And The Horse You Rode In On

They stayed in the town for several days and met again with the elderly man and his attorney. Gerald handed them $50,000 in cash along with a copy of the letter from the bank. They agreed that the final closing on the property would be during the summer two years hence and that Gerald would provide $200,000 at closing. The elderly man was so appreciative that he gave Gerald a key to the gate and barn in case they needed anything and they were gone.

Gerald and Gwen gave him their thanks and caught the boat up to the village the next day while the truck would go on the next barge the following week. They were six weeks early, but they were welcomed and put to work even though their two year term as permanent staff wouldn't start until September. Their experience and extra hands proved to be beneficial as the summer was exceedingly busy with visitors. On one trip down lake, they called Cherilyn and told them to not try to come until August as there wasn't any room until then. The girls agreed saying that they were really adapting to the college life and enjoyed meeting new friends.

In August, they drove both Jeeps over the mountain and parked Cherilyn's in the protected long term lot near the boat dock. They were warmly greeted by Gwen and Gerald and were quickly and enthusiastically involved in activities during their two week stay. As they left, Cherilyn handed Gerald the keys to her Jeep and told him where it was parked. It turned out that parking at school was difficult and they took the bus to school and parking was also tight around the aunt's house. Therefore, they decided to leave one Jeep for Gerald and Gwen to use if they came down lake for a weekend. They expressed their thanks at their thoughtfulness and shared the boat ride with the girls as they left. The Jeep gave them the opportunity to check up on their things in storage.

On the boat, Cherilyn confided to them finally that the week before graduation, she and Jenny had driven to the prison and had one last visit with her father. At first he refused to see her but she said she wouldn't leave until she saw him. He relented and their meeting was brief. He told her that he had really messed up his life and that he was of no use to her and for her to forget him. She told him that she couldn't forget him because he was her father, but that she was going on with her life but in Seattle. Then they said their last goodbyes. Gwen looked worried for her daughter. Gerald simply said, "Cheri, you did what you needed to do. Do you have any regrets?" She answered, "No. I was prepared for it but I still needed to make the effort. I have you as my parents and I feel like the luckiest girl alive." She shed no tears but was thankful that they were all now close again.

The Aftermath

Gerald and Gwen had agreed to a two year term on the permanent staff. Gerald would be the head of maintenance and buildings. Gwen was head of guest activities and events. Their early arrival allowed them to work with the leaving staff for two months before they took over their responsibilities. In late August, the former staff left and Gwen and Gerald were assigned a chalet, one of several permanent houses on the property for the staff. This allowed them to bring some of their small appliances up from storage.

The girls didn't come often during the school semester because the round trip would take too long for a weekend. But they came and spent the winter break and stayed in the house with Gerald and Gwen. Jim and Pam were staying in Washington D.C. for the winter because of some big pending legislation. The girls planned to come the next summer in August to volunteer. Gwen went to visit for several long weekends during the winter and spring although Gerald only went once. They were deeply involved in upgrading the utilities to two of the dorms.

That summer, Jenny decided to stay in Seattle as she got an internship at a law firm and felt that it was too important to miss. As a result, in late July, Cherilyn arrived for her volunteer program with a young man in tow. They quickly arranged for him to replace Jenny. Cherilyn stayed with Gwen and Gerald. As they got to know Robert Gerard, Gwen couldn't help but notice the similarities between him and Gerald. Both were quiet and diligent. It was also obvious to her that he really liked Cherilyn and she liked him too. It turned out that he grew up in a small town nearby and knew of the village but had never been there. He had spent his childhood working in his family's orchard and knew the area very well. He worked with Cherilyn with activities during the day but if Gerald needed an extra hand, he was always willing to lend a hand. After they left to return to school, both Gwen and Gerald confessed that they really liked Robert and hoped that they would see him again.

They saw him again during the Christmas break. The two had spent several days with his parents and then made the trip to the village and spent the rest of the holiday with Gwen and Gerald. It was obvious now that they were a couple and Gwen and Gerald treated them as such. He was a two years ahead of Cherilyn and would graduate with a degree in economics this coming spring. He was then going to the University of Washington in Seattle to enter their doctoral program. Cherilyn had found her passion in economics also and had changed her major to that. The holiday season was short but enjoyable. The couple returned during spring break where after asking Gerald for Cherilyn's hand in marriage, he asked Cherilyn and she accepted. Gwen cried as he slipped a small diamond ting on her baby's finger. They said that they were going to wait to have the wedding after Cherilyn graduated in two years but that they were going to share his apartment in the city. Neither Gwen nor Gerald could find fault with their planning.

