Read New Beginnings (New Beginnings Series) Online
Authors: Doreen Winona Logeot
Mother
Sara smiled a little at the note, “Eric really took Sam’s request of watching over your family to heart. That is very good to know.” She gave the girl another strong hug as she continued. “Maybe you could come back to Brandon with Sam and me, just for a few days, so you can see your family is doing well. What do you think of that?”
Catherine folded up the note and clipping, placed them back into the envelope and then said, “I guess that would be a good idea, but I want to come back here. I have plans.”
“That is wonderful, Catherine,” Sara was happy for her. “Have you decided to become a teacher?”
“No,” the girl hesitated, “I want to do something like you have done. I want to become a nurse so I have decided to become a Grey Nun in St. Boniface.”
“But you aren’t Roman Catholic,” Sara said somewhat taken aback.
“I think I would like to become one.”
“But nuns can’t marry, Catherine. You will not be able to have a family.”
“That is fine,” she said, the look on her face was one of distaste, “I don’t want to ever be with a man again.”
“Oh, Catherine,” Sara tried to give her a hug again, but this time the girl responded rather stiffly. “You have just had a bad experience ... most men are not like your father, or your acquaintance from last fall.” Sara saw Catherine frown at the memory of her seduction by the young man she barely knew. “Don’t make your decision too hastily.”
There was silence for a moment before she spoke, “I want to be like you and help people. Mrs. Stone has heard there is going to be a nursing school open sometime in the next few years and if I can keep my grades up, she thinks I will be able to go there. But I do not want to marry or have a family.” She finally softened a little and gave in to the hug Sara was giving her. “I will go home for a few days and then I will come back here so I can do that.”
“It is good to have plans, Catherine, as long as you remember you can change them. I believe your mother will be very happy for you.” Sara stepped back. “Will you be all right? I think I best go back and join the others, I will speak to Mrs. Stone about you travelling home for a few days.”
Catherine nodded, “I will get some things packed tonight so I can join you tomorrow.”
“Good.” Sara leaned ahead and gave a light touch of her cheek to the girl’s. “Have a good night tonight and we will see you in the morning.” With that Sara dismissed herself and went out into the hallway where the young lady who had been sent from the room was standing waiting, a slight look of alarm still on her face. “It is all right, dear, you may go back into your room.”
The girl peeked in past the open door and saw Catherine looked to be feeling much better then said “Thank you” to Sara before going back into her room.
Sara nodded and thought to herself what a wonderful place this was for young ladies who needed a special home such as this. She continued back down to the dining room to be with her husband and friends.
The conversation stopped as Sara stepped back into the dining room.
“Is Catherine all right?” Amelia asked quite anxiously. She was very concerned for the girl who had become much more than just a student to her.
The men both stood up from their chairs and welcomed Sara back, and Sam pushed her chair back to the table as she sat down.
“She will be just fine. Sara nodded, “I have invited her to come back to Brandon with us for a few days. I do hope that is all right, Amelia?”
“Oh yes,” their hostess agreed, “I think that would be good for her. I cannot imagine why in the world she would not have told us about her father. I should have realized there was something much more wrong than just being homesick.”
“I wonder how Amy is managing with her brood of children,” Sam said looking at Sara rather concerned. “I do hope someone has taken them into town, for the winter months at least.”
Sara gave a slight smile, “The note sent with the newspaper clipping said Eric helped them move into Brandon. He really took your request of watching out for the family seriously.”
Sam returned the smile, “That is good. It sounds like he has everything under control.” Sam continued speaking to their hosts, “Eric Hunter is my right-hand man, a rather brutal sort I met down in Montana some years ago. Back in the day when I was not quite the decent businessman I am today, Eric took care of my more serious dealings. That of course was before I met my wonderful wife here.” He turned to Sara and offered her a wink the others could not see. “Maybe Eric is following my lead and softening just a little too.”
Amelia smiled and reached across the table to place her hand on Sara’s, but looked Sam in the eye. “I always told you, all you needed was a good woman.”
Sam nodded, “Yes, you certainly did, and it looks like you were right all along.”
He looked at Sara and she smiled as nothing needed to be said.
“All seems good at the moment,” Cedric stated, “you can finish your dinner, Sara, and we will adjourn for the evening to the sitting room for our coffee.”
