Giving Thanks




 Michaela slowly awoke to find the warm Spring breeze gently blowing the
curtains back and forth in the window.  The sun was up, it's golden glow warm
with promise.  As the last remnants of sleep began to wear off and awareness of
the conscious world began to filter in, Michaela became aware of Sully's arm
around her, his hand gently cradling and caressing her rounded belly.  Gently
she placed her hand over his and smiled; even in sleep Sully protected what was
his.
 Deciding not to wake him, Michaela snuggled deeper into his embrace and let her
mind wander.  It had been two years since that frightful night of her
miscarriage and that year so fraught with worry and uncertainty.  It seemed like
a lifetime ago, and for that she was thankful.  Now she and Sully had been
blessed with another child, something she had dared not hope for and still
couldn't believe was happening.  This pregnancy had gone off without a hitch,
and it wouldn't be long now before this little person would be here.  "None too
soon, either", she thought wryly as the familiar rough and tumble in her belly
renewed itself with vigorous insistence.  Katie had certainly not been this
active!
 The thought of their now three-year-old daughter made Michaela smile.  Katie
was 100% daddy's girl, and well lately, it seemed that mommy just didn't know
anything!  She followed her daddy everywhere she could and wanted to do
everything "just like daddy".  Michaela often teased Sully about this, but
seeing the way his face lit up and the way he smiled, all proud and
self-satisfied, she could hardly begrudge him his daughter's adoration.  Though
she might despair a time or two over the lost "girl time" with her daughter, by
the same token, she recognized so much of herself in the little girl that she
could hardly complain.  Katie was talkative and inquisitive, sometimes to the
annoyance of her older brother, Brian, and the amazement of her father.  Brian
did the best he could to answer her questions, and Sully taught her many things. 
Most recently, Sully was teaching her about the Spirits, to which she queried,
"Daddy, what's a Spirit?".  Sully was still trying to find an ag!
!
e-appropriate answer to that question that did not include the word ghost! 
Katie also learned some things from her father that were better off not learned,
Michaela thought wryly.  Sully had been repairing the corral fence, with Katie
not more than one step behind him, when he had accidentally hit his thumb with
the hammer and uttered an unspeakable term.  Katie, of course, delighted to
learn new words, promptly began announcing this new term to anyone or anything
she came across.  Sully and Michaela had been so embarrassed, that they left
Katie at home with Brian that day when they went into town.  Michaela could
still see in her mind's eye the events of that evening so clearly.  Katie would
walk around the house pointing at things "!@#$", she would say.  A very
long-suffering Brian would then say, "No, Katie, that's your chair"  "!@#$",
Katie would say again.  "No, Katie, that's the table", Brian would say. 
Embarrassed as they were, it was so funny that Michaela and Sully !
!
couldn't help but laugh.  Even the thought of it now made Michaela giggle.  She
tried to stifle her laughter so she wouldn't wake Sully, but she wasn't quite
successful.
 "Good morning", Sully whispered into her ear, giving her a kiss.  The arm
around her tightened gently, and she lightly ran her hand up and down his arm.
 "Good morning", she replied happily in return.
 "You're up early, the baby wake you?" he asked.
 "No, something just woke me.  Must be the nice day," Michaela replied.
 "What were you just thinking about?" he asked, with a smile against her ear.
 Michaela giggled then.  "That time you were repairing the corral fence and hit
your thumb with the hammer and Katie spent the rest of the day happily repeating
that unspeakable term you had used!"
 Sully*s laughter echoed in her ear and she felt his belly shake against her
back.  "That was, somethin', wasn't it?" he said as his laughter died away.
 "It certainly was!" Michaela replied and cuddled closer against her husband
with a smile.
 Sully gently resumed caressing his wife's rounded belly, then said, "Here I was
plannin' on bein' up before you and fixin' somethin' special".
 "What's that?" Michaela questioned, turning over onto her back and looking
questioningly at him.
 Sully's eyes began to twinkle and that special smile lit up his face, "How does
breakfast in bed sound, to start off our special day together?"
