The Farm At Maple Hollow - 21. Chapter 21

Robert Hopkins was the town librarian and as such, the curator of our local museum on the top floor of the library. I had brought Sam’s stone down for him to look at and in all honesty, I expected nothing much to come of my visit. We talked for a minute or two and he wanted to make sure I understood I was always welcome. When I decided to go to battle with my parents over my time at the farm and my grades, I spent a lot of time here. There are several old nooks and crannies where one could get comfortably lost in that quest of higher grades. Many an afternoon Mr. Hopkins would find me as he was closing the library for the evening. I would come after supper many evenings, and while the studying was beneficial to my grades, my conversations with Mr. Hopkins often helped to smooth over rough patches I occasionally found myself in. He knew better than to pry and often he would just sit back as I prattled on in some obtuse manner about what was bothering me.

He always encouraged me to look for the answers myself; he would suggest a different approach or a new way of looking at something. He would constantly remind me that the library contained most of the world’s knowledge and if one knew how to make use of it, anything was possible. The man was extremely knowledgeable, after all how could he not be? The thing was is that he never let on how vast his abilities were. He never talked down but to you on your level and in doing so, gently brought you up to his and the method of instructing was painless and unobtrusive. You simply didn’t realize he had been patiently teaching, coaching, and guiding you as you talked with him. He had a mind like a steel trap and an uncanny ability to read faces and emotions. He always knew what buttons to push and when to back off. No matter how frustrating my life or school work had been while Ethan was in the service, every time I left the library, I felt better about myself. I believe he was one of the first adults after Marge and Earl to realize what Ethan and the farm meant to me.

While he could have a versed opinion on nearly any subject, he was the least subjective person I had ever met. He made it a point to ask me about news of Ethan and letters from him, what was I learning about that far off place, what was I asking him to understand where he was. Things like culture and their form of farming. What was the weather like and the people he met, the food and customs of the local villagers?

After chatting for a bit, I promised not to be a stranger and his face beamed. He genuinely liked to see me come in through the front doors of the library. I pulled Sam’s stone out of towel I had wrapped it in and set it in front of him. His face was inscrutable for a moment and then his eyes went wide. He asked me where I had come across the stone. I told him of our afternoon on the island and our game of treasure hunting, that we had dislodged it on the gravel bank on the high side of the island, as we were clambering down the side as we began our decent.

He looked the stone over and called for his assistant to come over and man the front desk and then told me to follow him up to the museum on the third floor. This was another one of the reasons I loved this place. It was something you wouldn’t expect to see in a small farming town. For whatever it was worth, one of the local leaders in past times had made a fortune in manufacturing. He had established a foundry and the foundry made farm implements and tools. The library was a bequest and as a result of his extensive travels in his later years he had collected all sorts of oddities, rare coins, and Indian artifacts from the local area as well as across the country. The collection in our library and the one in the town hall in New Hanover were considered to be the best in the state and possibly in New England. Various sorts of flint arrow heads, spear tips and other implements along with stone items that were used in daily life could be found in both collections. There were stone bowls similar to what Sam had found along with the stone pestle that would have been used for grinding corn or what other grains they may have using at the time.

I was starting to get a bit excited; Sam may have found ‘buried treasure’ after all. I knew he’d be pleased at the news and just wanted to be sure before I told him. I knew we would be going back out to find the pestle and wondered what the chances were that we would find it. I was discussing the very thought with Mr. Hopkins and he told me to slow down and to help him think through what needed to be done. He patiently explained to me that we needed a process and to understand that not much if anything might or may be found. In a hunt of this sort, one needed a logical system and couldn’t just go willy-nilly and start digging all over the place. I think the look on my face gave away the fact that we had done some digging and had not understood what we were doing.

Mr. Hopkins asked if he could come out to the island and look at the spot where Sam had found his stone. I told him it was fine with me but I would also have to let Earl know what was going on. I explained we would be going out Friday night and if he wanted, we would bring him over Saturday morning. He carefully wrapped the stone back up in the towel I had brought it in and told me to be careful with it. I assured him I would and made my way downstairs with him. I told him as I was leaving, I would call him tomorrow after school and let him know what time to come over on Saturday.

