| Subject: Second Generation - Part #6 |
Author:
Wanda
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Date Posted: 08:05:33 07/31/03 Thu
PART #6
The next morning Bow and Catherine were seated at the breakfast table with their younger two children, Juliana and Horace. Juliana was now nineteen years old and her brother, Horace, was seventeen. Cook had prepared homemade biscuits, sausage patties, scrambled eggs, and grits for breakfast. Horace was working his way through second helpings of the sausage and biscuits. Bow watched him eat, and shook his head. “Catherine, I do believe that boy can put away more food then I ever thought of consuming.” Catherine laughed, “Bow, he is a growing boy; it takes some food to fill that tummy.” Bow said, “I’m going to take Horace to the shipyard with me today. I want him to see the new ship that we built.” Horace quickly finished eating his breakfast, gave his mother a kiss on the cheek; and said, “Let’s go Dad.” Bow got up, took another drink of his coffee, bent down to kiss Catherine, and said, “According to Horace, it is time for me to leave.”
Catherine turned to Juliana and asked, “What are you planning to do today?” Juliana said, “I thought I would continue working on the dress I have been making.” Catherine said, “You have such talent in designing clothes Juliana; we really must see about getting you into a college of design.” Juliana said, “Mama, I am perfectly happy to stay here in Lake Charles.” Catherine said, “But your talent needs to be expanded; and that won’t happen here. I really believe you have the talent to become a famous designer.”
Juliana looked at her mother and said, “Mama, you always see the best in all of us. I’m not sure that is what I would want to do. I am perfectly happy here in Lake Charles with you and Daddy. Someday I would like to have my own home, but until then I love it here.” Catherine smiled at her daughter who had developed into a lovely young lady. Catherine wondered how she and Bow had been blessed with four wonderful children. There had been times when it had been a struggle. But it had all been worth it. She got up from the table, and decided she would go to her bedroom, and finish up some chores she had left unfinished. She walked up the stairs to the bedroom, and looked around the room.
Catherine remembered the day years ago when she had been ill, and Bow had sent Manobo to fetch the doctor. She could still see the anguish on Bow’s face, while she was sobbing and telling him she was carrying Joshua Sallier’s baby. That baby turned out to be Boudreau. She thought about Bow telling her the baby would never know that Joshua was his father. So they had never told Boudreau anything about his birth father. He had always thought Bow was his father. Catherine had gone over her due date for delivery, and for that she was always grateful. She had married Bow so quickly after returning to Lake Charles following Joshua’s death no one had ever suspected Boudreau was not Bow’s son.
There were times that Catherine wondered if they had done the right thing, but there never seemed to be a good time to tell Boudreau anything different. He loved Bow, and Bow always treated him as his son. Catherine knew there could never have been a better father for Boudreau then Bow.
Catherine worried about Boudreau though for something had changed in his life within the last six months. She could sense restlessness within him that had not been there before. She didn’t know what the problem was, but something was not right. She felt he seemed unhappy. She had tried to talk with him, but he would smile and say, “Mother, (he had stopped calling her Mama a long time ago) I am an adult, don’t worry your pretty head about me.” She knew one thing, Boudreau needed a wife. He needed to be out on his own, and starting a family. She began to think of the young women she knew who were single. There had to be one who would make a good wife for Boudreau.
Catherine needed to talk to Cook about the meal for the evening. She wanted it to be special for George and Marguerite were coming out to the Plantation. She knew how much George loved fried chicken so she decided she would ask Cook to prepare that for him. It was a little early for sweet potato pie, so she thought she would have Cook prepare some fruit pies. She had told Marguerite to please ask Jean Baptiste to come too. Catherine knew she was going to encourage a relationship between Jean Baptiste and Katerina. They would be wonderful together. She knew Bow did not want her to meddle, but she didn’t see it that way. Sometimes you just know when a couple is meant to be together. That is the way she felt about Katerina and Jean Baptiste. Catherine had no doubt that Jean Baptiste had loved Katerina for a long time. Why couldn’t men see these things? If she would mention that to Bow, he would laugh; and say, “Honey, you see that because you want to see that.”
Catherine smiled when she thought of Bow. He had been a wonderful husband and father. When she thought back to the first day she met Bow, it was on the ship bringing her to the Americas. He and his gang of pirates had seized the ship, and stole whatever was of value. She had managed to hide the silver punch bowl her family had made for a customer in the Americas by turning it upside down, and sitting on it in her compartment. She had been sea sick, and looking so frail from all the vomiting, she managed to fool the pirates who were looking specifically for the punch bowl. She had told the pirates she became more ill when she was in a standing position, so she asked that she be allowed to remain seated. She never thought of that punch bowl without remembering it had been made for Joshua Sallier, the wealthy plantation owner. What Catherine learned later was that Joshua Sallier had sent Bow and his gang of pirates looking for the punch bowl and some paintings. Joshua wanted the priceless punch bowl made of silver without paying for it. If it were stolen by a gang of pirates, there would not be the need to pay the hefty price he had promised the Sheffield Silversmith Co. Joshua and Bow had a partnership of sorts until Bow wanted out. He had never wanted to be a pirate, and finally reached the point he left that life behind, and entered into the import-export shipping business. He had done that for many years, and now he ran the ship yards in Lake Charles.
Boudreau had worked for Bow at the shipyards for a number of years, but Catherine wondered if he really liked the job. She had tried to talk to Bow about it, but he shrugged it off, saying, “Honey, everything is fine. Boudreau does a good job. He is good at what he does.” Catherine was not one to borrow trouble, but she knew something was not right. She sensed there was trouble brewing, and wished she knew what to do about it.
To be continued...
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