Chapter 25: Training for Survival

The honeymoon didn't last long for the newlyweds since neither couple wanted to spend a lot of money. Times were tight and there was other things the two couples wanted to spend their money on.

BB took Sheila on a tour of the White Mountain Apache Reservation for their honeymoon much to Sheila's delight. Sheila agreed with BB that his home was surrounded by some of the most beautiful country on earth. She liked the plains and rolling hills of her home in Oklahoma but the majesty of the towering mountains and the seemingly bottomless canyons were breathtaking.

Pete and Sheila decided to take a skiing honeymoon, so they got the bridal suite at the best hotel they could find in Flagstaff, Arizona. The skiing at 7000 feet was good that year and both of them enjoyed the one day they actually made it out of the hotel room and to the slopes.

Ben and Liz had spent the week moving and arranging their belongings in their new home just a couple of miles down the road from the ranch house. Pappy supervised the movers as they picked up Pete's furniture from Prescott to move his things into his new home that he would share with Susan. Ava supervised the movers that picked up Susan's and what remained of Sheila's belongings from Phoenix. The Phoenix movers took care of Ben and Liz's heavy furniture and boxes too.

Paul and Abigail returned to Texas. Paul still had his little fishing business that needed his care. Abigail had some obligations at the Amarillo hospital that needed to be concluded. She planned on visiting Paul within the next month though. Abigail figured those obligations would be done by the end of January and arrangements made for any future needs at the hospital. She also talked to a realtor about her home. The realtor assured her that she could get a good price for her house and property.

Abigail didn't know how long she would be in Port Arthur visiting Paul. Paul was a well set up man and a gentleman and Abigail enjoyed his company. She had been lonely for a long time and she was tired of it, and Paul seemed like a good solution for that loneliness. Besides, that baby, Sean, told her that she needed to go to Paul because he was too shy to come to her. Sean also told her that Paul needed her as much as she need him. If things didn't work out the way she hoped with Paul, then she wanted to move on to Arizona. Abigail was determined to live close to her grandbabies when they came along. She and Paul talked about grandchildren on the flight back to Texas and had agreed that living close to grandbabies was important to both of them. Maybe she could help Paul wrap up his business in Port Arthur and both of them could make the move.

Martha and Seth spent the week preparing a surprise for BB and Sheila. Ranch hands had always lived in a large bunk house about a hundred yards from the ranch house and barn. The bunk house had actually been the original ranch house until Seth's great grandfather built the current ranch house for his new wife. The bunk house had been upgraded a few times since its original construction, usually at the same time the main house was upgraded. The bunk house had indoor plumbing and running water though it was outdated since its last upgrade. It also had a fireplace and a wood cooking range. BB and Pappy living in the bunk house changed about five years earlier when Seth had apartments built against the barn for them. He wanted them closer to the house because he felt they were family. Seth tried to move them into the big house but they both refused.

"Senor Flynn," Pappy said with the patience one shows when explaining something to a very slow child. He always used the formal honorific of Senor or Senora when he felt he needed to explain simple things to Seth and Martha. "We appreciate it that you think of us as family. We think of you and Senora Martha as family too. But we aren't family so we aren't going to live in the house," he said with finality.

BB nodded his head in agreement. "The bunk house is warm and comfortable, even if it is a long walk to the barn and house."

So, Seth had warm, comfortable apartments built onto the barn and closed up the bunk house. Seth and Martha had upgraded the electricity in the bunk house before the wedding. That could be done while BB was away from the ranch headquarters. Plumbing and the interior of the bunkhouse was updated and upgraded while the newlyweds were on their honeymoon. The large, one room bunkhouse with a separate area for the commode was now a small, two bedroom, one bath cottage with propane cooking and heating.

Udit had asked for a full family meeting after the honeymoons were over so Thursday night was agreed on by everyone. That allowed the newlyweds to see the new year in alone. Travel back to the Bradshaw Mountains shouldn't be bad on New Year's Day for either couple. Some of the family would be working on January second so the evening of the first day of 1976 seemed like a good time to meet.

Pete and Susan had stopped at their new home to unpack on Thursday before continuing to the Ranch for supper. The newlyweds felt like staying in their new home and testing as many flat surfaces as possible for complete functionality. Susan had explained her mom's insistence on grandbabies as soon as possible and Pete was in complete agreement. But, they settled with only testing a couple of places before continuing to the ranch house.

Sheila carried her overnight bag into the kitchen when she and BB returned on Thursday. She was planning on going to the room she had occupied in the main house before her wedding to get a few things. She was going to carry as much as possible to BB's apartment by the barn. Sheila was looking forward to living in the cozy apartment with BB. She wasn't sure what they would do when children came along but had decided they would cross that bridge when they came to it.

"Girl, we've already moved your stuff out," Martha said gruffly. "Take your bag to your own place."

