The kids were out of school and by their definition that made this the first day of summer even though the calendar said it wouldn't be for another three weeks. One of the first crops to ripen requiring long term storage had been the green beans. The family had harvested almost three bushels of beans early in the morning and now it was time to preserve them for use later. Since Vicki was essentially new to the team, she was given some of the easier jobs involved in canning.
Vicki delivered the last colander of green beans over to the kitchen table pleased to have finally finished washing them. The three kids were busy snapping beans to length for canning. John was packing quart jars with beans. He already had twenty jars ready. The plan was to put up fifty-five jars. That would give them one jar of green beans a week with a couple left over for loss or breakage.
She couldn't believe the quantity of green beans that had been produced in the garden. There were still plants that would produce beans over the next sixty days. John had a schedule for planting more beans to provide fresh green beans over the entire growing season. He was thinking about growing a couple plants of yellow beans just to provide a little variety in salads.
Making two trips from the table to the stove, she carried six jars to the pressure cooker to begin cooking them. She placed them into the water; one in the center and five surrounding it. Once she had them arranged in the cooker, she put the lid on it double checking that it was at the fifteen psi pressure setting. She turned on the burner. It would take a while to come up to pressure.
She checked the second pressure cooker to make sure that the water was at the proper level. It was ready for a batch of beans. She loaded it with six quart jars, pausing in the process to check the first pressure cooker. She put the lid on the second pressure cooker checking that it was at the fifteen psi pressure setting.
Glancing over at the first pressure cooker, she noticed that it had just come up to pressure. She set the timer for twenty-five minutes. She glanced over at the table and noticed that everyone was watching her. She smiled at them and turned back to work.
There was one more pressure cooker to load with beans. The garden had been very productive this season. They were going to be busy all afternoon canning beans. She wondered if three pressure cookers were enough to handle the job.
After putting the lid on the third pressure cooker and setting the timer for the second, she stepped back to wait for the third pressure cooker to come up to pressure.
John said, "A watched pot never boils."
"And if I don't watch it, we'll ruin six quarts of beans," Vicki said.
It seemed to take forever for the pressure to build. When it reached the proper value, she set the timer. She checked the timer on the first pressure cooker and saw that she had ten minutes to kill. She went over to the kitchen table.
While taking a seat, she said, "The first three batches are cooking."
"I wonder if we are going to have enough jars for the year," John said.
"We are going to freeze half of the beans," Lisa said.
"We are only using fifty-five quart jars. We have more," Vicki said.
There were shelves filled with jars that had been emptied over the previous year. She hadn't made a count of them, but there were a lot of them. It was hard to imagine that they would need more by the end of summer.
John said, "I'll order five more cases of quart jars and ten more cases of pint jars."
"I don't think we'll need that many. At least, I hope we don't," Vicki said.
It wasn't the cost of having so many jars, it was filling that many jars. Growing and putting up a year's worth of food was a lot of work. It was time consuming. It didn't save much money, particularly when the start up costs of purchasing equipment were taken into account. It required storage space that most modern houses didn't have.
John said, "It is better to have more than you need than to need ones you don't have."
"That's true," David said.
The discussion was interrupted by the ding of the timer. Vicki went over and turned off the heat. She picked up the pressure cooker and carried it over to the sink. She ran cold water over it. In a little more than a minute, the pressure had dropped to zero. She opened the lid and used the jar lifter to remove the jars. She added a bit of water to the pressure cooker and carried it back to the stove.
John stepped over to the stove and said, "I'll take care of the next one."
"Thanks," Vicki said.
After returning to the table, Vicki examined the FoodSaver making sure that she understood how it worked. This was another new kitchen gadget that John had purchased. They would be using it to freeze thirty pounds of green beans. From what she understood of the process, that was going to be a lot of work.
