Chapter 7: Growing Up & New Discoveries

As the years passed, Marion grew into a lovely, popular young woman. She attended school and had an active social life. She also was always near the top of class and loved debate and politics. Her world view expanded with her opportunities.

Grandma & Grandpa Whitney and Grace all encouraged her in her studies, they always took it for granted that she would go to college somewhere. Grandpa Sam bought Marion a camera for her 16th birthday. The young woman quickly became an accomplished amateur photographer. The Whitneys also took the National Geographic magazine, which Marion pored over with a fine-toothed mind every month. Her dreams of travel and adventure just continued to grow.

She wanted to travel and take pictures like the ones she saw in the magazine, but she wasn't sure if women could do that. Her mother and grandparents saw no reason that she couldn't make that her future. So they decided that Marion should attend the University of Missouri's famous Journalism school.

However, Marion never lost touch with her southern Missouri roots. Every summer she would make the train journey to visit Grammy and Grampy Snow and her Aunt Maggie in Steelville. Even through the years of the depression, she would travel to the small town in which she had spent her first 10 years of life. Every time she would go back, she would make sure to spend time in the library to look at "her" painting. The building was so unusual... a little Eastern, a little Western... and she wanted to know where it was, and more importantly what was inside it. But she had no idea of where to find out.

So one summer day after she had turned 16, camera in hand, she took a picture of it. While she was doing this, the librarian, Mary Bass-McArdle who'd known Marion for years entered the room in which the painting hung. She's known of Marion's fascination for the painting since the girl had been staring at it ever since it was hung in the library and had always asked questions about its location and occupants. Just the week before, Mary had been adjusting the painting and some yellowed old papers had fallen out of the back of the frame, which she carefully set aside until she could figure out what to do with them.

Marion was a bit startled when Mary entered the room, but calmed as soon as she saw it was just the librarian, "Taking a photograph of your painting, Marion?"

"Yes, I want to make sure I can carry the details with me. I just hope I have enough light to get a good one," replied Marion.

"It's bright enough in here today, I think you will be able to," the librarian commented. "By the way, I think I have something that might give you at least some clues to help answer your questions about that crazy painting."

Marion almost dropped her camera in anticipation,"Really, what is it?"

Mary related the story of the papers falling out of the back of the painting as she walked to the main desk of the library. When they got to the desk, the librarian handed the young woman a thin manila envelope.

Carefully, Marion undid the clasp and peered inside a moment before pulling the aging pages out into the bright morning light. There were exactly 5, 4 were floor plans and 1 was a letter. She looked through them eagerly but gingerly. At least she had a name for the building now, "Old Central" but that didn't mean anything to her. She looked inquisitively at Mary, who answered with a shrug and look at blank as her own.

"Can I find some way to copy these?" asked Marion.

"I would like to keep them with the painting, but you are welcome to take a picture of them or trace them, " Mary replied.

"Do you have any paper I can use?"

Mary indicated that she had both paper and pencils that the girl could use to copy the papers as best she could. Marion eagerly accepted them and spent the remainder of the June afternoon hand copying every detail.

The Letter:

I.E.,

I hope these words find you well. I have included a painting of the completed Old Central, along with the floor plans for the public areas. I am quite proud of the finished results of our new home. As you can see, there is now more than enough space to adequately host events, as well as means to provide security for guests. With that in mind, I do hope you will visit for a winter season soon. You would be surprised at the growth of my fair town. C.E. and E.E. are doing well enough in their endeavors. Stay well, and write when possible.

Unconquered I Remain,
W.E.

Chapter 6: A Journey & A Meeting

The trip to St. Louis would have been a lot faster, but the train had plenty of little stops to make in all kinds of little towns. They would just get up to full speed when they would have to slow for the next one. The first few town names were at least vaguely familiar to Marion... Leasburg, Bourbon, Sullivan... but the ones with alien names just piqued the girl's imagination... St. Clair, Catawissa, Shrewsbury.

To be sure, there were other names along the way, but they all blended together in a haze of excitement, despite her initial trepidation. Every stop had different people performing a similar routine of departures, arrivals, cargo and mail. All of it fascinated her and she felt like she was part of some great ocean of the indefinable. Marion wondered at every road she could see leading away from the train depots... she wanted to explore them all to their ends and see what was to be found there.

And the people, the fascinating people... she excitedly pointed out all the bright colors and strange hats people were wearing. It made her life in Steelville seem so drab in comparison... like stepping out of a photograph into a painting. There was color, like her dreams and pictures in library books. In Marion's mind, color and dreams and strange roads and new people all equaled adventure... suddenly the change which had frightened her was but a quiet hum in the back of her mind.

As they neared St. Louis, the number of buildings and roads and people and cars and busy-ness just continued to increase. The little girl felt both a growing trepidation and excitement, which left her with a strange combination of giddy and queasy. The city thickened and drew in closer and the train went ever more slowly until a building with what seemed to be a million trains and two million people moving about loomed ahead of them. Marion's butterflies fluttered as fast as her heart was beating and she looked up at her mother, who seemed as cool as the proverbial cucumber.

"Mama, what is this place?", she asked with eyes wide.

"This is Union Station, my love," answered Grace.

"I never knew there were so many trains or big buildings or people in the world," answered the child.

Her mother replied, "It's certainly a change for you. It will be a change for me too, having lived in Steelville as long as I have."

Marion continued, "Are people nice here?"

"Marion, people are generally about the same, no matter where you go. What have you learned from all those books you have read?"

The child was thoughtful for a minute, "Well it seems like civilized people are better than the non-civilized."

Grace, always trying to challenge her child, "What makes people civilized?"

"Being American!" exhorted Marion without a second thought.

"Why are Americans civilized?", the mother asked.

This stalled the girl for a mere moment, "Because we have the Constitution and the 4th of July!"

Had the train not stopped abruptly, Grace would have continued the conversation with her daughter. But as it was, people were starting to move about and retrieve their belongings from the overhead racks and crowd towards the exits. Marion and her mother waited patiently for their turn to exit the train.

They descended the steps to the train platform, Grace grasped Marion's hand firmly as they entered the crush of people. On their way to the baggage car, the child noticed an older couple standing out of the worst of the throng, as though surveying it grimly. The woman looked a lot like her mother, she thought. Suddenly these two people were next to them in the thick of the arrivals, smiling broadly.

"Grace? Is that you?", the woman said loudly and as though she were relieved about something.

Grace turned abruptly upon hearing her name, "Mother? It is GOOD to see you."

Marion saw and felt years of grief and worry leave her mother. The child was confused but felt an inner warmth suffuse her body.

Grace and her mother embraced warmly and held it for a long moment. Very soon, however, they turned and focussed their attention on Marion. Before the women could say a word, the older gentleman swept the girl up in his arms, laughing out loud, "You must be Miss Marion! I'm your grandfather"

She was so surprised that she promptly threw up over his shoulder on a passerby. Grace and Dora froze in shock and horror... but Samuel just roared with laughter as he magnanimously handed the man who had been target by Marion's projectile his large handkerchief.

Her stomach settled and herself settled, Marion rode happily in her grandfather's arms, even though she was a big girl of 10. Nobody had ever focussed so much on just *her*... and she found that she liked it. In the blur that followed, they collected the one trunk that had been on the baggage car and were soon on their way to the Whitney's house in South St. Louis.

The house was not large, but was kept neat and comfortable, and had plenty of space for the 4 of them. Grandpa Sam and Marion grew especially close as the years passed. Grandma Dora was a bit stern sometimes, but always loving. Grace settled in comfortably and seemed to be more at ease than she had ever been down south.