As their two year adventure began to draw to a close, Gwen and Gerald began planning for their life after the village. They had been in frequent contact with the elderly man and his wife and they said that they planned on vacating the house during July and they agreed to close on August 1st. Gwen went into Seattle in April and took the test to gain her certification in Washington. She received her certificate in June and was hired for the fall semester in the town by the lake. They went into town almost every weekend in August and moved their things into the house. Cherilyn and Robert came and stayed in the house to take care of things and help unpack. Robert also spent time in the orchard and prepared things for the fall harvest.

They spent their last week in the village saying goodbyes and training their replacements and finally made the long boat trip back to civilization. Gerald's new truck was waiting at the dock for them. He had ordered it and Robert had picked it up for them. As they drove up to their house together, Gwen held Gerald's hand and thanked him for a wonderful three years of marriage and their adventure and their new life. Gerald just thanked her for being her. He loved her more now than he had and was looking forward to the rest of their lives together. They were met at the house by Cherilyn and Robert and Robert's parents. They had a big dinner waiting and the big kitchen once again came alive with people and laughter and friendship.

Two weeks after their permanent arrival in town, they made their first appearance at the local farmer's market. Gerald brought twenty loaves of bread and a number of funny shaped oval buns and Gwen brought fifty pecan pralines. Gerald sold all twenty of his loaves and most of the buns. Gwen sold thirty five of her pralines but two weeks later, they were all sold as the local people discovered a new treat. Robert's parents lived only twenty miles away and they became frequent visitors to the market and also to their house after the market. The future in-laws quickly became fast friends as Robert's father quickly brought Gerald up to speed on tending an apple orchard. Gwen started teaching again in September and quickly became a well respected and accepted member of the faculty. Gerald got started on his garden for the next year but he also found time to build a deck for his grill and a brick oven for his bread.

September passed into October and Gerald came in one day in mid-October to find Gwen flitting around the kitchen. He knew from experience that Gwen had something on her mind and wanted to talk to him about something. He poured them each a glass of wine and led her to their couch. A fire was already burning in the fireplace. Once he had her seated, he said, "Alright Gwen, what do you want to talk about?"

She looked at him with a smile. "Gerald, on the first day of school, I noticed this quiet little girl. Her name is Jillian. She has been a good student but very quiet. Last month I heard that there was a lot of problems in her home. This week we heard that family services had taken her away from her home because some violence going on. I was wondering........"

"Who do we talk to Gwen?"

"Her name is Ms. Trimble and she is stopping by tonight."

"I better go take a shower and clean up."

"Gerald, we don't have to do this."

"Gwen, I know that look in your eye. This is something that needs to be done. If we can do it, we will."

"I love you, Gerald."

"I love you, Gwen." He rose and went and took a shower and cleaned up. The woman arrived at 7:30 and they talked for almost two hours. The next week, there was a home visit and inspection. The following week, they attended a class on foster parenting and were certified as foster parents. One week before Thanksgiving, Jillian Michaels came to live with them. On Thanksgiving Day, Cherilyn met her new foster sister and immediately bonded with the shy little girl. By mid-January, they were named permanent guardians of Jillian and a year and a half later, she was adopted into the family and renamed Jillian Murphy. On that day, she looked at Gwen for the first time and called her momma and then she called Gerald daddy. She also began to show the smile that soon became a permanent feature on her face.

And so the story of a recycled family began anew. Gerald felt secure and vindicated in his place in the scheme of things. Gwen felt thrilled at having the opportunity to be a wife and mother again and soon became a grandmother for the first, but not last time as Cherilyn Gerard presented them with Gerald Gerard a year later. Jillian was happy to have a mother, a father, a sister, and a nephew; a true family that she had never had before. For the rest of their lives nothing newsworthy happened but every little event was celebrated and appreciated to its fullest.