 Michaela smiled.  Their special day together; it was their fifth wedding
anniversary and each had set aside the whole day, exclusively to spend with the
other.  Brian and Katie were spending last night and tonight at Robert E and
Grace's so the two could be alone.  "Sounds good to me", she replied.
 Sully smiled in return.  "Alright, I'll be back soon.  Don't go away", he
teased as he got up to dress.
 Sully had his back to her as he dressed, and Michaela indulged herself in this
intimate pleasure of just watching him.  Sully's gentle love and reassurances
had done much to break down a lot of her reserve, but she was still shy in some
matters, and Sully could easily get her to blush.  To her chagrin, it was
something he thoroughly enjoyed doing!  Still, she enjoyed these precious few
moments of unnoticed indulgence.
 Sully was just finishing buttoning up his pants when he glanced over his
shoulder to find his wife's loving and steady gaze on him.  A slight color
touched his cheeks and a big smile crossed his face as he turned to come back to
his wife's side.  He gently placed his hand along the side of her face, his eyes
lighting with appreciation at her blush, and leaned down to kiss her softly. 
Sometimes, words weren't necessary, Michaela thought, as she watched Sully leave
the room.
 Michaela's gaze was drawn back to the curtains billowing in the breeze, and she
was soon, once again, lost in thought.  She knew that Sully had a few
"surprises" up his sleeve for today, but all in all, they had made few plans for
the day.  More than anything, Michaela wanted to spend just an ordinary day with
her husband, a day where they could focus on each other and enjoy each other
without all the interruptions of life.  She and Sully had decided that they
would use part of today to plant the garden, and a few more fruit trees in the
orchard.  It would be nice to be able to spend some time out in the sun getting
her hands dirty in the garden.  Michaela felt sleep pulling at her, and with a
smile on her face, she allowed herself to doze.
 Half an hour later, Michaela felt the bed dip on her left side, but it was the
tray, being gently balanced on her round tummy that made her come wide awake and
arch her eyebrows in question at her husband.
 "Could almost get it to stay there, if this little guy wasn't kicking so hard",
Sully teased.
 "How, pray tell, am I supposed to eat from this position", Michaela replied
wryly.
 Sully grinned and moved the tray to his lap.  Michaela sat up and was reaching
for a piece of toast when Sully's hand stopped her.  Her eyes went quickly to
his face, only to discover a smile and look that she had come to know only too
well.  With a small shake of her head and a smile, she sat back and allowed
Sully to feed her.  Between bites of food and kisses, it was a very enjoyable
process, indeed!
 After Sully went back to the kitchen to clean up from breakfast, Michaela got
out of bed, washed, fixed her hair and dressed in one of her "around the house"
dresses that she used for washing laundry or working in the garden.  Sully came
in just as she was buttoning up her dress and decided to take over the task for
her.  With a kiss, he stepped away and donned a shirt for the trip into town to
pick up whatever seed and trees were needed for the garden and orchard.
 "What were ya thinkin' of plantin' this year?" Sully asked as he helped
Michaela into the wagon.
 "Well, I'd like to plant some peas, some corn, some tomatoes and potatoes,
maybe some berries this year, another plum and another peach.........." the list
continued on.
 Sully just stood there and shook his head in wry amusement.  One thing Michaela
always enjoyed each year was planting the garden.
 "What?!" Michaela questioned, trying to act miffed but not quite pulling it off
when she saw the look on her husband's face.
 "Nothin'," Sully smiled, came around the wagon and got in.  He put one arm
around Michaela, tucking her close, then snapped the reigns and they were off to
town.  They returned from town with a wagon full of trees, seed and supplies. 
Enough to "feed the army" Sully had groused good-naturedly, but he wasn't about
to deny her what she wanted.
 Sully helped Michaela out of the wagon, then began unloading while she went to
get the rakes, hoes and other garden utensils.  Sully had already broken up a
plot of ground for the garden, and he now commenced to draw the dirt into raised
beds while Michaela decided, or tried to, what should go in each row.  When the
raised beds were complete, Sully sat in the dirt next to Michaela and began to
help her plant the seeds. With a small trowel, he dug the holes, while she
placed the seeds in each hole, then both covered the seeds with dirt, their
hands constantly touching.  Throughout the rest of the morning and early
afternoon, the sun warmed each of them to the core as they planted the seeds,
then the trees.  They finished by late afternoon, and Sully could see that the
time had been well-spent and enjoyable, but tiring for Michaela.
