Chapter 22 hidden things

Concord, Massachusetts, October 1902 Debates over Pele's future started early and often, though by now they've often degenerated into chatter and tense silences. He blamed Caroline for not bringing it up, even though the subject would have been brought up because it was his grandmother.Bailey liked his grandmother much more than his sister, so he put the blame on her.If she wouldn't budge, he wouldn't have to fight so hard. It was one of his grandmother's many, seemingly innocuous requests masquerading as proposals, for Caroline to apply to Radcliffe. Caroline herself seemed fascinated by the idea as they sipped afternoon tea in their grandmother's serene Cambridge drawing room, with its soft cushions and floral wallpaper.

But as soon as they got back to Concord Town, their father vetoed it, and what little determination she had left in the matter evaporated. Absolutely not. Caroline just pouted and accepted, deciding that the schoolwork would be too tight, and she didn't like the city of Cambridge very much.Besides, Millie was engaged, and she had to help with the wedding, which Caroline thought was far more interesting than her education problems. That's it. Then came the response from Cambridge, and the grandmother ruled that it was acceptable, but Bailey had to go to Harvard. This isn't a soft suggestion, it's a pure command.She suppressed the plea on financial issues before even being raised, stating clearly that his tuition fees would not be an issue.

Before Bailey was even asked for an opinion, the debate began. I really want to go.He finally waited for a short gap to interject, and spoke immediately. You have to take over the ranch.His father replied. The simpler way is to put this topic aside for the time being and discuss it later. After all, Bailey is not yet sixteen years old, and there is still a long time before he has to face a choice. However, he couldn't say why, and he just refused to let the subject go, bringing it up at every opportunity.Pointing out that he can still go to school and return to the ranch after graduation, four years is not too long.

At first, these remarks were only exchanged for a lesson, but soon evolved into a scene of shouting orders and angry door slamming.His mother, who had always tried to stay out of the matter as much as possible, was pushed to side with her husband, but at the same time insisted softly that it was ultimately Bailey's decision. Bailey wasn't at all sure he wanted to go to Harvard.But he does have a little more affection for Cambridge than Caroline, and it seems to him a choice full of mystery and possibility. But the ranch is just sheep, apples, and old stereotypes. He could already foresee that life.Every day, every season.When the apples fall, when the sheep need to be sheared, when the frost will come.

Year after year, the same. He also mentioned this endless monotony to his mother, hoping that it would lead to a more serious discussion about whether he could leave home and go to college.But all she said was that she found the ever-growing nature of the ranch reassuring, and asked him if he was done with the farm work. Tea invitations from Cambridge are now signed only to Bailey, completely excluding his sister.Caroline muttered that she didn't have time to attend such activities anyway, and Bailey always went to appointments alone, thankful that she could enjoy the trip without having to endure Caroline's noise.

I don't particularly care if you go to Harvard or not.His grandmother said it one afternoon, though Bailey didn't mention it.Usually he would try to avoid the subject, thinking her position was clear enough. He added another spoonful of sugar to the tea, giving her time to elaborate. I just think it gives you more opportunities.she said again.And that's what I want you to have, even if your parents don't approve of it.Do you know why I promised my daughter to marry your father? have no idea.Bailey said.Such things were not discussed in his presence, although Caroline had once whispered to him that she had heard it seemed to be a scandal.Even after nearly twenty years, his father had never set foot in his grandmother's house, and she had never visited them in Concord.

Because if I don't agree, she will elope with him.she says.She is very determined.I wouldn't make that arrangement for her, but children shouldn't be forced to accept arrangements that are forced upon them.I've heard you read storybooks aloud to my cats.When you were five years old, you transformed a laundry tub into a pirate ship to attack the hydrangeas in my garden.So don't think I'll trust you to stay on the ranch. I am responsible.Bailey repeated the word, which gradually bored him. His grandmother made noises like laughing, coughing, or a combination of both.

Go after your dreams, Bailey, she said: whether it's going to Harvard or something.It doesn't matter what your lord father says, or how loudly he talks.He forgot that he was someone else's dream back then. Bailey nodded.His grandmother leaned back in her chair and complained about the neighbors, never mentioning his father or his dreams again.But before Bailey left she said: Don't forget what I said. Will not.He assured her. He didn't tell her that he had only one dream, and that it was as ridiculous as playing pirate in the garden. But he still argues bravely with his father from time to time.

