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.