“We’ll move on to the next item, elections,” Joshua said.
Jim interjected, “Joshua, before you get to elections, may I have a moment?”
“Sure, come on up.”
Jim stepped onto the porch. “As some of you know I was a pastor for a number of years. I’d like to have a worship service every Sunday. No one will be forced to come, but I’d love to see all of y’all there.”
“Good idea,” Joshua said. “Where do you propose to hold it?”
Drew offered a suggestion. “As Thomas mentioned earlier, there will be a community shelter up the path near my cabin. You are welcome to have it there.”
How in the world did he strike a deal for a cabin AND a shelter? Joshua’s brow furrowed. I hope he’s not pulling one over on Thomas.
“Thanks, Drew,” Jim responded. “I’ll take you up on that. We’ll meet at 11:00 every Sunday, beginning one week from today.”
“Thank you, Jim,” Joshua continued. “I agree that worship will be an important part of our community here. As Jim said, no one will be forced to come, but I encourage everyone to participate. And Drew, thank you for agreeing to provide a place.”
Ruth Moore raised her hand. “Jim, what kind of service will it be?”
Jim smiled. “Excellent question, Ruth. Well, I was a pastor at a Southern Baptist church, but I’ve always believed that denominations are unnecessary divisions based on man-made biases. I’ll discuss what I feel led to discuss based on Scripture, without regard to denominational divisions. We will focus on the foundational items that should unite us as Christians.”
“What are those?” Ruth’s shoulder-length blonde hair ruffled in the morning breeze.
Jim smiled. “I’m glad you asked, and I’ll be glad to explain what I believe. First, the Bible says in Romans 3:30, there is one God. Additionally, the Bible says in Romans 3:23 that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Romans 6:23 adds that the wages of sin is death. Put another way, each and every one of us has sinned against God and there is nothing we can do on our own to repay that debt. That’s the bad news, but there is good news. As written in Romans 5:8, God demonstrates His own love toward us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Put another way, Jesus Christ paid a debt that we were unable to pay ourselves. So what does that mean in our lives? Romans 5:8 not only states that the wages of sin is death, but also that the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. However, it is not enough for a gift to be offered to us; we must accept that gift. The Bible states in Romans 10:9-10 thatif you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. If you have questions about how you can accept this gift I would love to talk with you after the meeting.”
“Hmm.” Ruth’s bright blue eyes narrowed, but she did not speak.
Joshua continued. “Thank you, Jim. If you have questions about what he just described, please talk to him today. Now we will move on to elections. As I stated earlier there will be five council positions. The floor is now open for nominations.”
Perry raised his hand. “I nominate Joshua Winston.”
Drew jumped in. “I move that we elect Joshua to the council before accepting any further nominations.”
Before Joshua could object the entire crowd yelled “aye.” Joshua felt his face flush red with embarrassment. “Thank you.” The group applauded. “That’s one spot filled and we have four remaining. I nominate Perry Edwards.”
Perry started to object. “Joshua, I don’t…” He was interrupted by a sharp elbow to his side from Caroline, who offered an equally sharp glare. “I accept. And I nominate Bob Kendall.”
Drew frowned but did not publicly object.
Jim raised his hand. “Given that Thomas Page is providing us with this land, I think he should serve on the council. I nominate Thomas.”
“Man, I don’t have to be on the council. But I will if y’all want me to.”
Jim stood firm. “I feel strongly about it. This is your land, and you should be on the council.”
“So far, we have nominations for Perry Edwards, Bob Kendall, and Thomas Page,” Joshua said. “That’s three nominations for four open seats. Are there further nominations?”
For a few moments no one spoke. Many in the crowd looked down to avoid making eye contact. Perry broke the awkward silence. “Joshua, what happens if we only have four council members?”
“We could call a special meeting at any time to fill the vacancy if someone was willing to step up. However, with only four people we would have the potential for tie votes, which could be problematic.”
Thomas spoke up. “Man, I’d like to nominate Drew Thompson. He seems to have a lot of experience with government-type stuff.”
Drew eagerly accepted the nomination. “Thank you. I would be honored to serve.” Bob let out a loud groan.
“We have nominations for Perry Edwards, Bob Kendall, Thomas Page and Drew Thompson,” Joshua said. “That’s four nominations for four remaining spots. Are there further nominations?”
Jim offered a motion to close nominations and elect the four nominees. The motion passed unanimously.
“We have our council,” Joshua said. “Perry Edwards, Bob Kendall, Thomas Page, Drew Thompson and myself. Council members, do you have a nomination for chair?” Joshua was unanimously selected as the council’s new chair.
“Thank you,” Joshua said. “As most of you know, I had been looking forward to not being in any kind of political office at any level. However, this is different. These are uncertain times, and I will do my best to uphold the trust you have placed in me. We do have a few more items to cover. We need to discuss our food situation. We asked everyone to bring as much non-perishable food as you could get your hands on. Rebecca and I have about three weeks’ worth of canned goods. Perry and Caroline, how much do you have?”
“Probably a couple of weeks,” Caroline answered.
“Bob, how about you?”