The ride back to the farm was quick and as I passed my old house; I saw the For Sale sign with a Sold sticker on the front lawn. It was bittersweet passing by and as I did, I slowed down for a moment and the memories both good and bad came flooding back. It was here that I had worked up the nerve to take that momentous step to expose myself to Ethan and little did I know that day how the events of my life would take unforeseen and unexpected consequences. That in seeking that fleeting connection with another my life would irrevocably change. At best I thought it would mean I would get to have sex with another without complications, a quick hand job and then move on and find another boy to experiment with. I never thought it would lead to the relationship that developed.

It was here that I made the decision to go to war with my folks over my time on the farm and Ethan, that I figured a way to outsmart them or so I thought, by bringing my grades up to the point they could only shake their heads in wonderment. It was here the dark days came as well as I mourned the loss of Ethan and the joy of having him back, my parent’s tacit acknowledgement of our relationship that allowed me to move out of their home and on to the farm. It was here that I mourned the loss of my parents and found my brother and sister. Across the street was the Good Doctor’s office where so much else had happened. It had been not so long since my fateful decision to open myself up to Ethan and so much had happened.

As I left the center of town I thought about the upcoming weekend. We had much work to do on the cabin; school would be out for the summer this Friday, on Sunday papers would be signed that assured the farm’s future. Ethan’s and I would cement our ‘partnership’ as well in front of family and a few close friends. Bobby was going to bring his younger brother out for the weekend and I worried as to how he’d fit in with us. Sam was going to find out he had in fact discovered buried treasure. Another concern was having others poke around where Sam had found his stone and I needed to discuss with Sam the possibility of having it displayed at the library. A lot went through my head during that five-mile ride back up to the farm and before I knew it, I was parked in the driveway.

As I got out of the car with Sam’s stone Earl was sitting on the porch. I walked up to him and sat beside him. I told him about the stone as I took the towel off it and handed it to him. His expression was one of surprise. I explained how Sam had found it on our ‘treasure hunt’ and having a suspicion; I brought it to Mr. Hopkins at the library and his reaction to it. I explained if there weren’t any concerns that Mr. Hopkins wanted to come out and check out where we had found it. Earl chuckled for a moment and told me it was fine, but it really should be a decision for Ethan and me. He got up and patted me on the head for a moment and told me to wait, he’d be right back.

As I waited it sort of hit me, the responsibility we were taking on, I was nervous but knew we would have the help and guidance we’d need. When Earl came back, he had an old tin in his hand. Written across the top on a faded label were the words in a child’s handwriting “My Collection”. Earl told me to open it as he handed it to me. When I lifted the cover and looked inside, I was stunned. There had to have been twenty or more old arrowheads, spear points, stone fish hooks and hide scraping tools. Earl allowed as how he had collected these over the years on the farm starting when he was about Sam’s age. There was one stone of what appeared to be an eagle with its wings spread. I had never seen anything like it. I grabbed my camera and took a picture of the ones that intrigued me the most. We sat for a while longer as we looked over Earl’s collection and he discussed with me the various places on the farm, particularly the lower fields where the different artifacts had been found.

The rest of the week flew past, thankfully school was limited to half days, the call was placed to Mr. Hopkins telling him Saturday morning would be alright and now that it was Friday, Ethan and I needed to review the paperwork that set up the various trusts and investment vehicles. We had the option of signing the papers now or waiting until Sunday and we chose to wait. We did however sign our wills and other documents relating to our ‘official’ partnership. We both had to sign our wills and legal agreements between the two of us as this was necessary for the later paperwork that would be signed on Sunday. While we were at the bank with Ernest and Ezekiel, I mentioned the possibility of sending Earl and Marge off on a vacation…a much delayed second honeymoon. I wanted them to think of where they would like to go and what they would like to see and that I would pay for it. I also asked to pay once again for all the legal and financial work and was turned down flat as family did for family. I at least asked to treat the four of us to lunch and we walked across the common to the Hutchinson Hotel and went to the dining room. We had a leisurely lunch and talked some about our plans for the farm and what changes we were contemplating. Most of this conversation revolved around hiring a manager for the farm to reduce Earl’s workload and to cover for both Ethan’s and mine absence while I was in school and Ethan started college.