"Yes ma'am," Sheila said. Her feelings were hurt at the abrupt greeting and tried to shrug it off as Martha just having a bad day.

Sheila went back to the car and met BB where he was still removing suitcases from the truck bed. "I guess my things have already been moved to your apartment," Sheila said quietly.

"Oh," BB said. Then he shrugged and said, "Okay," before grabbing two suitcases and walking towards his apartment.

Ava met him at the door to the apartment and said, "We thought you two would need more room so we moved all your stuff to the bunkhouse, BB. I think Martha moved Sheila's things there too. I've moved into your apartment because I'm not going back to Oklahoma anytime soon, and this is more comfortable than living in the main house."

"Okay," BB said stunned. He thought about the bunkhouse for a moment and wondered what Sheila's reaction would be to it. The large room didn't provide any privacy and the small bathroom barely had room to turn around. He sighed and said, "Let's go Sheila," as he walked away.

Sheila was silent as they trudged towards the bunkhouse. BB had shown it to her once while they walked around the ranch. He had even stolen a kiss there before they walked back to the barn. She compared her memory of the large, dark room to her memory of his warm, cozy apartment. It wasn't a favorable comparison.

Nothing had been done to the outside of the bunkhouse and it was just like they remembered it as they approached along the path. The outside walls of the bunkhouse were made with rough hewn boards. The boards had been cut and shaped by hand nearly a hundred years earlier and the only maintenance they needed since was a coat of paint every twenty years or so. That twenty year schedule was running a few years late on New Year's day of 1976.

"Wait up," Seth called from the house.

BB and Sheila turned to see Seth carrying another suitcase and hurrying up the path towards the bunkhouse. Pappy was behind him carrying their last suitcase from the truck. Martha was following Pappy with a hanging suit bag over one arm and Sean in her other arm. Ava walked beside her with BB's shaving kit and another small overnight bag. Udit caught up with Martha and relieved her of the hanging suit bag so she could devote both arms to hanging onto an excited baby.

The newlyweds waited until the group reached them and BB asked, "Seth, what's going on here?"

"Wait until we get inside," Seth said breathing hard from the fast pace and carrying the heavy suitcase. "Let me set this down inside and I'll explain."

"What do you have packed in these suitcases, kid?" Pappy asked BB. "Bowling balls?"

BB scowled but nodded his acceptance to Seth, ignored Pappy, and turned to enter the bunkhouse. He entered first, followed by Sheila. It was darker in the bunkhouse than he remembered. All the windows on the south side of the room normally let in plenty of light. He set his bags down and flicked on the lights beside the door, and gasped.

Sheila dropped her overnight bag in surprise as she viewed the room. It was a small living room from a dream home. A rocker was on one side of the rock faced fire place and a love seat was on the other side. A third chair, a comfortable looking Queen Anne chair, was between the two and facing the fireplace. The fireplace itself had a new, oak mantle and the stone of the chimney continued to the ceiling. The room was separated from a small kitchen and dining area by a waist high island that could also be used for counter space.

Sheila turned to looked at Seth and Martha with tears in her eyes. "What did ... When did ... How did you do this?" she finally got out.

"We thought you needed your own place dear," Martha replied with tears in her own eyes.

"But, this isn't possible," BB said as he looked around the room in stunned disbelief. "This was one big, bare room with fifteen bunks and a wood stove and table. The only thing that looks the same is the fireplace, except for the mantle. That's new too! This place was overrun with mice and bugs. Seth, you were talking about tearing it down last summer. How is this possible."

"The mice and bugs moved," Sean said in his high pitched piping voice accompanied by a giggle. "They won't come back either. I think they'll be happier in the woods anyway."

Seth chuckled but he was getting a little choked up too. "I had the building checked out. The roof, walls and foundation were solid. Then we had the electric service upgraded before the wedding. That wasn't too messy and we could do it while you were away from the ranch house." He shook his head and said, "Somehow, Martha bullied the plumbing and remodel guys to work at the same time and they finished the rest of it before you got back. Except for the painting of course. We painted this room because we wanted the surprise to be perfect. Painters will be in next week to finish the inside and paint the outside."

Martha gestured towards a door and said, "You have two small bedrooms and a full bath back there. I didn't know if you preferred one large bedroom, or two small rooms. I thought that, if you decide to have children right away, two bedrooms would be more convenient. We can change it to one large bedroom if you want." She sounded wistful when she mentioned BB and Sheila having children and Sean hugged her with his pudgy baby arms. He let a tendril of love surround her and comfort her.

"If you think I'm going to put this stuff away for you then you're out of your minds," Pappy said gruffly as he let the suitcase thump to the floor. "Just because you get the big house while I have to stay in that little apartment doesn't mean that I'm going to pick up after you and put your gear away." Everyone smiled at that. It was common knowledge that Pappy loved his apartment and the fact that it was made especially for him.

