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“And this little gem is yours to use as long as you need it, sweetie,” Jill was saying as they stepped up onto the wooden porch. The woman unlocked the door and waved her inside. “Here, put your things down and take a peek around. Each cabin is a little different but just as cozy. We thought of doing a bed and breakfast long ago, but we’re kinda in the middle of nowhere – so instead, we let friends use them when they visit. Logan was staying in the one near the chicken coop because Chris is in that one over yonder…”
“Chris?”
“Oh, silly me,” Jill fluttered and laughed. “I get so excited about the company that I forget my manners. Chris is short for Christina – the woman reading in front of the fireplace. She’s doing laundry, so I told her to get comfy at the main house for a few.”
“Ah,” Daphne began and hesitated, setting down her things as she looked around warily. There had to be a catch or someone must be playing a sick joke on her because nothing ever worked out this well. She was allowed to stay here for as long as she needed. “How much is this place per night?”
This was nice… really nice.
“No charge, honey,” Jill said, looking at her. “Sometimes, we all need a helping hand to get back on our feet and breathe for a moment. I wish there were more people that believed in giving back when they could because then maybe the world would be a better place.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m an optimist,” the woman chuckled easily, shaking her head. “I believe in the best of people – almost to a fault. Years ago, I gave someone a chance, and it was the greatest moment of my life. Now, I try to just spread that hope to others. Perhaps someday you can lift up someone, too.”
Daphne didn’t say anything. People always wanted something or took advantage of a situation. It was just how most people were programmed or designed. How did you tell someone you had nothing to give because you didn’t trust anyone?
“Let’s get you back up to the main house and feed you,” Jill was saying happily – as she pressed a key in her hand.The key to this cabin,she realized in shock.
This was really happening.
“We have all sorts of stragglers coming around sometimes, but I think you’ll like it here if you give it a chance. We just try to preach a few things here, and I’m sure you’ll understand – friendship, trust, and understanding.”
“I have a problem with one of those…” she admitted in an embarrassed whisper, expecting to have the key snatched back from her at any second. “That’s gonna take a while.”
“Honey,” Jill began softly, smoothing back her hair just like any mom would – yet the woman was maybe ten or fifteen years older than her… and that was it.
“All of us that come here start that way. This place has a way of growing on you. Life doesn’t have a specific timeline or predetermined dates. It’s a series of waves, and sometimes you feel like you are drowning with the first one, but when the second one comes along – you paddle over it,” the woman explained gently, looking her in the eyes. “By the time you get to that third or fourth wave, you’re not as scared… and that tenth wave, you’ll feel like an Olympian.”
“I doubt that…”
“Just open your mind and your heart. You never know what you’ll discover.”
“Jill…” Daphne began, and the woman shook her head.
“This is a lot, and you’re nervous. I get it, but your dinner is getting cold, and you are probably tired. Now, let’s take the first wave together. Sheets are in the cubbies lining that far wall that looks like a bench; just pull them open, and you are free to use whatever you find – and you can store your things there.”
“Are you sure?” Daphne asked skeptically, expecting some monster to jump out and grab her - or for this woman to go all psycho and yank out some ice pick like in the movies. This all seemed too good to be true.
“Are you hungry?” Jill countered softly, smiling.
“Yes,” she admitted and saw the woman nod, giving her a slight hug.
“Then let’s get you fed, Daphne… and welcome to Reserve Ranch.”
When they got back to the main cabin, Christina was nowhere to be found. Daphne followed Jill into the kitchen and stared in awe. The kitchen was something out of a Cinderella story. A large wooden island ran the length of the center of the kitchen, with a massive fireplace on one side and a wall of cabinets on the other. A large sink sat right under a window, looking out onto the front almost as if the person in the kitchen was looking for someone to arrive.
That single thought hit her as she looked at the other woman, wondering more about her – and what type of person it took to open their home to strangers. They didn’t know her at all. She could be the type of person to rob them blind during the night, and yet they were still welcoming her like a long-lost puppy found on the side of the road.
“Come here, sweetie…” Jill urged, pushing a cup of ice into her hand and carrying a carafe of what looked like lemonade into a cozy dining room just off the kitchen. There was a stoneware crock on the table, and a moment later a basket with several rolls in it. “Take a seat, and I’ll get your stew.”
Daphne sat down, her eyes still taking in everything and she couldn’t help but feel wary about all of this. It just seemed so odd, she mused and realized that Jill was talking from the other room.
“My sweet Babe was a medic in the Army, and we both have always felt a need to give or want to help people. That’s how he ended up in Afghanistan,” she said proudly, setting down a bowl in front of Daphne before taking a seat. “No one else would take the orders and were asking for different places or simply chose not to re-enlist… but not my Babe. My man stood up, called them all a bunch of crybabies, and asked for Afghanistan or Iraq – and I couldn’t have been prouder.”
The woman smiled sadly, and her lower lip wobbled.
“Don’t get me wrong,” Jill began, her voice trembling. “I’m really glad he’s home, and it was so hard with him being gone for so long, but I couldn’t be prouder of him. My sweet Babe leads by example and urges people to be a better human in this world, you know?”
