A Different World
Lola interrupted Hope as she began to explain again how she did not have romantic feelings for Jimmy. “No, I know. It’s only… to hear his side of it. It makes me think… maybe you should give him a chance, Hope. If you’re afraid you might end up an old maid if you don’t leave here, maybe you don’t have to. Jimmy’s a nice enough feller. He’s sort of handsome in a certain way. He’d take good care of you,” Lola said.
“Lola, I don’t want someone to take care of me,” Hope replied. “I want to continue to teach. I want to help children. There’s nothing particularly wrong with Jimmy. I just don’t… have feelings for him.”
“Sometimes feelings come later.”
“Lola, please don’t take this the wrong way as I don’t mean it to be offensive at all, but I have lived on a farm before, most of my growing up years, and I just don’t take to it as some people do. There’s nothing at all wrong with it. You know my daddy’s people are all farmers. I am kin to Ben’s folks, who are all farmers. It’s just not for me.”
Lola looked as if she wanted to be offended, but the way Hope had worded it made it difficult to poke holes through her statement. “Maybe not Jimmy then. There are a few other fellers. Henry, maybe?” Hope wrinkled her nose. “Or Nelson. Seth?”
“Stop!” Hope implored, though she kept her voice low. “I’m aware of the eligible bachelors in town, Lola. No, it’s not about that. It isn’t about me not being able to find a husband. It’s about me not wanting one, not right now anyhow. I want to go out into the world and make something of myself, something important.”
“And you think teaching school in McKinney, Texas, will fulfill that yearning inside of you?” Lola looked skeptical, and it was irritating to Hope.
“I don’t know,” she admitted. “But I would be willing to find out, I think. If the position and responsibilities are suitable.”
“You mean if the pay is enough?” Lola finished the second slice of pumpkin bread.
“Well, of course I have to consider the wages if I’m to be taking care of myself,” Hope countered, not that she didn’t have plenty of money saved up from her current station. Living at home with her parents and grandparents allowed her to save more money than being out on her own would’ve. “But there are other considerations as well. Accommodations, specific duties, all of those sorts of things.”
“What if they want you to start right away? Would you be able to leave your students?”
Hope thought about her class and how hard they’d been working lately, especially the little ones. “It would be very difficult, that’s for certain. But if you were to take over for me, I’m sure it would be all right. Those kids know and respect you. You’re certainly capable.” That last part she wasn’t sure of. For all of the talk earlier about it being a neck-and-neck contest for the teaching job, Hope knew her marks had always been better than Lola’s. She was also more patient and had been studying on best practices in teaching even before she had her own school. Lola hadn’t and was likely out of practice. But she would certainly do for a few months while the superintendent looked for a more seasoned teacher.
Lola stood, taking the plates and coffee cups over to the washbasin. “I can give you my aunt’s information as well as the telegraph number that’s closest by. I’m pretty sure it’s at the post office.”
“That would be lovely,” Hope replied, wishing there was a telephone connection from Missouri to Texas, but seeing as though there were only a handful of phones in all of Lamar, she didn’t see that being the case any time soon.
Lola went into the living room, and Hope followed her. She opened a desk drawer and moved a few papers around until she found what she was looking for. “Here it is,” she said before taking out a pencil and a scrap of paper and writing the information down for Hope. “Now, it usually takes a week or two for my aunt to get any mail from us, and then to hear back is something else.”
“Right.” Hope took the paper, made sure she could read it, and then placed it in her pocket. “Thank you, Lola. I appreciate it.”
A worried look took over her friend’s normally carefree face. “Do you really think you might go?” she asked, stepping forward and putting both hands on Hope’s shoulders. “Oh, I just can’t imagine what it would be like around here without you.”
Hope gave her friend a sympathetic smile. “I’m not sure what I’ll do, Lola. But all I can do at this point is try.” She leaned in and hugged her, thinking if she did go to Texas, she would miss Lola, but she’d also hope to make some other friends, possibly better friends, as she and this woman had certainly grown apart over the years.
“Just be careful, Hope. It’s a big world out there,” Lola said, leaning up and looking Hope in the eye. “And it’s just not the same as you might think, not having your daddy or anyone to protect you.”
“I know,” Hope replied, understanding that Lola spoke out of concern, not because she was trying to get her dander up again. Hope knew it wouldn’t be easy to leave everyone she loved behind, but she was compelled to toss her name into the hat and see what happened. She hugged Lola one more time and then went to fetch her coat, thinking she might wanna hurry and leave before they broke into another argument. If she really was going, she wanted to do so on good terms.
As Hope rode away, she wondered if she’d ever visit Lola’s house again. She turned and looked over her shoulder at the small dwelling in the middle of such vast emptiness. Surely she would return here soon enough. It wasn’t as if she’d be asked to get on a train right away. Shaking her head, Hope turned back around, leaving Lola and her world behind her.
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