Does my opinion not matter?One night, just before the conversation turned into slamming the door and leaving, he asked. unimportant.replied his father. You don't mention it, Bailey.His mother whispered after his father left the room. So Bailey began to spend long periods of time outside the house. Not as many hours at school as he expected.At first he worked more often, on the far side of the orchard, deliberately far away from where his father was. Then he set out on long walks, through prairies, woods, and cemeteries. He roamed the graves of philosophers and poets, authors whose works he had read in his grandmother's study.There were countless tombstones with names he didn't recognize, and many more were eroded beyond recognition by time and wind, and the owner of the tomb was long forgotten.

He wandered with no particular destination, but the last place he stopped was always the big oak tree that he and Caroline and her friends used to climb and sit on. Now that he was taller, it was much easier to climb up, and he climbed to the top branch with ease.Here the shade was thick enough for privacy, but bright enough for him to read. Sometimes he would bring a few books, and it quickly became a habit. He read books of history, mythology and fairy tales, and wondered why only girls could escape the monotony of ranch life for tales of warriors, princes or wolves.He felt it was unfair not to have the same opportunity to daydream, and he was powerless to save himself.

During the hours of watching the flock of sheep strolling leisurely on the grassland, he even expected that someone would come and take him away suddenly, but the effect of pinning on the sheep was probably the same as pinning on the stars. It wasn't a bad life, he told himself, and there was nothing wrong with being a farmer. However, the feeling of dissatisfaction is still there, and even the dirt under the boots is not smooth to step on. So he went on fleeing up the tree. In order to monopolize the tree, he even moved the wooden box containing his most beloved treasures from the secret hidden under the loose wooden floor under the bed to this old oak tree, a hole that is not really a tree but Very safe strong pocket. The box was rather small, with darkly rusted brass hinges and clasps.The box was wrapped in a small piece of burlap, which protected it most effectively from the weather.There it sat securely, and not even the cleverest squirrel could dislodge it. The contents included a notched arrowhead that he picked up in a field when he was five years old, a stone with a round hole that meant luck, a black feather, and a shiny stone that his mother said was crystal. Stone, his first ever-spent lucky coin, a tan leather collar that belonged to Bailey's family dog ​​that died when he was nine, one that was kept in a locket due to age and a pile of stones White gloves that turned gray from inside. There are also a few folded and yellowed notes full of writing. After the circus left, he wrote down everything he remembered about it, lest the memory fade in the future.Chocolate covered popcorn.Crowded with people, there are layers of ring-shaped high platform seats, and tents performing blazing fire tricks.Sitting on the opposite side of the ticket booth, there is not only a changing magical clock with the function of telling the time. When he described everything about the circus with a trembling pen, he couldn't record his encounter with the red-haired girl.He never told anyone about her.He had searched for her on two subsequent visits to the circus during its normal nighttime opening hours, but she was nowhere to be found. Then the circus left, and disappeared as instantly as when it appeared, like a erotic dream. And never came back. The only thing that could prove that the girl really existed and not his fantasy was the glove. But he no longer opened the box.It sat upright in the tree, tightly closed. He thought maybe he should throw it away, but he just couldn't. Maybe he could just leave it on the tree and let the bark grow around it, seal it up. It was not uncommon for Bailey to wake up earlier than the rest of the family on a gray Saturday morning.He quickly finished his chores, put an apple and book in his bag, and set out for his oak.On the way, he thought that maybe he should bring a scarf, but he also thought that the weather should be getting warmer and warmer.Concentrating on this comforting fact, he began to climb, up and over the lowest branches that had marked his status years before, over the branches that had been usurped by his sister and her friends.Here's Milly's branch, he thought as he stepped on it.Even after all these years he could not help feeling smug when he overtook Caroline's branch.Surrounded by leaves rustling in the breeze, Bailey sat in his favorite stronghold, near the almost forgotten treasure box. When Bailey finally looked up from the book, the black and white striped tent that appeared on the field surprised him so much that he almost fell off the tree.