Most of us don't live in exactly the same style as our parents. It is the nature of the child to break away and seek a life more in keeping with their own inclinations. FROM THESE ROOTS tells the stories of Florence, a woman of the early 20th century, and her daughter, Emma. Both woman faced the challenges of poverty and heartbreak, and yet, neither woman let circumstances define her.
As women of the modern age, we are inclined to give ourselves credit for our strength and courage in overcoming obstacles, never wondering where those qualities came from.
Perhaps the best thing to inherit from your ancestors is neither money nor beauty. It is the ability to cope with adversity.
There’s no point in dwelling on my feelings about abandoning my daughter; anyone who has ever loved a child deeply can well imagine how I felt. I was certain that I had made the right decision in regard to the welfare of both my babies, but I despised Ezra for having made it necessary.
I felt that I must cling to Elmer so he stayed in my arms for all of that day and most of the night, except for when I had to put him on my lap just to rest my arms. Ezra sat beside us for a while and even offered to hold the baby at one point, but I refused the offer and the single word I spoke was my only communication to him during the entire trip. He eventually decided to seek someone else to talk to, so he wandered down the aisle and then into another car. This was my first time on a train and I had never seen any of the country we passed through, so I’m sure I would have enjoyed it under different circumstances. I became so attuned to the rhythm of the train wheels going
Clickety-clack, clickety-clack” that when I dozed off at one point, I thought they were saying “Mabel’s alone, Mabel’s alone.” I knew that was foolish, Mabel was not alone, just away from her immediate family. I finally found some comfort in thinking about the time of day, and visualizing what she might be doing with Aunt Margaret. Thank heavens she had stayed overnight with them several times and seemed very happy at their home!
We arrived in Topeka mid-afternoon of the next day and I looked around with some dismay. The land was unbelievably flat, and while there were trees growing in town, there were none on the outskirts. There was just field after field of whatever it was that these Kansas people grew. It was terribly hot and surprisingly humid, probably because of the big river that ran through town. Ezra got our old steamer trunk off the train, then pulled it into the shade of the building for me to sit on with the baby while he went into the railroad office to report for work. They said they wouldn’t need him until the next morning so he could spend the remainder of the afternoon getting his family settled. They recommended a boarding house on a nearby street, and Ezra persuaded a man with a wagon to take us and our trunk over to it. As the horses came to a stop in front of the house, the man said, “Be sure to take your trunk.” Ezra pulled it off the wagon and the man drove away. I guess I was being a bit of a worrywart because my first thought was What if they don’t have any vacancies?
It turned out that my thought was an unnecessary worry, as there was a vacancy with room for two (if they shared a bed). This landlady already had someone to help cook and clean, so Ezra couldn’t make any deal for my services. He paid the full amount for two for the week, but grumbled about it for days. Unknown to him, I approached the landlady the next day and said I’d be happy to do any sewing or mending for a small fee, and she was delighted to hear it. I cautioned her not to mention it in front of Ezra, as I led her to believe that I wanted to save up for a nice birthday present for him. It worked out well as I was able to complete two or three items each day, and each day she paid me for the work. I hid the money under the lining at the bottom of the trunk, and every time I accumulated enough coins to equal one dollar, I would trade with her for the larger coin.
The trunk was doing double duty as the baby’s bed at this time. I left all of the softest items of our clothing in it as padding and used a pillow case from my hope chest as the bottom sheet. It was usually damp by the morning, but it was easy enough to wash and dry during the day.
As much as I felt I should save any money that came my way, I spent the first fourteen cents I earned on materials to write to Mabel. Stamps cost one cent each, so I bought ten of them; one pencil for another penny; and six sheets of paper for three cents. My plan was to only write on one side of the paper and fold it with the blank-side out to form its own envelope. The landlady let me make a flour-and-water paste to hold it together.
The first letter told about where we were, what the country was like, the news that I wasn’t working but was doing a bit of sewing (Don’t mention it, please), how little Elmer was doing well, and how I missed them all. I begged Aunt Margaret to answer as soon as she could, so I’d know about all of them. She could probably read between the lines and tell how much I missed Mabel.
This was a great book! It gives the reader an insight into a different time period, from the perspective of a family living in a way that we don't necessarily imagine when we think of the past. These people, as seen from the women's slant, lived a life of hard work and poverty. No rose colored glasses here, but the times were also dealt with matter-of-factly... this was life. I have such a real sense of the times the book covered- almost like a time machine! You really begin to care about these people, hold your breath when you see them coming to a fork in the road, hoping they will choose the right on