Previous Challenge Entry (Level 4 – Masters)
Topic: Clarify (10/15/15)
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TITLE: Peace Offering | Previous Challenge Entry
By Virgil Youngblood
10/21/15 -
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The door had barely cracked open when Cindy gave it a shove, flashing a dazzling smile as she brushed past Bonnie and headed to the kitchen. She deposited a sack emblazoned Doughnut Delights on the table. Flipping the loose end of her knitted muffler over her shoulder, she swung her head and shoulders around to unroll it, then dumped her weather gear onto a dining room chair. “Come on, Bonnie,” she exclaimed. “Get the tea pot whistling.”
“Wow! Cindy, you’re under a full head of steam today. Just a sec – let me get the kettle on and … you got me a chocolate-filled, didn’t you?”
“Chocolate for you, lemon-filled for me. If they’ve cooled off too much you may have to nuke ‘em.” Cindy held up a pastry oozing lemon sauce from a bite sized hole, swiping curd from her lips with a forefinger. “Nope, temps about right.”
Bonnie picked up a chocolate filled and smelled it. “Mmmm … mmm,” she murmured. “I need this more than you know.”
“Girl, Carter’s Meat Market was everything you said it would be. I didn’t know you could buy meat that way. The prices were right, too. Bruce likes steak, well, any kind of meat really. When he gets to feeling better, I’ll fix him a rib-eye and send him back to work.”
“I thought he was too weak to be left alone. If you went shopping, he must be improving.”
Cindy rolled her eyes, grimacing. “Mama Jones is taking care of her little Brucie. I shouldn’t be complaining. I needed a break. Is that tea ready? I saw something at Carter’s that blew me away.”
Bonnie poured tea into porcelain cups decorated with colorful Chinese dragons. “I’m all ears,” she said, placing a cream pitcher beside the sugar bowl and sliding into a chair.
Cindy picked up a lemon-filled, then laid it down and licked her fingers, drilling Bonnie with intent blue eyes. “There was this old woman standing in front of me at the meat counter. She wore a tattered grey coat and high-top faded-red galoshes. I couldn’t really see her face –it was hid behind a plaid shawl. She didn’t look like she had money to buy a loaf of bread much less meat.”
“Now Cindy, what have I told you? Don’t go judging people. They might fool …”
“I couldn’t help it. I was thinking about paying for her when the strangest thing happened. The butcher recognized her. He said, ‘There’s my favorite customer. Let me get those bones for you.’ He stepped away and came back with a tub full of bones and scraps that he wrapped up. He didn’t charge her a cent. I didn’t know what to think – still don’t.”
Bonnie smiled. “You just met Granny Minnie. I hope you never get really sick, Cindy.”
“Granny who? What are you talking about?”
“That woman makes the best beef broth known to mankind. She takes those bones and simmers them with celery and carrots and other seasonings, then strains it to get a consommé so clear and pure and rich that you won’t believe it. She’s famous around here for getting puny folks back on their feet. Granny and the butcher have a partnership ministry.”
“That old woman? She didn’t look like she …”
“There you go again, Cindy. It’s what’s on the inside that counts, not the covering. If God blesses her work, how can you not?”
“You’re right, of course. I’m new at this, Bonnie. I’m still growing in the Lord.”
Bonnie opened a drawer beneath the counter top, retrieved a journal and flipped it open. She scribbled on a piece of paper and handed it to Cindy. “This is Granny Minnie’s telephone number. If you want Bruce on his feet, call her. She’ll come if you ask, and be thrilled to do it.”
“Oh, do you think so?”
“Absolutely! Just don’t offer her money.”
“Bruce loves a savory beef broth,” Cindy said. “But, mine stinks. And he’s really sick.” Cindy dug into her coat pocket for her phone. “If Granny’s magic works, I can send Mama Jones packing.”
Seeing Bonnie frown, Cindy pointed to the last lemon-filled. She spoke before Granny answered her phone. “Do you think Mama Jones would like that?”
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