The Promise Of Charity Short Story

In 1831, when Charity and Henry had their first son, Henry and his father built a room onto the small cabin. A year and a half later, they had another son, whom they named Charles. The one extra room had sufficed, but now that Charity was expecting her third child, they were making ready to build another room to allow the family room to grow.

Nancy and Eli were very proud grandparents- Charity often felt that her babies were getting all the love and attention they would have given their own children had they not died during that horrible yellow fever epidemic.

Over the last three years, Nancy had taught Charity how to put together a good meal, oftentimes having very little to work with as far as ingredients go. They gathered herbs from the herb garden, picked vegetables and dug potatoes from the spring and fall gardens, and even ventured out into the forest to gather different things at different times of the year that did not grow in their gardens; nuts, berries, bay leaves, wild sage, greens, and even medicinal herbs that they either preserved or dried, according to what it was. And, Nancy taught her how to care for her family, other than feeding them and making sure they had clean clothes and beds to sleep …show more content…
She had been married nearly half her life. She had borne seven children and still looked like a young girl herself. Her two oldest boys were already taller than she was as were the older girls. The oldest, Uriah, was almost thirteen. Next, come John, Martha Jane, Charles, Nancy, then Aaron, and baby Mary. Her emotions were torn every which way- hugging Nancy, crying because they were leaving, and feeling excited to be going, all at the same time- she hadn’t felt this way since she and her grandfather had struck out for Fort Charlotte fourteen years