“Martin and I each have one week of rations and are prepared to begin implementing survival techniques, effective today.”
“Okay,” Joshua continued. “Drew?”
Drew’s answer turned a few heads. “About six months’ worth.”
“Hmm.” Bob cocked an eye.
“Very good. Jim, how about you guys?”
Jim’s answer included an invitation for lunch. “We have about two weeks of canned goods, and we also brought along a bunch of hamburgers on ice that need to be cooked today.”
“Excellent. Lunch is on Jim. Jack, how about you guys?”
“Maybe a week.”
“Thanks. Chuck and Sheri Jones, how about you?”
“Probably about ten days,” Sheri answered.
“John and Ruth Moore?”
“About two weeks,” John answered.
“Thomas, how about you guys?”
“Man, we’re good. Don’t worry about us.”
“As you can see our food supply could run out in fairly short order. This is the one critical area where we will have to work together, and everyone will need to contribute. A month will pass before we know it. If we don’t plan, we’ll have major problems. If we’re going to survive, we must become as close to self-sufficient as possible, as soon as possible. Your non-perishable food supply is not communal, it is yours. The longer you can make it last, the better. Those of us who have experience hunting and fishing need to put that experience to work starting today. The sooner we can begin generating new food sources, the longer our non-perishable supplies will last.”
Caroline raised her hand.
“Yes, Caroline?”
“Where are you guys planning to clean the animals you kill? Hopefully not too close to where we’re living…”
Most of the women in the group nodded in agreement. Joshua noticed a quick smirk from Rebecca. “Good point. We’ll s
et up a cleaning station somewhere a bit removed from your living areas.”
“Thank you.” Caroline sighed in relief. Bob let out a low chuckle.
Caroline again raised her hand. “Joshua, one more question. As you know I’m a vegetarian. So far you’ve talked about hunting and fishing. What vegetarian options do you have?”
“Well, I can’t promise that we will have vegetarian options. We’ll all have to get out of our comfort zone to survive.” Caroline frowned and groaned. Joshua continued, “However, that brings me to my next point. If you have experience farming or gardening, we will need you to put those skills to use. Rebecca and I are amateurs at best.”
“I grew up on a farm,” Thomas chimed in. “We grew corn, soybeans and had a huge garden.”
“Good,” Joshua said. “We will need to consider two parts of our agriculture operation, animals and crops. Rebecca and I have a few cows, and we need to keep them alive. Thomas is bringing a bull, so we can hopefully expect the herd to grow and provide a secondary meat source.”
“Secondary?” Perry asked
“Secondary to whatever our hunting and fishing efforts yield. Thomas is also getting a couple of dairy cows. We should have those tomorrow. Rebecca and I have chickens, which will provide both eggs and meat. The biggest challenge will be protecting them from predators.”
Chuck Jones raised his hand. A hulking African-American, he had played linebacker in college, worked as a deputy sheriff and later started a security consulting firm. “Our dogs, Ace and Sampson, are Great Pyrenees. Their breed is often used to protect livestock from predators. They’ve always just been pets to us, but we’d be glad to put them in the area you fence in for the cows and chickens and see if they help.”
“Thanks, Chuck,” Joshua said. “We’ll take you up on that. Additionally, at the appropriate time we will need to begin planting and growing vegetables and, if possible, some fruits. If any of you have experience canning or otherwise preserving food, please see Rebecca after this meeting. We’ll also need to protect our crops from deer and other animals that will try to eat them.”
“Any deer or anything else that tries to eat our plants should become our next meal,” Jack said.
Joshua chuckled. “I cannot understate the importance of getting started shoring up our food supply today. If we don’t, we’ll be in dire straits in very short order. Anyone who doesn’t have experience with hunting, fishing or farming and is willing to learn, let me know.”
“Over the next two days, we should try to get everything we need from outside the camp,” Joshua continued. “Bob will work with Thomas to coordinate trips to stores, farmers’ markets and other sites in the area. We’ll take different vehicles and people each time. That will allow us to ensure that every vehicle in the camp has a full tank of gas, and will also help avoid drawing unnecessary attention.”
“How will that help avoid drawing attention to us?” Perry asked.
Joshua explained. “Well, all of us except Thomas are brand-new to this area. If a brand-new person to a small area like this suddenly starts showing up at the same store over and over, locals will notice. We don’t want to be noticed. For safety purposes either Bob, Kane or Jack will go along on every trip outside of the camp for now. We don’t know what’s going on out there and should take every possible precaution. We’ll begin trips to area stores and markets tomorrow morning, so please let Rebecca know of anything you think we need. She’ll be keeping the master list. Are there any more questions?”
Sheri raised her hand.
“Yes, Mrs. Jones?”
Sheri put her arms around two of her children. “Chuck and I have our three children with us. There obviously isn’t a school in the camp. We don’t know if there are schools nearby, and even if there are, based on what I’m hearing we shouldn’t enroll our children there as that would draw attention to us. We want them to continue their education somehow.”
Andrea raised her hand. “I’m a teacher, and Jack and I want Billy to continue his education. I don’t have any supplies here but I’d be willing to help with that as best I can.”
