Looking For You All My Life Part 172

went off in search of more bedding. After unsuccessfully

looking in a tiny linen cupboard, she decided to check Jed's

room. She carried her kerosene lamp in there to light the

way, feeling very much like an interloper, a trespa.s.ser, yet she

had no intention of freezing tonight, and she felt certain that

Jed would not want her to freeze either. His room, only

slightly larger than Leah's, was neat and orderly, with a four-

poster bed in the center made from hand-hewn pine logs.

Looking for You All My Life2~9

The bed was topped with a handsome patchwork quilt and

matching pillows made from a variety of plaid flannel fab-

rics in shades of mostly red and black-very woodsy and

cabinlike. It occurred to her, and not for the first time, that

Jed had good taste. But before she removed the bedding, she

was drawn to a ma.s.sive dresser against the wall below a

window. It too seemed to be the handiwork of Jed White-

water. She ran her hand across the smooth top, admiring the

grain of the wood in the soft glow of kerosene light. A

number of framed pictures adorned the top of his dresser-

all in unusual handmade frames which she was sure had also

been made by him. There was an older photo of two people,

a handsome Native American couple dressed in clothing that

suggested the forties or maybe fifties. The woman was pretty

with her thick dark bangs curling over her forehead. And she

looked amazingly like Leah. The man, tall and dark,

appeared very serious and there was something about the

mouth that reminded her of Jed. No doubt these were his

parents. She set the picture down and picked up another.

This was more recent, a shot of Jed and Leah together, taken

at the Harvest Party that had been held in her own barn not

that long ago, although it seemed like a lifetime. Even this

morning seemed ages removed from her now. Somehow

be ing out here in Jed's cabin, cut off from the world in many

ways, made her feel as if she had traveled in time. She wasn't

sure if she'd gone forward or back, but it definitely felt like

an entirely different dimension. Something about being out

here made all the problems that had been plaguing her in

town seem small and insignificant. She sighed and set the

photo back down. Just as she did so, another caught her eye.

This one was in a lovely frame made from white birch bark

branches, and the face she found in it was her own. She

stared in wonder at this photo. She was wearing a white s.h.i.+rt

and khaki walking shorts, along with a healthy tan, and was

standing on top of what looked like a high ridge with moun-

tains off behind her. Apparently she hadn't been aware that

a photo was being shot, for her expression was completely 270Melody Carlson

candid. In her eyes was a faraway look, almost dreamy, but

with just a trace of sadness. Suddenly she remembered that

day vividly. Shortly after arriving in Pine Mountain, she,

Buckie, Kate, and Jed had taken a vigorous hike-it was