Lemon Drops




	WRITE 2 THE HEART Stories that are aimed "Write 2 the Heart" August 14, 2002 Cheryl Speir, Editor, moderator@write2theheart.com ----------------------------------------------------------- By subscription only! Welcome to your latest issue of "Write 2 the Heart" ------------------------------------------------------------ Do you have a heart-warming story to share? We are accepting story submissions at this time. Please e-mail your original story to moderator@write2theheart.com ------------------------------------------------------------- When you think "lemon drops" you can't help but remember the sweet, yet tangy candy of childhood. That's not what Pamela's story is about, but it is just as sweet! ------------------------------------------------------------- Lemon Drops By Pamela Jenkins ------------------------------------------------------------- It was late in the evening. I had just settled down in my rocking chair and put my feet up on the footstool. The cup of hot tea was nice and warm in my hands. In just a few minutes I would go upstairs to bed like the rest of my family, but just for the moment I was going to sit and savor the peace. The window was open near my rocking chair. I could hear crickets chirping and little tree frogs singing down by the creek. A whippoorwill called from down the hollow, and another one answered. The air was still warm from the summer's day heat. We sure could use some rain. In the distance I could hear dry leaves crunching like an animal was rustling through them. Probably that armadillo again, I thought. There was a burrow out behind one of the barns, and I enjoyed watching her while she snuffled around in the early mornings. Something was different about this noise, however. It was getting closer to the house, and was beginning to sound like something much bigger than a little armadillo browsing for bugs to eat. Closer and closer it came. I began to wonder if the rumors I had heard were true. Was there really a bear in the neighborhood? I began to feel goosebumps as I sat frozen in suspense. I now could hear footsteps, heavy and slow, moving right outside my window. Crunch, crunch went the dead leaves. Then I saw something glide by just above the window sill. It was curly, and looked like a tail of some sort. Cue the shark attack music. Da-dum...da-dum...da-dum, da-dum, da-dum! "Lemon, is that you?" I whispered. A startled sort of "Grunt?" was the reply. My heart was still pounding, but I felt an immense relief. It was only my daughter's blue ribbon Yorkshire sow. I slipped on a pair of shoes and stepped out the front door. "Lemon, what are you doing out of your pen?" I asked. Lemon, who had been nosing through my flowerbed, turned around with all the ponderous grace of the QE2 doing an about-face. She grunted again in pleasure. She was happy to see me, as always. The white sow walked beside me through the dark like an obedient puppy. She was a very affectionate animal for a pet that weighed close to six hundred pounds. Her abdomen was swelled with all the piglets she carried. I patted her rounded side as we walked. Lemon went back into her pen with no trouble. I scratched her favorite spot behind one ear before I left and walked back to the house. I had just settled down in my chair again and taken a sip of tea, when I heard leaves crunching. Oh, no, not again! Suddenly, two huge ears and a pink snout appeared above windowsill. I sighed, "Yes, Lemon, I'm coming." This time I went upstairs and called for reinforcements. Obviously, Lemon was restless tonight and needed to be put up safely. We couldn't take the chance of anything happening to her or her babies. With a sleepy husband in tow, I carefully picked a path through the darkness. This time, however, Lemon led the way. She marched forward like a pig on a mission, passing by her pen and leading us to the barn. She waited patiently while we opened the door, then walked into an open stall. This was the place she had delivered her last litter of pigs, and it now stood clean and ready for Lemon's due date next week. The sow took a long drink of water, then eased herself down and rolled over onto her side. She was now the picture of contentment. My husband studied the breeding records. "Well, she's not due for a few more days, but if this is where she wants to be tonight, we'll let her stay in here." Lemon's response was a huge sigh. The next morning, we were greeted by the sight of eight, brand-new baby pigs snuggled next to Lemon, each one a miniature replica of their now much slimmer mother. "Oh, look at all the Lemon Drops!" my daughter exclaimed as she leaned down to pat one little white pig. It blinked tiny blue eyes as it nuzzled her fingers. Outside I heard a soft pattering of rain begin, and a rumble of thunder. Our dry spell was over. The much needed rain had arrived. Lemon Drops and raindrops, what a wonderful way to start the day! Pamela Jenkins ramblinrabbit @ juno.com You are encouraged to write the authors and let them know what you think of their story, just remember to remove the space before and after the @ symbol. The space is placed in the address to protect our writers from viruses. Have a comment on today’s story? Send it to: moderator@write2theheart.com ---------------------------------------------------------------- Pamela Jenkins lives in Oklahoma with Stanley, her husband of twenty-one years, and their four children. She is office manager for her husband's veterinary practice, and she enjoys crocheting and writing stories in her spare time. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Letters From Our Readers I enjoyed Diane's story about her friendships growing up. Good friends are such a blessing. I hope they still keep in touch. I remember the Evening In Paris perfume. I was such a tomboy, that I couldn't be bothered with perfume. My mother always had some on her dressing table and I can remember admiring the bottle. I wanted that bottle so bad, I couldn't wait for her to finish it. I don't think she ever did! Anna **** Thanks so much for the tip on the Ad-aware. I downloaded it and ran it thinking I might have one or two spy programs. Thirty-seven showed up! They were all from file swapping programs my kids had downloaded. After getting rid of them my computer runs so much better. Jean -------------------------------------------------------------- Cheryl's Corner I went to my favorite pet shop, which happens to be the local bait shop and bought more koi and goldfish for my back yard water gardens. While looking at the different bait fish, an idea hit me. The next time both of my three year old grandsons come over to stay, I'm going to send them to the bait shop with their grandpa to buy 25 or 50 minnows. We will place them in a kids swimming pool. I'll give them each a small dip net and let them go fishing while I take pictures. Can you imagine the fun? God Bless Cheryl ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- © 2002 Write 2 the Heart Nothing may be reproduced or published without the written permission of the individual author or copyright owner. All rights belong to the authors. --------------------------------------------------------------- All subscriptions sent to your e-mail free of charge.