She didn't mind the work despite the fact that it was hot and tiring. Although this was her first time to join the family in canning, she understood that it was an activity that brought the family together. The hours spent around the kitchen table putting up food were hours spent talking. She cherished every minute.
Suddenly, it struck her that John had used preserving food as a tool to preserve the family. He had used it thusly when she had been working. He was using it now to help heal the family.
Tossing the directions for the FoodSaver onto the table, she looked over at Lisa. She asked, "Are you happy about getting your motorcycle driver's license?"
"You bet," Lisa said. "It's so great being able to go where I want when I want."
It seemed odd to Vicki that a person could get a motorcycle operator's license before an automobile driver's license. In terms of danger, a motorcycle was far more dangerous than a car.
"You know that I worry every time you get on that bike," Vicki said.
"I know what I'm doing," Lisa said somewhat defensively.
"She's a good rider," David said.
Vicki said, "I know she's a great rider; I've seen her on the motocross track. Knowing that isn't going to stop me from worrying about her. I'd die if anything happened to her."
Lisa rolled her eyes. She might complain about her mother's worries, but secretly it pleased her. It was comforting to know that her mother was concerned about her. It was a whole lot better than the alternative and she knew it.
Returning to the table, John asked, "Are you sure you don't want a bigger bike?"
"I like the one I have, Dad."
"Okay," John said. "It is just that a bigger bike is easier to see."
"I know," Lisa said.
They had that discussion many times in the past. She liked having a maneuverable bike she could handle easily. He wanted her to have a bike that was more visible. He asserted that the real problem for motorcyclists were the other idiots on the road.
Vicki said, "I better get back to loading the pressure cookers or we'll never get done."
Dave got up and said, "I'll help you, Mom."
"Thanks," Vicki said giving him an appreciative smile.
Deciding that it could probably be done faster if they started all three pressure cookers within minutes of each other, the others in the family joined in the task. Once the cookers had come up to pressure, the family returned to the table.
Conversation flowed around the table in an easy relaxed manner. At times the topics were light-hearted while at other times serious topics were addressed. Plans for the summer were made and adjusted. Vicki sat back and watched her family.
Rose was going to a robotics summer camp for two weeks. She apologized to her father for not going to the gaming camp. He had laughed it off claiming that she probably knew more about the topic than the instructors. David and Lisa echoed his claim. Vicki requested that if she brought home a robot that it be house trained since she wasn't going to follow it around picking up robot poop. Secretly, Rose planned on adding robot poop to her project.
Lisa was staying at home for the whole summer. She was planning on running a little market selling some of the food grown in the garden. She figured the fruit and vegetable stand would keep her busy while bringing in a little money. She'd spend an hour or two in the morning picking whatever was ripening at the time. At different times of the summer it would be different crops. During the afternoon, while people were driving home from work, she would spent the time at the stand selling her harvest. She was sure Rose would join her in running the stand after returning from the computer camp.
David was working a part-time job at the local cable company. He was hired to write little spreadsheet applications for use by the advertising salespeople. It wasn't going to be too challenging, but it was a real job and he was proud of having found it. He felt it would give him an advantage when applying for a computer science program in college.
John's plans were to be a gentleman farmer. There were always little chores that had to be done around the farm. Every two weeks he would plant more carrots, radishes, lettuce, and beans. He would harvest the crops when they ripened. He would make the little repairs that had to be performed to keep the farm running smoothly.
His plans included afternoons taking a quick cooling dip in the stream with his wife when others weren't around. There would be two meals a day when he was surrounded by the family. He looked forward to evenings spent on the porch drinking a glass or two of wine with his wife while watching the stars.
Of all members of the family, Vicki's plans were the simplest and most rewarding. She was going to spend as much time as feasible with each member of the family. It might mean hooking equipment up to a tractor, washing motorcycles, or even learning how to ride a motorcycle. She would go shopping with the girls. She would spend time in the fruit and vegetable stand. She could see teaching Lisa the art of running a business. She felt the young woman would enjoy running the fruit and vegetable stand.
