Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
Mrs. Ludlow – and in fact everyone in the vicinity – heard Capt. R.E. Ludlow's noise of frustration.
“Grrrrrr!”
He was a basso profundo with a tremendously resonant voice – his frustration was like a jet engine, sputtering far too close for comfort.
“I planned to go to Big Loft tomorrow to deal with this adoption thing, but I forgot that I have a previous engagement – I almost forgot and left Sgt. Trent to handle this business expo alone!”
“Well, it's good that you remembered,” Sgt. Vincent Trent said from next door when he heard the reason, “because I had forgotten it was so close as well and would not have seen it until checking my calendar before bed.”
Capt. Ludlow shook his head.
“I feel a little better because you are 43 … but we are just doing so much out here.”
“Yep – ten reasons between us, all of them under 12 years old,” Sgt. Trent said. “But God is good: getting to the virtual Lofton County Chamber of Commerce Business Expo on time will definitely help us provide for all of them!”
Those ten children breathed a sigh of relief.
“I was sure somebody was about to die – I mean, what stupid person was messing with Papa today?” eight-year-old Edwina Ludlow said to eight-year-old Gracie Trent.
“I was worried that your brother George was going to get the grounding to end all groundings,” Gracie said. “I mean, Dad and Pop-Pop are kind of mellow, so Milton may live until 10 or even 11, and Cousin Vertran probably will too because my big brother Melvin is now 21. But your grandfather is not quite as patient.”
“Yes, he is,” Edwina said. “George is still alive. I would have let that go years ago … he is so annoying. If he pulls my hair even one more time!”
“So, this is what you do with that,” Gracie said. “When slightly bigger brothers are pulling your hair, they are not thinking about their feet, so you trip them, grab them by their collars while they are trying to figure out what happened, and drag them to your grandfather.”
“I'm writing all of that down, Gracie – boy, is he not going to be ready!”
“They never are,” Gracie said. “My father and grandfather are powerful men and your grandfather is powerful enough to be both father and grandfather all at once, so these boys forget that they are just not at that level yet and we just need to let them know and help them get their reminders. Learn 'em young, my grandmothers always say.”
“Here's the thing I don't understand, though – my youngest brother Robert really does have the same name as Papa and thinks he is just a little version, but he doesn't act like George!”
“Lil' Robert gets it, though,” Gracie said. “You don't have to be mean to be strong as a boy or a man. That boy is way too loud, but he means well all the time.”
“Way, way, way too loud and all over the place,” Edwina said. “He gets on my nerves so much and gets away with everything … but yeah, he isn't mean or anything. Lil' Robert can bother you more trying to help you than any other thing.”
“Well, he's just five,” Gracie said. “He isn't at the perfect age we are yet. You gotta be patient and just love him up to where we are.”
“Do I have to?” Edwina said.
“I'll make you some earplugs,” Gracie said. “I'll just borrow some clay from Mom – the good kind that will make a nice, hard plug because that will keep the noise out for sure! Like my Pop-Pop says and Cousin Vertran is always reminding me, there's a solution for every problem – we just gotta find it!”