“Your supper will be cold,” Amelia said, ready to ring the bell for the maid. “I will have our cook warm it for you.”
“Oh no, really it is fine, thank you, Amelia. With all of the excitement I don’t think I can eat any more.”
“Well then,” Cedric started, “shall we retire to the sitting room and have our evening coffees?”
Sam was the only person who noticed the slightly startled expression on Sara’s face as they all stood up from the table. Quickly he came to his wife’s rescue by commenting, “That sounds very good but I am afraid Sara has lost her taste for coffee. It seems she picked up something on our journey which has affected her that way.”
Sara breathed a silent sigh of relief, happy that Sam did not give her secret away without being untruthful. Although it appeared to be rather unusual every time Sara discovered she was expecting a baby the first sign was always a distaste for the coffee that was usually her very favourite beverage.
“Some tea then,” Amelia asked, “with honey maybe?”
“That sounds wonderful,” Sara agreed with a smile of relief as she knew Sam was not planning on giving their secret away tonight.
An Explanation - Fact or Fiction
When I started to write “New Beginnings” I wondered what would happen to a family in the later 1800’s if a medical condition such as RH negative took almost all of their children. How devastating that would be, and to not know why, even more difficult. Originally my setting was in a location south of our border and it is because of this the gunshot crimes were invented. Although I tried, when I changed the location to near Brandon, Manitoba, I could not formulate a story that felt quite as intriguing, and therefore it remained in the story. To my knowledge nothing like this happened at this time. When I started to get into researching the timeline I found many interesting happenings so near to my own home that I could not help but bring the location here. While the main characters and their situations are totally fictitious most of the historical events and situations were found in researching many books and I believe them to be as reliable as the locations found them. In 2002 when I started writing New Beginnings, I did not have internet access and most of my research was done via book reading.
Many amazing coincidences happened while I was writing this story. Sometimes it would be as simple as picking up a book and finding a historical moment that I could use. One prime example of this was one day I had only a few spare minutes and I was quickly searching through the Souris library for something to give me another idea or two. Finding nothing I grabbed a hardcover by Pierre Burton which I though was just a picture book of winter photography. Instead I found a whole chapter about William Notman, a very famous photographer in Montreal, and the official photographer for McGill University, and I could not help but include an interesting story about him.
I kept a calendar to make sure the time line would work out correctly. In one of the earlier chapters I had originally mentioned the “near full moon” which I had to change to the “full moon” when I was given a calendar for 1882 and found it fell on the correct day. I was very fortunate to have been loaned a nearly complete set of Encyclopedia Britannica from 1890, and was thrilled to find most research for the books were done in 1882 or 1884. Studying this time period proved to be very interesting and I look forward to doing more as the New Beginnings Series continues.
Following are some of the fact or fiction items that you may have wondered about while reading this story.
Original Manitoba names of locations:
-Plum Creek - Souris
-Lake MacPherson – Lake Clementi
-Tanner’s Crossing later became Minnedosa
-Rolston’s Colony became Rapid City
-Grand Valley was located about two miles east of Brandon from 1879 to 1885.
I have done many internet searches for General Thomas Rosser, and the injuries stated in this novel happened to him at the locations mentioned. I do assume though that a nurse was not there to treat his injury, but I did discover he waited quite some time to have it looked at. The other items mentioned about him in the book were researched, although last year I did learn when Brandon had their 125
th
celebration that his grandson was invited to the ceremonies. I am still not sure when he was married and have thought of changing my book to make that adjustment but have thought better of it as it could possibly have been something that he may not have mentioned in real life.
“Le Windsor”, in Montreal is all that is left now of the beautiful Windsor Hotel, considered to be the most elegant hotel in Canada at the time and was built between 1875 and 1878. The earliest building burnt in 1906. In 2003 I wrote to “Le Windsor” and was very fortunate to receive a very detailed description of the original hotel. There was no mention of an elevator in the original design, but they were used in some buildings at this time.
It was 1939-40 when the real advances were made concerning RH Negative blood. I really have no information as to when the first discoveries of this element were found, or rather not found in the blood. This is indeed probably the main fiction of this book.
It has been a wonderful experience writing
New Beginnings
and I hope that you have enjoyed reading it. If you have any questions, comments or knowledge as to factual changes that should be made (just in case there may be a second printing) I would like to hear from you at
[email protected]
.
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