“That’s easy to say. Make the best of it,” Tom sneered, falling on his bed. Tim was already on his bed. The twins lay on their backs looking at the ceiling. Suddenly Tom sat up. “Hey, I got it. We’ll be explorers. We can put our scout training to use and maybe even explore areas where no human has ever been.” His eyes twinkled as he gazed into space, seeing himself with nothing in sight but snow and ice.
“You sound like a television science show,” Tim laughed. Then he lay back down and continued to brood. “Yeah,” Tim spoke in awe of the thought. “I can see us catching the biggest whale or maybe the most ferocious bear. We both have a love of science. Maybe we’ll do something that’ll make us famous, something no one else has even thought of.”
“Such as?”
“Who knows. Maybe we’ll discover a chemical that can be used to clean the dirtiest, most dangerous waters. Lakes and rivers could be purified. Just think, we could clean up our environment and make it a safer, healthier place for everyone to live.”
They daydreamed, made plans and became excited thinking of how famous they could be, maybe even written up in history books. They might even be recognized by the President of the United States and given a big ticker-tape parade while crowds cheered.
Anna was in the kitchen helping her mother with dinner. “Mom, I’m sorry, but I still have mixed feelings about our move even though I don’t want to have them. I want us to be together as a family, but I hate to leave familiar places and friends. I’ll be a stranger in Alaska. All the kids there will have friends, know the teachers and ---”
Irene broke in. “You’ll love making new friends and seeing different parts of our country. Your friends here will be eager to hear from you and will envy your experiences. You’ve always been popular because you’re kind and thoughtful of others. You’ll do the same there --- just you wait and see.”
Irene hugged Anna while looking up at her beautiful daughter. She smiled at the beautiful heart-shaped face framed by dark blonde, curly hair. Her hazel-green eyes were serious and thoughtful. Anna stood five-eight, an inch taller than her mother.
Tom and Tim came clamping down the stairs, their feet hitting hard as they walked. “I’m starved. Isn’t dinner ready?” Tom whined.
“Patience, my poor famished son. We’ll eat in about five minutes. Have you both washed?” The twins vowed that they had washed, then sat at the table talking low to each other. “What’s wrong with me? One day I’m excited about leaving and then I want to hide and not go,” Tim confessed.
Tom nodded in agreement and shrugged his shoulders.
On June seventh, the last day of school was exciting and sad. Mrs. Berry smiled as she placed an arm around each twin. “Boys, I have a suggestion. You’ll be writing to friends here, but would you please write to me so that I can share with everyone in school? I would appreciate a picture now and then, also.”
“Sure. Works for me,” Tim stated with a grin and Tom nodded. “We’ll send you our address and phone number as soon as we can.”
Irene checked boxes again to ascertain that each box was labeled so she would know where to look for their things when they got to Alaska. All boxes were loaded on a big truck. The government was paying for shipping and traveling expenses because Herb was an employee. She watched the truck pull away and breathed a prayer for all of them. Oh, Herb, I hope I can do this without you. How I wish you were here to travel with us, but you need me to be a helpmate and get us to you safely. She felt she could count on the children now that they accepted they were moving, or so she thought.
The plan was to take three weeks zig-zagging across the United States.
They would visit historical places, explore and appreciate their own country.
The next morning they were up early to leave. The house had been left in the hands of a real estate agent to rent and care for until their return. Dan Baxter’s mother, as the real estate agent, volunteered to strip the beds, wash linens they had used and place items in the linen closet. A cleaning crew would come in and clean everything, as well as wash windows, getting everything ready for renters.
The station wagon was loaded with clothing needed for the trip. Galena’s water dish, food dish, jugs of water and a sack of dog food were in the very back. A cooler filled with ice, soft drinks and sandwich meat was placed behind the rear seat. Fried chicken, a small baked ham, potato salad and deviled eggs were placed in the cooler with carrot sticks and tomatoes. Bread, peanut butter and various jellies and additional snacks were in a huge container beside the cooler.
“Anna, place this first aid kit where it can be reached quickly. I hope and pray we won’t have to use it,” Irene instructed.
“Mom, you’ve got enough here to feed a small army,” Tim laughed.
“It won’t last long. We’ll eat this before we have to start eating out. This will help a little and save time, too. Tim, please check and make sure there’s a sharp knife and enough tableware for all of us. Oh, get the napkins off the kitchen counter. Are the plastic plates and cups in there, and the jugs of water?”
“Check and check, Mom. Your order has been obeyed.” Tim saluted just as Tom tackled him from behind. They dropped to the grass to wrestle.
“Don’t get dirty before we start,” Irene ordered.
“I bet nobody else is up as early as this,” Tom observed as he stood up. “The sun isn’t even fully up yet.”
“Starting early will get us out of the heat for a while and give us time to stop for rests without losing time. Galena will need pit stops, too.” Irene explained.
They were surprised to see neighbors sleepily coming still in their night clothes, slippers and robes. The Jacksons were touched. After dozens of hugs and well wishes, the family tearfully, but bravely, waved and drove off.
Herb had toured most of Virginia with the children since they were young, so, Irene drove at an angle from northeast to southwest, Virginia without stopping to sightsee. It took six hours to make this part of the trip. She drove across the line into Kentucky before stopping for the night.
“We more than likely won’t cover this many miles in one day again. I’m not accustomed to driving a lot and I’m ready for a rest,” Irene sighed. “But there was no need to stop since we knew a lot about the part we covered.”
The next day they drove into St. Joseph, Missouri to one of the first Pony Express stations. It was thrilling to see the small room, artifacts, pictures and even a copy of the newspaper of that day.
Irene finally admitted that she was tired and developing sore muscles because she was unaccustomed to driving so much at once.
“Mom, please let me help you. I can drive as long as a licensed driver is with me. The boys will help me watch for signs and you can rest. You can’t go on this way.” Anna looked imploringly at Irene.
“I don’t know, honey. You’re still awfully young.”
“I’ve driven several times with dad and he thinks I’m a very good driver.”
“Well, as soon as I get out of city traffic, maybe you can take it on the open highway.” Anna drove well and Irene gave a sigh of relief for the help she now realized she could count on.
The next morning early, Anna started the drive before traffic picked up.
“Anna, we’ll angle south and go through Oklahoma.”
“Where you headed, Mom?” Tom asked through yawns.
“I thought you might like to go to Arizona and see the Grand Canyon.”
“All right!” Both boys were wide awake