“We have a few books,” Rebecca chimed in.
“Man, I’ve got all kinds of books up in my cabin,” Thomas added. “Y’all are welcome to use any of ‘em.”
“Thanks, Andrea,” Joshua said. “I appreciate you taking the lead and will do what I can to help. Are there other questions or comments?” This time, none were forthcoming. “We’ve got a lot to do. We are adjourned.”
After the meeting Joshua and Perry caught up with Thomas. “Thomas, thanks again for everything. I don’t know what we would have done if you had not been so gracious as to allow us to come here.”
“Don’t sweat it. Glad to do it. I’m sure y’all will help me out, too.”
Drew, sporting a pair of khakis and a blue dress shirt with red suspenders, walked up as Thomas finished his sentence. He spoke in his usual nasally voice. “Thomas, thank you for nominating me for council. I was starting to worry that I wasn’t going to be nominated. I am honored to serve.” Drew blew his nose into a handkerchief, resulting in a honking noise that sounded remarkably like a duck call.
“No problem, man.”
“Did I just hear what I think I heard?” Perry asked Joshua after Drew and Thomas left them. “Did Drew really say he was worried that he wouldn’t be nominated?”
“I think so.” Joshua shook his head.
Everyone got busy unpacking and setting up the camp. Thomas greeted his workers and immediately took three of them up the path to Drew’s cabin. Bob and Kane erected a metal pole in front of Joshua’s house and raised the American flag. Joshua and Rebecca invited John and Ruth to stay with them until they made other arrangements, and Joshua was pleased to learn that Jim and his family would be staying with Drew.
After the unloading was complete the delicious aroma of grilling hamburgers permeated the camp. Jim said grace and everyone gathered around Joshua’s front porch. Some sat on the steps, others on folding chairs they had brought with them, and others on the ground. Joshua and Rebecca sat with Jim’s family and the others sat grouped with their own families. Reagan and the other dogs paid close attention to the hamburgers and were even treated to a few scraps. An eerie quiet infiltrated only by the low murmur of people quietly talking with their families overcame the camp.
“Jim, you’ve always had good insight into people. How do you think everyone is doing?” Joshua asked.
“Hard to tell.” Jim wiped his mouth on his sleeve. “I think everyone is still a bit on edge, but glad we made it here in one piece. Generally nervous about what the future holds.”
Joshua nodded as he took another bite of his burger.
After lunch Drew and two of Thomas’ contractors headed back up the path to his cabin. Jack, Perry, Chuck, Thomas and Jim teamed up to erect a fence for the cows, a job made easier by some extra posts Thomas provided, while Bob and Kane took their rifles and disappeared into the woods. Reagan watched the fence construction project from a distance.
***
Bob pushed his way through the thick underbrush. Kane silently followed him as they made their way to the secluded area where they had camped under the stars the night before. Upon arrival Bob did a quick scan to make sure no one else was in earshot, then got down on one knee and motioned for Kane to join him. Kane dropped to one knee and removed his hat.
“Martin, something fishy is up with that Drew Thompson character,” said Bob. “Go see if you can get eyes on what he is unloading.”
“Yes, sir!” Kane donned his hat, retrieved a dark green backpack and began traversing the thick underbrush near their campsite. After some time the back of Drew’s cabin came into view. Kane dropped to the ground and crawled toward the edge of the woods. He camouflaged himself with a ghillie suit and studied the scene with a small telescope.
Drew’s moving trailer was backed up to the side door, so close that Thomas’ workers could step directly from the trailer into the cabin.
Kane watched as the workers carried black bags from the truck through the living area into a hall. Command Sergeant Major Kendall will want to know what’s in those bags and where they’re storing them, he thought.
Kane crawled to a different vantage point that offered a view through another window. The workers were still moving bags and placing them in a closet. Kane gritted his teeth, irritated that he could not tell what was it the bags. Command Sergeant Major will want more information. After the process repeated several times he retreated from his position and quietly slipped away into the woods.
***
The fencing crew had enclosed a small area and moved the cows from their temporary fence. “We’ll have to expand this over time,” Perry said. “But it’s a start.”
Chuck brought Ace and Sampson to the newly fenced in area. The cows were spooked by the new arrivals, but the dogs seemed right at home. Reagan seemed unsure about these giant, shaggy white behemoths.
Joshua and Perry built a chicken coop adjacent to the cattle fence, used some leftover wood to build nests and released the chickens into the coop. Joshua did a head count: five red hens, four speckled gray ones and three white ones, plus two roosters: one red, the other a speckled gray dominecker. The chicken coop included a shelter, roosts, nests and a wire roof to keep predators out.
“We’ll keep them locked up for a few days and then start letting them roam some during the day,” Joshua said.
***
Kane silently made his way through the woods from Drew’s cabin to their campsite in the woods, where Bob was waiting. Command Sergeant Major is going to be disappointed that I could not discern what was in the bags, he thought. He felt a bead of sweat form on his forehead.
Bob got straight to the point as Kane reached their campsite. “What did you find out, Martin?”
After the Republic Page 11
