Roseflower Creek
Page 20
Poor Maybelle, she keeps getting sicker. I best pray for her real good. Seems only right, after all them nice things she done. Yep, I best pray it ain't her time yet, and that she gets herself well, 'cause she ain't really a bad person trying to get good; she's just a sick person trying to be well. It's true, she weren't always nice to people, but everybody's got some bad parts in 'em, mixed up with the good, don't they? Even Carolee, she was about the bestest person I knowed in the whole world, and she had herself a bad part. She liked to make faces at Darla Faye when she weren't looking and she stuck gum in Darla's hair once, on purpose even. Made her cry and Carolee laughed. That weren't nice. See what I mean?
So I hope Maybelle gets well. It'd make her real happy. Truth be known, it'd make me happy, too. I don't much wanna run into her up here, 'least not right off, anyway. I don't got a heavy heart against her or nothing. Look at all she done for us. I'd just like to have a little time to myself 'fore I run into her again, is all. And—if Mama gets to come—I reckon she won't want to see Maybelle first thing, neither.
Speaking on Mama, they never did find out who put that rat poison in her 'taters. They questioned a whole lotta people, too. I'd like to think it was someone who loved her, but it coulda been someone that didn't. I could find out for myself if I stayed a bit longer, but it's my time to move on.
Just think—I'm gonna see MeeMaw. Won't that be something? And Carolee; she'll be right surprised to see me comin' up yonder. I hardly growed any! And little Iris Anne—I ain't never even seen her yet. Won't that be cute? A little baby girl angel. I probably might even get to see Jesus. Never know. I'd sure like to. I want to ask him if he's doing okay, on account of what them peoples did to him with those nails and stuff. And for sure I want to ask him if it'd be okay if Mama come here, even though she killed Ray dead. I want him to know her heart was in the right place that day she done it, but the screws in her head come loose and she couldn't help herself none. MeeMaw said he's a fella got a really big heart hisself, so he'll probably understand. And don't forget forgiveness; that's about his favorite thing, forgiveness.
Guess what? A real bright pretty light's coming my way. Reckon I best be going. One time I heard some folks say, Heaven can wait, but I don't see it that way. But then, I'm seeing a whole lotta things different now, with better eyes than the ones I had before.
MeeMaw was right fond of saying, "Lori Jean, git a move on, honey. You'll be late." It's so strange. I can hear her speaking them same words to me this very moment. I can! Fancy that.
Epilogue
"Isn't she pretty, Melvin?"
"That she is, Lexie. Pretty as her namesake."
"Baby girl, you got your name from an angel."
"Mama?"
"What, sugar?"
"Is Lori Jean really a angel?"
"Alice, honey, she sure enough is."
"Is that why you named the baby for her?"
"I named the baby for her, so we'll always have a part a' her with us."
"What part's that, Ma?"
"The best part, Irl. The part that rests in our heart."
"I don't understan', Mama."
"See, sugar, every time we call the new baby's name, our heart will skip a beat…and in that tiny little moment it skips, we'll have our Lori Jean with us once again. Now, isn't that nice?"
"Uh-huh."
"Melvin, honey?"
"What, sugarplum?"
"Ya' think Lori Jean knows we got a new baby named for her?"
"No way a knowing for a fact, Lexie, but I'd like to think she does. That'd be right nice, wouldn't it, darlin'?"
"Oh, Melvin…"
"Right nice…sugarplum…right nice indeed…"
Thw Inspiration for Roseflower Creek
I didn't start writing until the last of our children left home and my husband assured me they weren't coming back unless they needed money. I decided to take up writing to fill the hours and enrolled in a writer's course at the Continuing Education Center at the University of Georgia in Athens.
After attending my first class, I was concerned about what it was I would actually write about. One morning the following week, I picked up a copy of our local newspaper and noticed a United Press article on the front page that said: "Jury Selection Begins in Death Penalty Case."
The article went on to explain that a ten-year-old boy had died at the hands of his mother and her boyfriend after a beating for allegedly stealing five dollars in the lunch room. I remember thinking how awful that would be—physically, emotionally, and spiritually—to die that way and said, "You poor little boy. It must have hurt so bad." A little voice in my head said, "Yeah, it did hurt, and the morning I died it rained."
I immediately ran upstairs and opened a document and wrote the opening line and the first fifty pages of Roseflower Creek, not knowing what the title of the novel would be or where the actual story would go.
I did determine that the protagonist would be a ten-year-old girl, and I moved the story back to the 1950s, which is when I grew up. I took great liberty with the story I read of in the newspaper, and other than the inspiration, Roseflower Creek is totally fictitious. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.
