Chapter 9: Going to Town

"After the sugar snow had gone, spring came. Birds sang in the leafing hazel bushes along the crooked rail fence. The grass grew green again and the woods were full of wild flowers. Buttercups and violets, thimble flowers and tiny starry grassflowers were everywhere.

Pa said that as soon as he had the crops in, they would all go to town. Laura and Mary could go, too. They were old enough now.

They were very much excited, and next day they tried hard to play going to town. The could not do it very well, because they were not quite sure what a town was like. They knew there was a store in town, but they had never seen a store.

Once Laura and Mary find out they're finally going to town, they spend their days telling their little dolls that they are MUCH to young to go to town. Maybe next year. If they're good. At last the day arrives when Pa says they will go to town tomorrow. Even though it's the middle of the week, Laura and Mary have another bath and afterward Ma puts their hair up in rags.

The next morning the whole family dresses in their best and climbs into the wagon for the long trip into Pepin. There is lots to see in the forest during the spring, but at last the road gets sandy and Laura can see glimpses of blue water through the trees. Then Laura sees Lake Pepin for the first time. It is so big it looks like it goes to the edge of the world. By the shores of the lake sits the town of Pepin, so wonderful Laura can barely breathe.

Pa leaves the wagon at the edge of the lake and ties the horses to each side. Then it is time for the store! It is full of calico, plows, sugar, axes, shoes of all sizes, and everything else in the world! And the most wonderful part of all is when the storekeeper gives Mary and Laura each little candy heart. Laura takes hers home; it is much too pretty to eat.

After a picnic at the lake, Pa goes back to visit with the other farmers at the store, Carrie takes a nap on Ma's lap, and Laura and Mary run up and down the lake shore picking up pretty pebbles. Laura puts so many in her pocket that the seams rip, but Ma can fix it, so the day ends all right after all.

Thoughts:
Even to this hardy pioneer, it is a little early for lake sports, especially since the weather has tended towards the rainy/windy side of things. But I had another project that would just fit the bill for this chapter. There is a little "everything" store in town that I've wanted to go to since I first saw it last summer. The problem is that it is always closed; the proprietress got tired of staying down there all the time, so you have to call for an appointment.

"Laura could have looked for weeks and not seen all the things that were in that store. She had not known there were so many things in the world."

In a serendipitous arrangement of circumstances, the same rain that kept me off of any lake also kept the farmer that owns the store out of his fields. So he had nothing better to do than to come down and let me explore his shop. It was a lovely place, full of everything a hardy pioneer might want, and quite a bit a hardy pioneer wouldn't have a clue what to do with. I saw a number of things I could use for Pioneer Immersion Week, but I didn't get them yet (just in case I chicken out).


I did get a couple of inexpensive things for PIW. They had a lovely matching set of easy chairs--only $1.00 each--for the discerning pioneer decorator, and a cordless toaster/roaster oven for only $1.00, too.


There were so many treasures to choose from that I had a hard time making up my mind. But I couldn't take everything home with me! A genuine pioneer is frugal and remembers to save for a rainy day. And around here, there are a LOT of rainy days.

"Pa got enough calico to make Ma a new apron. Ma said, 'Oh, no, Charles, I don't really need it.'
But Pa laughed and said she must pick it out, or he would get her the turkey red piece with the big yellow pattern. Ma smiled and flushed pink, and she picked out a pattern of rosebuds and leaves on a soft, fawn-colored ground."

Besides the Pioneer Immersion Week items, I picked up a bird cage and a wicker handbag for $1.00 each, and a birdwatching sign, also for $1.00 (that was pretty much my price limit!)I also got Laura a jump-rope and a scooter, plus the proprietor gave her a reading pillow.

For my kitchen, I picked up a woven tray, a rolling pin, a cherry-red tea pot, and a mama chicken and two baby chicks. All together, I spent the jaw-dropping total of $15.00. Back in Laura Ingalls Wilder's day, that would have been quite a sum, indeed!



But I have my eye on that wringer, a washboard, a sad iron, a scythe, and a few other things I might need to survive on the frontiers of North Dakota. Maybe I could install that beautiful pump on my kitchen counter so I can have running water in the house.....Just kidding. I actually do have running water--for the moment anyway.







After we finished browsing, I wandered around back and took a few pictures of the spring colors. Such a relief to the eyes after winter. I've learned that you can't appreciate springs until you've been through a real winter. Maybe that's why God sends us so many "winters" in our lives.