She was interrupted from her thoughts when the timer went off. The family worked together to quickly take care of the pressure cookers. Eighteen more jars joined the first batch on the table. The third and final batch was placed in the pressure cookers and the heat added. Vicki stood by them to set the timers while everyone else returned to the kitchen table.
Rose asked, "What are you planning on doing while I'm at camp?"
"I'm planning on spending a lot of time waiting by the telephone for your nightly call," Vicki answered.
"You've got to be planning on doing more than that," Rose said.
"I'll pack lunches for David so he can eat at work. I'll cook meals for everyone unless someone wants to do the cooking and then I'll help. I'll be busy," Vickie said.
"She's going to be the wife of a gentleman farmer," John said.
Vicki asked, "What exactly is a gentleman farmer?"
John chuckled. "He's a farmer who wears a suit when farming."
"I'd love to see that," Vicki said.
The three kids burst out into uncontrollable laughter. They believed he would go naked when farming before wearing a suit for any occasion. He might wear a sports coat to church, but his pants were blue jeans. Lisa said, "I'd take a picture of that and sell it on e-bay. I'll make a million dollars in one day."
The discussion diverged to the topic of managing money. This was one of the few topics on which Vicki wouldn't contribute her opinion. She had given her opinion for six years whether it had been wanted or not. Her passion for the subject had died upon learning that she had been wrong in several of her assumptions.
The timers rang and the family went to work cooling the pressure cookers and adding jars to the growing collection on the table. Fifty-five quart jars took up a good amount of space. They still didn't make a dent in the space available on the table. When they cooled, they would be moved to the pantry where they would practically disappear in the free space of the voluminous panty.
John said, "I can imagine that at one time, a family our size would have put up three times that many jars of green beans."
"Probably," David said. "I'll look that up on the internet."
"They would also put up dried beans," John said.
Lisa asked, "How do we dry beans?"
"I've got no clue," John said.
"That's another thing to look up on the internet," David said.
Vicki said, "It seems to me like the internet is helping people get back to some of the basics. There's nobody around to teach us how to preserve food like in the old days. Now we go to the internet and get directions with tips and hints."
"It's kind of strange when you think about it. Our high tech is keeping our old tech alive," David said.
Throughout the discussion, they had been boiling beans in one pound lots, blanching them in ice water, packaging them in storage bags, sealing the bags with a vacuum, and stacking them in the freezer. All five had a job and it didn't take long to produce thirty bags of frozen green beans.
Evening, an hour after sun had set, found Vicki and John seated on rocking chairs on the porch. After a day of canning, they were relaxing with glasses of wine in their hands. Vicki sighed in contentment.
"You sound happy," John said.
Vicki said, "I am."
"It's nice having Vicki back," John said making a rare reference to the past conflict. "I really missed you."
"It is good to be back," Vicki said.
The past nine months had been good despite the fact that the time was not without conflicts and moments of awkwardness. Problems, hurt feelings, and habits don't disappear overnight. The family weathered the rough times and celebrated the good times. Of late, the good times outweighed the bad.
Reverend Billings came by the house twice a week to talk with the family. He helped guide them through the issues that had plagued the family. There were no scenes of great anger although there were tears. Some tears spoke of hurt feelings while others were of a healing nature. Things that had once been shouted were discussed calmly and rationally. Hurt feelings were examined and discussed. Past episodes of harm were laid to rest as the various viewpoints were integrated and made whole.
Blame was not assigned, but fault was found. Vicki's single minded obsession about paying the mortgage had been a large part of the problem, but John had to accept responsibility for his failures. He had waited for Vicki to be in a receptive mood to talk so they could discuss things rationally and without emotion. That had never happened and he had waited until it was too late. The kids came to understand that their actions had not helped rebuild the family.