We needed to start this process shortly and once we found the suitable candidate, we’d need the bulk of the summer to get him up to speed. We knew we would need someone with experience but weren’t looking for someone close in age to Earl. We wanted fresh eyes and before making any major improvements to the farm we need and welcome their input. Ethan suggested we start our search with graduates from the agricultural college he would be attending and we all agreed. Ernest and Ezekiel asked to be involved in the process and arrange the interviews which would initially take place at the bank and then the second round would take place at the farm. Before you knew it, the afternoon had flown by and it was time to take our leave. Walking out on to the front porch of the hotel we made our good byes as we went back to the farm

With any luck Sam would be showing up soon, he was coming over for the summer and I was looking forward to talking with his mother to see if I could glean any of their ‘plans’ for Sunday. Bobby and his brother Pietro would be along a little later and have supper with us before heading over to the cabin. Bobby had called the other day and said the rowboat and motor were ready. As such, I wanted to get the rest of what we were going to need ready in the way of lumber so we could concentrate on finishing the additions to the cabin. I also wanted to have a discussion with Sam about his stone and what it meant and what would happen next. I knew he’d be excited and would want to be a part of any further searches, I only hoped he’d be agreeable to sharing his ‘finds’ with the rest of the town and agree to have it displayed in the library.

We changed our clothes and packed what we would need for the weekend down at the cabin and headed down to the nearly disassembled shed. I took out my notebook and from what had been crossed off from earlier trips I had a solid idea of what we needed to bring over this weekend and could us having the additions finished in a week or so. I knew that sometime next week we would be making the second of our trips to the VA hospital in Boston so Ethan could have his aorta checked. I had the faith of love and decided not to worry myself over it.

The body is an amazing creation I thought to myself. It is amazing the punishment it can take and dish out. What beyond simple determination gave this mass of muscle and flesh propelled by a beating heart the will to keep on going when all seemed hopeless. Where does it find the inner strength to get up again knowing only all too well it would be absorbing more punishment? As I watched Ethan work over the lumber pile culling out what I had marked, shirtless in the late afternoon sun sweat glistening on his body, I couldn’t help but marvel as his sinewy muscles moved over the skeletal frame of his body. The myriad of scars that crisscrossed his exposed flesh were a stark white contrasted against his deepening tan. How many times could a man be cut, wounded and his flesh laid bare and yet find the will…the need…the desire to survive the unimaginable horrors his fellow man could throw in his path? How was it possible that such a person could find the goodness of his soul after such trials and tribulations simply amazed me.

There were no doubts that dark demons had resided deep within him. That he had found the strength to overcome the physical was testament to the body extant but how did he quell the inner turmoil, to put the dark angel to rest that traveled with him throughout the jungle? I knew we had crossed a threshold so many months ago that afternoon we had come back from the VA hospital and the diner in Worcester. The conversation we had at Lanes Pond on the way home and later that night, when we joined body and soul with each other. I suppose some of the answer lay within me as well. While I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt I wasn’t as strong as Ethan, I had in turn survived my trials and tribulations. I thought the basic answer was one step at a time, one foot forward followed by the next. I was wondering where the internal fortitude sprang from, what brought it forward and made us pick up the pieces and start over again when I felt a nail bounce off my back.

“You are traveling again aren’t you?” Ethan called out. “Care to join the hired help today or are you going to ruminate the afternoon away?”

I got up from where I had been sitting and smiled sweetly towards Ethan. I could only shake my head and tell him “Sorry.”

“I think I’m gonna have the doctors in Boston look you over, see if they can find any brain waves.” He said laughing as he tossed and old pine knot from the discarded end of a piece siding. I had dodged the pine knot and was retrieving it when I heard Sam and his mother, Betsey pull down the driveway.