 "Why don't you go wash up while I put things away here, then we can take a
nap," he suggested.
 Michaela smiled gratefully, and slowly rose, with Sully's assistance.  It
didn't take long for her to wash up and change back into her cotton shift.  Just
as she was lying down to rest, Sully came in and washed up, then came to lie
down next to her.  Michaela went immediately into the circle of Sully's arms,
lay her head on his chest, and promptly fell asleep.
 Sully was relaxed, but not tired, so he lay awake, just enjoying the pleasure
of being able to hold this woman that he loved so much.  Michaela's stomach was
pressed up against his side, and Sully could feel the baby kicking.  He smiled
and placed his hand on her stomach, gently caressing it, and the active child
inside.  He was not often afforded this leisurely pleasure of a mid-day rest or
time to hold his wife like this, so he shifted slightly and lay quietly, content
just to hold Michaela.
 Somewhere just after suppertime, Sully gently shifted a sleeping Michaela out
of his arms and got up.  He figured she'd sleep for at least another hour, which
gave him ample time to put together part of his "surprise".  He padded quietly
down to the kitchen and took the picnic basket out of the pantry.  Then he
commenced to fix a substantial meal and pack it into the basket.
 Michaela came down the stairs an hour later, dressed in a comfortable dress and
wiping the last vestiges of sleep from her eyes, to find Sully placing the
picnic basket and a blanket on the table.  Sully looked up and felt his heart
melt when he saw her standing there, a bit tousled, slightly sleepy and looking
a bit perplexed.  He crossed to her and wrapped her up in his arms.
 "Sully, what are you doing with the picnic basket and a blanket?" she queried.
 "I thought a picnic out at the hot springs might be a nice way to end the day,"
he replied as he watched her face light up.
 "Sounds like fun," she replied, "let me go get ready."
 It wasn't long before they were once again in the wagon, this time heading
toward the hot springs with the picnic basket and blanket in the back.  It was
already getting dark by the time they reached the hot springs, but that didn't
seem to concern them.  Still feeling very relaxed from the day's activities and
rest, they ate in companionable silence, broken only once for Michaela to
compliment Sully on the delicious supper.
 After supper, they decided to go for a dip in the hot springs.  Even in the
dark, Sully could sense Michaela's fiery blush as he divested her of her dress
and petticoats, then slipped off his own clothing.  Giving her a gentle kiss, he
stepped into the water, then helped her in.  Michaela sat contentedly in the
circle of Sully's arms, letting the heat of the water soak into her bones.
 "Michaela, remember a few months back when ya told me you were pregnant and I
was real worried and went off to seek guidance from the Spirits?" Sully
questioned.  Sensing that he had something on his heart to tell her, and
remembering all to well those frantic moments, she nodded quietly against his
shoulder.
 "Well, while I was asking the Sprits for guidance, I had a vision.........about
the baby," he stated.  Michaela looked up in interest, encouraging him to go on.
 "I was in a forest, around me were all kinds of trees, young, old, all strong
and healthy.  Before me was a small hole in the ground, and next to it, a pouch. 
The Spirits instructed me to open the pouch and remove the contents.  I did, but
all I found in the pouch was a single seed from a pine cone.  The Spirits then
instructed me to plant the seed, and water it from the water pouch that appeared
before me.  I did as I was instructed, then stepped back to watch.  To my
amazement, out of this one seed, grew two trees, each young healthy and strong.
I asked the Spirits what it meant, and was told only that as that seed had been
greatly blessed, so too, would I be greatly blessed." Sully finished his story,
then sat quietly.
 Michaela sat, leaning against him, mulling over this vision and its meaning. 
Suddenly a thought made itself manifest in her mind, heart and soul with
startling clarity.  She abruptly sat up and whirled around to face Sully, in
shock.
 "Twins?!" she questioned in shocked breathlessness.
 Sully only smiled.


Part 2