There are some who would say that Reverend Billings had allowed Vicki to be hurt unnecessarily. They would say that he went too far when David visited the church and when Vicki was nearly catatonic from watching Lisa's film. From his perspective, it was a matter of time and there wasn't much of it. The gentle healing that counseling could have brought would have taken years. Unfortunately, by then David would have left for college, Lisa's anger would be permanent, and Rose's hate would have turned self-destructive. There wouldn't have been a family left to heal.
Some observers might have felt that the family had been overly harsh in their treatment of Vicki. This would be particularly true for the months immediately following the kids' announcement of their desire to divorce her. There was a large degree of emotional cruelty exhibited during that time. At times, it had been vicious. They would be right.
Other observers might feel that she had been lucky that it hadn't been worse. They felt that six years of neglecting a family, particularly by a mother, had sowed a bitter harvest. She had emotionally crippled three children and that damage could have lasted them the rest of their lives. Her suffering had been intense, but not long lasting. They would be right.
The individuals for whom the matter meant the most were satisfied with the outcome. John and the children had shed the majority of their anger. Vicki had paid a high price for their forgiveness, but it was a price that gave her a sense of closure in having paid it. The value of something is measured by the price that one is willing to pay for it. The pain and suffering that Vicki experienced had set a high value on family and they all knew it.
Whether her past actions had been a result of stupidity, avarice, obsession, or a mixture of the three could be debated. Her pride would not let her acknowledge her error in forcing Jack to buy the house. She had obsessively pursued money without giving a moment's thought about the consequences of her actions. The justification she used for her actions, that she had to earn money to support the family, wasn't supported by reality. She had been a partner to her husband, but her obsession had led her to ignore his contributions.
There were odd moments when she thought about the businessmen she had met when she had been working. She wondered how many of them came home one day to discover that their family had left them. How many of them came home to discover they were living with strangers? How many of them retired only to discover that they had a marriage in name only?
She felt that fathers had it easier in a way. Society expected men to go out and earn a living. That expectation offered a justification for their absence and eased acceptance by family members. Women were expected to be good mothers. A mother's role in the family was more intimate and emotional than a father's role. She was expected to be there for the family.
At one time, she had believed that she was a good example of a 'super mom.' She was a good and valued employee. She had believed that she was a good mother and a good wife. Her belief in her success was strong until confronted by reality. Were other working mothers doing a better job of balancing careers and motherhood or were they deluding themselves as she had done? She didn't know.
Learning that her children wanted her to leave so that they could replace her with another woman had been devastating. No mother ever wants to experience that. It was strange, but there wasn't one minute after overhearing the children talk about her that she even gave a moment's thought to her job.
She had been fortunate in the sense that her husband had stood by her for as long as he had. She figured that a lot of men, dissatisfied with sex two or three times a month, would have left their wives after a couple of years. John had stood by her despite the children's insistence that he divorce her. She would have died if she had returned home from a business trip to discover an empty house.
The reconciliation with her family had been an emotionally brutal affair. She didn't begrudge the family for putting her through it nor did she feel angry about it. She regreted that it had reached a point where it had occurred. John's rage had taken him by surprise. David had never realized how hurt he had been. Rose had succumbed to her anger. Lisa's sad acceptance of a second class existence had been covered by anger.
The rewards had been tremendous. She rediscovered a family filled with pretty neat people. John was far more talented and capable than she had ever imagined. David was a mature and well-balanced young man. Lisa had ambition and a drive for success that was rather remarkable despite her insecurities. Rose was a jewel – smart, confident, active, and vibrant. All of them possessed passion whether it was for earning money, making dinner, or riding their dirt bikes. They threw themselves into any activity with energy and focus.
John may have become wealthy as a result of his business, but he had never lost sight of the fact that his real richness was in his family. Vicki had lost sight of that. She had nearly lost everything worth having. Now she praised God that she had managed to regain her family and find happiness.
Thinking about all that she had gone through, she thought, "Yes, it
is good to be back."