"Congratulations dear," Ava said as she hugged Sheila. "Thanks to these good people, you have your first home."

"Welcome home Brandon," Udit said with a rough voice. The emotion in the room was affecting his normal stoic demeanor. "Now we can start training."

"And on that note," Martha said as she cleared her throat and turned towards the door. Her eyes were still bright with tears of happiness for the couple. "I need to finish dinner. Ava, could you help me please? Seth, I think you, Pappy and Udit have things that need done in the barn. Feeding still needs to be finished before dinner. Leave these two young people alone so they can explore their new home. Dinner will be in an hour and a half and I don't want anyone to be late," Martha ordered.

"Yes dear," Seth said, with a smile.

"Yes ma'am," Pappy and Udit echoed each other as they turned towards the door.

"My, you have them trained well," Ava complemented Martha with a smile as she took the younger woman's arm and they exited the cottage. Seth harrumphed when he overheard the comment, but he smiled.

Sheila and BB looked around in wonder for a moment before looking at each other. Sheila melted against BB and hugged him tightly before saying, "I'm so glad we have good people in our lives."

"I'm glad I have you in my life," BB responded as he hugged her back. They were a few minutes late arriving for dinner but Martha just smiled at their flushed faces rather than chiding them for being late.

Ben and Liz arrived a few minutes after Pete and Susan. Martha and Susan kidded Liz about her wearing maternity clothes. She hadn't worn them before the wedding and was barely showing her pregnancy now.

"But, I'm excited about it," Liz said, as she broke down crying from the teasing. Liz was starting to go through an emotional phase with her pregnancy and everything, good or bad, made her cry.

"Oh honey," Martha said softly as she hugged the woman. "It's okay to wear maternity clothes. We're just teasing you because we're jealous."

"But, why would you guys be jealous?" Liz asked sniffling. "You have Sean, and I know Susan will have lots of babies. Ben and I have tried so long and this is our first."

"Honey, you're having the NEXT baby," Martha explained in a way that only a woman would understand. "Every woman you meet is going to be jealous of you unless their baby is due first."

Sean was observing the interplay from his highchair. The outburst from Liz surprised him because the women always teased each other. He peered at Liz intently before asking, "Aunt Liz, will you pick me up?"

Liz nodded and wiped her eyes as she went to the baby.

"Oh," Sean said in surprise as she picked him up. "I didn't know that would happen," he said.

"Didn't know what would happen honey?" Martha asked.

"Aunt Liz is all mixed up inside," Sean replied. "Her hermones are mixed up."

Martha shook her head and said, "I think you mean hormones Sean, and it's normal when a woman is pregnant."

Most parents read stories like Little Red Riding Hood or the Three Little Pigs to their children. Sean had rejected those types of stories as soon as he could voice an opinion. Seth and Martha spent their time reading the encyclopedia and a copy of Gray's Anatomy to Sean in the evenings and at bedtime. During college, Martha had purchased a leather bound, second edition of the medical classic, Gray's Anatomy, that was published in 1858 and it was one of her prized possessions. The biggest challenge they had when reading the medical tome was pronouncing the words for Sean. As a result, he sometime mispronounced the words when he tried to use them.

Sean hugged Liz and she hugged him back. Liz felt a warm flood of peace wash through her during the hug. Sean had a satisfied look on his face as he pulled back from the hug. "That fixed it and Megan is happier too," Sean declared.

"What did you do?" Liz asked as she tried to examine herself to see if she felt any different. She did feel different. She felt calmer and more relaxed than she had since she started helping get ready for the weddings.

"Your hermon ... hormones were getting confused by Megan growing inside you," Sean explained. "I just adjusted the glo ... gle ... glans ... no, glands," he said with a nod of his head, "so they could supply what Megan needs and what you need. It's like a bal ... balancing act between the two needs."

"Thank you Sean," Ben said after Martha took Sean from Liz's arms. He led his wife from the room but Liz didn't say anything. Her mouth was still open in shock.

Dinner was a pleasant affair with the newlyweds describing what they saw and did on their honeymoons. Sheila couldn't say enough about the mountains and canyons around BB's home. Pete and Susan were teased about only spending one day on the ski slopes and having nothing else they were able to talk about from their honeymoon. Susan tried to turn the tables and redirect the teasing back at BB and Sheila by commenting on their lack of time in their bedroom during their honeymoon.

"Susan," Sheila said drily. "There wasn't anyone on those mountains or in those canyons with us and we always carried a blanket for a, ah, for picnics."

Everyone at the table hooted and laughed except Sean. He didn't understand. Seth had to promise to explain it with the encyclopedia that evening. Seth and Martha hadn't got to the 'R' volume in the encyclopedia that contained the entries on reproduction.

Seth cleared his throat after it appeared that everyone was finished with dinner. "Udit, you asked for everyone to be here. I guess this is your show now."