what she should do.

“If you want to, Mollie,” Mandie replied.

Elizabeth Shaw stood up and looked across the room at them. “Amanda, it’s time to get our wraps and go to church,” she said.

The other adults also rose, hurried out into the hall, retrieved their winter coats and hats from the hall tree, and put them on. Mrs. Taft went with them as Mollie watched.

“Grandmother is getting ready to leave,” Mollie said.

“Yes,” Aunt Rebecca said, coming to put Mollie’s coat and hat on. “We are all leaving now.” She led Mollie out into the hall.

“Oh, shucks!” Mandie said under her breath as she and her friends prepared to go outside.

“You can always try again,” Jonathan whispered with a big grin.

“Yes, if and when I can get Mollie in the mood again,” Mandie said as she and her friends followed the adults out the front door.

Mr. Bond was waiting with the rig, and John Shaw came up behind him in a larger rig that the Shaws very seldom used. But for this occasion with so many visitors, it took two rigs to squeeze them all in. The driveway had been cleared of snow and there was none falling at that time. Although the church was only across the road, down apiece, it was too slippery to walk.

Mandie watched Mollie now and then as she sat with Aunt Rebecca down the pew from her and her friends. But Mollie didn’t say a word to anyone. She seemed to be interested in the Christmas play that was being performed.

After the service everyone returned to the house and to the parlor where the fire burned brightly in the fireplace and felt good after the cold outside. Mollie went to sleep in her chair and Aunt Rebecca woke her and took her upstairs to bed.

Mandie sighed. “Maybe Mollie will ask Grandmother in the morning about going to Ireland,” she told her friends.

Soon the adults began saying good-night and going to their rooms. Elizabeth told Mandie, “Please don’t stay up too late now. Remember we will be up very early tomorrow morning to give out the presents.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Mandie replied. And as the last of the adults left the parlor she said to her friends, “I suppose we might as well retire, too.”

“Yes, so morning will hurry up and come and I can see what that present is my father put under the tree for me,” Jonathan said, grinning as they passed the tree in the hallway.

They stopped to glance down at the presents. “Somebody has been adding a lot of presents. Every time I pass here the pile gets larger and larger,” Mandie remarked.

“When you stop to think about the number of people staying here at your house, no wonder the presents are piling up,” Celia said.

“But I can’t see a single name on any of them,” Jonathan said, squinting as he walked around the tree.

“That’s because people always turn the name tag under the bottom of the present so no one can see what is for whom,” Joe said.

“At my house my mother and I just exchange gifts. We don’t wrap them up and put them under the tree,” Dimar said.

“But there are only two of you. Look how many people are here,” Mandie said. “Let’s sit in the back parlor a few minutes.” She led the way.

“Dimar, I hope your mother is not spending Christmas alone,” Celia said as everyone sat down.

“No, she is staying with Uncle Wirt while I am gone. She didn’t want to travel this far,” Dimar explained.

“My grandfather and my grandmother asked her to come with us to visit you and your family, Mandie, but she did not want to come and stay away from her home for so long,” Sallie said.

“I’m sure she will have a nice visit with Uncle Wirt and Aunt Saphronia,” Mandie said. “I would like to go and visit my Cherokee kinpeople. If Grandmother takes us to Europe she probably won’t leave for at least a week or two after we graduate, Celia, so we could go then. You will go with me, won’t you, all of you?” She looked at her friends.

“I can’t promise right now, Mandie, because my mother may have plans,” Celia replied.

“Since you’re coming back to my neighborhood at Charley Gap, of course I’ll be there,” Joe said.

“If you are going to visit Uncle Wirt I will see you then, since I live so near him,” Sallie said.

Jonathan looked at Mandie and said, “I don’t know about coming back down here at that time, but I will be home because all of you will have to come to my house to get the ship since it sails from New York.”

“Celia, I do hope your aunt Rebecca will go to Europe with us so she can bring Mollie, because I’ve already asked Mollie if she would like to go back to Ireland, you know,” Mandie said.

“Yes, Aunt Rebecca will probably agree to come with us, because I don’t want the job of keeping up with Mollie,” Celia said. “I can imagine what
she
will do when she gets back to Ireland. She’ll probably try to run away, chasing leprechauns. And I imagine there are still people there she would know because it hasn’t really been long since your grandmother brought her to the United States.”

“You know, we could just sit here and wait for everyone to get up in the morning,” Joe said with a big grin.

“I don’t think I like that idea,” Jonathan said as he stood up.

Everyone else rose and said good-night as they went to their various rooms.

When Mandie, Celia, and Sallie got to Mandie’s room, Mandie turned back as she opened the door and said, “I think I’d like to go take a peek at my graduation dress so I can remember the exact shade of the blue and pink and lavender flowers on it so I can match a hair ribbon sometime before I wear it. Y’all want to come with me?” She looked at the two friends.

Celia shrugged and said, “If you think we won’t get caught snooping in Aunt Lou’s sewing room.”

“Yes, I will go, too, if you believe it will be all right for us to do this,” Sallie added, tossing back her long black hair.

“Come on,” Mandie said. She quickly picked up the lighted oil lamp from the hall table and led the way up to Aunt Lou’s sewing room.

The three quietly crept down the hallway, went upstairs to the door of the room, and Mandie slowly pushed it open. She stepped inside and held the lamp up to look for the dress.

“Do y’all see my dress? It was hanging right here when we were up here before,” Mandie said, going to a hanger by the huge wardrobe. She opened the door and looked inside. The dress was not there, either.

There were quite a few garments half finished lying around and hanging about the room that evidently Aunt Lou was working on. After they quickly examined all of this, Mandie straightened up and said, “The dress is not here.”

“I don’t see it,” Celia replied.

“I do not see it, either,” Sallie added.

“Let’s go, Mandie, before we wake someone and are caught in here,” Celia said, going toward the door.

“All right,” Mandie agreed and led the way back to her room after leaving the lamp where she had found it.

As the three girls began getting ready for bed they discussed the dress.

“How am I going to find out where the dress is?” Mandie asked, brushing out her long blond hair.

“You certainly can’t ask Aunt Lou or she will know you have been in her sewing room,” Celia said, fastening the buttons on her nightclothes.

“Have you thought about the possibility that Aunt Lou has taken it to her room to work on it?” Sallie asked, hanging up the dress she had taken off.

“Oh no, I don’t think she would do that. Remember she said she was too busy because of all the company we have for the holidays?” Mandie reminded her. She shoved Snowball off her pillow and turned down the cover.

“I’m sure she must know where it is right now,” Celia said, getting into bed on her side of the big bed.

Sallie quickly jumped into the single bed she slept in, puffed up her pillow, and looking across the room at Mandie, she said, “Since no one is allowed in her sewing room without her permission, she must know where the dress is right now.”

“I hope she does, but I can’t ask about it, either,” Mandie replied. Then she added with a frown, “I suppose I could ask her if she is working on my dress, without letting her know we’ve been to her sewing room.”

“She might be suspicious of that question,” Sallie reminded her.

“Or she might just shoo you away with her big apron without even giving you an answer,” Celia told her.

The girls finally fell asleep discussing the missing dress.

When Liza came in to light the fire on the hearth in their room, she woke them with a cheery greeting, “Mawnin’ y’all now. Git up and let’s open dem presents under dat tree downstairs.”