Acknowledgments
This book could not have been written without help from above. With deep gratitude to God for planting the seeds…and to His angels for helping them grow.
Special thanks to Judy Iakovou, who taught me the elements of fiction, and to Harriette Austin for her diligent instruction in the art of suspense, and to her students for putting up with me. Much love and gratitude to each of you.
Also, to Ron Pitkin and his staff at Cumberland House (especially Lisa Taylor, Stacie Bauerle, Teresa Wright, and Julie Jayne), who loved Lori Jean and believed in her story—without whose faith, dedication, and hard work, these pages, as such, would not exist. My deepest appreciation and warmest regards always.
Reading Group Guide
1. Both Melvin and Ray were raised in the same environment with the same abusive father. Discuss the reasons that Melvin turned out different. What personality attributes did he posses that were decidedly different from Ray's?
2. Prior to her death, Lori Jean suffered the loss of her father, her grandmother, and her best friend Carolee. How did each of these events shape who she was to become?
3. There were several reasons why Lori Jean did not turn Ray in when she discovered he'd stolen the payroll. What was her primary concern?
4. Lori Jean was abandoned by her real father and had to deal with a stepfather who was less than ideal. Did you ever have a father figure who wasn't your real father? What were the challenges you faced?
5. How did MeeMaw influence Lori Jean? How did it make a difference in Lori Jean's ability to handle life?
6. Carolee was a friend who greatly impacted Lori Jean's selfesteem. Discuss the ways in which Carolee's attitudes affected Lori Jean's perspective on life.
7. Nadine chose a poor husband in Lori Jean's father. Why was she so eager to engage in another tumultuous relationship? What do you think attracted Nadine to Ray in the first place?
8. Do you find it strange that Nadine readily followed Ray's demand to have an abortion? Was it fear alone? Are there other circumstances that may have allowed her to let such a thing to happen?
9. How would you describe Lori Jean's relationship with Aunt Lexie and Uncle Melvin? What would her life have been like had she been their daughter?
10. In the 1950s, child abuse was not considered anyone's business. Discuss ways Lori Jean may have been saved from her fate had things been different. What would her choices have been?
11. MeeMaw was adamant when she was alive that Ray was not welcome in their household. Had she lived, do you think Lori Jean's final outcome would have been different?
12. Nadine refused to defend herself at her trial. Why do you think that was? Was it all because of guilt over Lori Jean, or were other factors involved?
13. When Maybelle gets colon
cancer, her personality transforms. Is that the only reason for her transformation?
14. Many people find that a tragedy brings a major turning point in their life. Melvin claimed the fire would make a new man out of Ray. Why didn't it?
15. Why did Melvin make excuses for Ray? Was it solely his guilt that Ray had protected him from their father or was there a deeper motivation for his empathy?
16. Lori Jean discovers the reason she wants to forgive Ray for all the sadness he brought to their lives when she discovers how thoroughly he and his mother were abused. Have you had a similar reckoning with forgiveness?
17. Once back in Alabama, what do you think happens to Aunt Lexie and Uncle Melvin? Do they find the happiness for themselves and their children they so richly deserve? Do you see them taking joy in their new daughter, Lori Jean's namesake?
18. Who do you think brought the poison to Nadine at the end of the novel? Lori Jean says it could have been someone who loved her, or someone who didn't. Which do you think it was?
About the Author
Jackie Lee Miles, a resident of Georgia for over thirty-five years, hails from Wisconsin via South Dakota. She considers herself "a northern girl with a southern heart." Her paternal grandfather was christened Grant Lee by her great-grandmother in honor of the many fallen soldiers on both sides of the Mason-Dixon Line. She resides in Atlanta, Georgia, and Cape Canaveral, Florida, with her husband Robert, and she is a featured speaker at book clubs, schools, and writer's workshops. When not writing or speaking, Miles tours with the Dixie Darlin's, four nationally published book-writing belles who serve up helpings of down-home humor and warmth. When the Darlin's come to town, they don't just sign books; they give a lively presentation, peppered with advice, animation, and lots of anecdotes. For more information or to schedule an appearance, contact Karin Gillespie at kgillespie@knology.net.
You can write the author at Jackie@jlmiles.com, and you can visit her website at www.jlmiles.com.
Table of Contents
Copyright
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-one
Chapter Twenty-two
Chapter Twenty-three
Chapter Twenty-four
Chapter Twenty-five
Acknowledgments
Reading Group Guide
About the Author