Chapter 3 A Happy Sunday Nat leaped out of bed the instant the bell rang the next morning.
He found new clothes laid out on the chair and he was almost dressed when Tommy came barreling into his room and said 'Let's go down for breakfast'.
Father Bear said a short grace, and then everyone enjoyed the Sunday morning feast of weak tea, steak and baked potatoes, much more than their usual toast and butter.
A walk was planned and the Sunday lessons were laid out.
Nat thought that it would be a wonderful day, for he did love the idea of a quiet, peaceful Sunday, even if he had never truly had one.
Now boys, Father Bear said run and get your chores done so you can all be ready when the omnibus comes to take us to church.
With breakfast finished, everyone set to their tasks.
Soon the older boys were ready and waiting for the bus.
Nat still had a bad cough, so he stayed home with the younger boys who learned their Sunday lessons with Jo in her parlor.
"'Nat,' Jo called, "'come and see here.'
She showed him a closet filled with picture books, paint boxes, building blocks, little diaries and materials for writing letters.
This is my Sunday closet, she said to him.
I want my boys to love Sunday, to find it a peaceful, pleasant day, a time to rest and learn the lessons meant for the day.
Joe opened a large book and showed it to Nat.
Why, that's my name, he said.
Yes, I have a page for each boy.
I keep a little account of how he gets on through the week and show it to him on Sunday.
It's the way I help each of them to be better boys.
It's my conscience book.
No one sees it but me and the boy whose name is at the top of the page.
In his whole life, Nat had never met anyone like Mother Jo.
While he was thinking this very thought, she tweaked his ear and said Why don't you practice the hymns for tonight?
Alone with his beloved fiddle and a new music book.
Nat enjoyed an hour or two of genuine happiness before Father Bear and the boys returned from church.
After lunch, Father Bear and many of the boys set out for a walk.
Because he was sick, Nat stayed back.
Tommy stayed with him.
The pair went for a short stroll around Plumfield so Tommy could show him the land.
The long driveway around the house led to an old corn barn.
Inside were animals of all shapes and sizes.
Guinea pigs, mice, birds, a donkey, dogs, and hens.
My father sent me the money for the hens once he heard we were to raise them ourselves.
Tommy explained and pointed to a sign that identified the hens as his.
That's how most of the boys got their pets.
People either gave them to us or we bought them with money from our parents.
Nat nodded, sad because he had no parents to send him money for a pet.
Mother Jo lets me sell the eggs to her, and a little bit goes back to my father each time to pay him back.
Oh, I always give her a fair price, Tommy said.
I'd be ashamed not to.
Nat looked around at all the animals and said They're all great pets, but I think if I should have one, I would like the donkey.
Tommy nodded.
Mr. Lorry sent Toby over so Mother Jo wouldn't have to carry Teddy on our walks.
He is a very good little donkey.
Nat looked around the barn as Tommy collected the eggs from his hens.
I wish I had a dove, a turtle, or even a hen to call my own, Nat said.
Tommy thought hard for a minute.
Look here, he said.
This is what we'll do.
If you will hunt eggs with me, I'll give you one egg out of every dozen.
Once you've collected twelve, Mother Jo will give you twenty-five cents and you could buy anything you like.
I'll do it, Nat shouted.
You're a kind fellow, Tommy.
It's no bother.
Start down here.
I heard Granny crackling, so I know she's laid some eggs somewhere.
The boys managed to find two more eggs, which Tommy added to his last dozen.
Before they left the barn, Tommy changed his sign so it read, T. Bangs N. Company.
Now everyone would know he had a partner in the egg-finding business.
Back outside, Tommy led Nat to an old willow tree.
They scrambled up onto a wide branch with two little seeds attached to it.
This is Demi's and my private place, Tommy said.
No one except Daisy can come unless we let him.
Down below, Nat could see the brook bubbling.
Above him, the leaves rustled.
I hope you'll let me come up sometimes, too, he said.
As long as it's okay with Demi. but I don't think he'll mind.
Last night he told me he liked you.
He did?
Nat asked.
Sure, Tommy replied.
Dimmy likes quiet chaps.
You two will get along okay if you like books as much as he does.
Nat grew very quiet and said, I don't know how to read much.
I was always playing the fiddle.
Twelve years old and can't read, Tommy shook his head.
He pulled a book out from a shelf in the hollow of the tree and handed it to Nat.
Then he helped Nat with his reading for most of the afternoon.
Between chapters, Tommy told Nat all about the garden and the little patches of farm that belonged to each boy.
We can raise what we like in it, only we have to choose different things and tend to them all summer.
What did you choose?
Nat asked.
Beans, Tommy replied. because they're easier than corn or potatoes.
I tried melons last year, and what a disaster.
The bugs were a bother, and the old things just wouldn't ripen.
At the end of the summer, I was left with one poor watermelon and a bunch of old mushy melons.
Nat laughed and said, Corn looks pretty as it grows.
Yes, Tommy said, but you'll have to hoe it over and over.
Six weeks means, well, they'll only have to be hoed once or so, and they ripen so quick.
I wonder if I'll have a garden.
Of course you will, a voice called up from below.
It was Father Bear who had come to find them.
He tried to have a nice chat with every boy each Sunday.
Nat climbed down and he and Father Bear set off to explore the garden plots.
They found a little corner for Nat to call his own, and Father Bear explained how important it was to keep up with the crops.
It was the food they would depend on for much of the year.
Back at Plumfield, all the boys were getting ready for dinner.
The Sunday meal was a jolly occasion and soon everyone was back in Joe's parlor to hear Father Bear tell a story.
As he looked around, Nat thought the boys seemed more like a great family than a group of schoolchildren.
Father Bear began.
He told the boys a fable about a magical garden and thirteen little gardeners who each had to work hard to keep their vegetables growing.
Some gardeners flourished, while others learned that, if one lets them, weeds can grow even in the best of soils.
"'Why?'
Demi cried.
"'I think he means us.
We're the soil, and if we let the weeds grow inside us, we'll never sprout properly.'
Everyone laughed, but Father Bear said that Demi was correct.
Then Father Bear asked who would like to say what they would grow in their imaginary garden.
I shall go first, Joe spoke up, as I'm the eldest.
Even if I am mother to all of you, I should think that I still need to grow some patients in my garden.
Hopefully it will fare better than Tommy's melons.
A great chuckle came at Tommy's expense.
He went next and told everyone that he would try to be less forgetful.
The boys all took turns, many of them wishing for the same things patience, good tempers and generosity.
Once the talk of the gardens finished, it was time for some music.
Nat's fiddle fit right in with Franz's flute and Father Bear's piano.
After a merry time with sweet voices singing songs and many toes tapping in time to the lovely music, the boys went upstairs to bed.
No pillow fights tonight.
Nat slipped off to his room as well, happier than he had ever been in his entire life.
