When you have your teams together, Miz Willow will write your names down. First team to construct their wall wins the little mare.” Logan pointed to the pretty brown pony tied to a post. The rest of the animals were grazing in makeshift corrals over the hill. The hastily made fences wouldn’t hold them for too long, but they wouldn’t have to after today.
Murmurs of surprise and excitement filled the air as people sought out friends to form teams.
“We’ve got a team right here, Logan!” Ed Trevor waved his hammer in the air. “Me, m’ boys, and their uncle Asa.” He turned to the crowd. “And we aim to win that pony!”
“Not if we have anything to say about it!” Nate Rucker called out the names of the men on his team.
“All right then. Otis Nye’ll be our judge. Watch yourselves. He’s got the keenest eyes in the holler.” Logan set out the rules, listed the dimensions of the walls, and explained how the lumber had already been divided. “Everybody ready? Let’s go!” The race was on. Bryce grabbed a bag of nails and strode up to Daisy.
“Our team’s a bit short on manpower. How ‘bout if you let Jamie here hold our tools for us so we can get to them real fast?
“Shore thang.” Daisy set Jamie down on a small patch of grass just outside of the range of swinging lumber. She sat down next to him and arranged the drills, saws, hammers, and such in front of them where it would be easy for Bryce and Logan to see them. “Thanks, buddy.” Bryce winked at Jamie and Daisy and ran to help Logan heft the lumber. They were already behind, but that didn’t matter. He didn’t aim to win this race.
I don’t want the pony
. Bryce glanced over at Daisy and Jamie.
I’ve got my eyes on a sweet little filly who’s a much finer prize. Too bad she’s so dead set on running the other way
.
“And the winner is …,” Otis Nye bellowed grandly, “Team Two! Ed, Ted, Fred, and Asa win the pony!”
“Yea!” Ted jumped in the air while Fred whooped. The rest of the men grumbled good-naturedly and threw a few overblown glowers toward the winners.
“That don’t mean yore done, men!” Otis squawked. “Everybody get back to work!”
Ted and Fred joined Logan and Bryce, who lagged far behind, in part because it was just the two of them but also because they’d taken on the wall with the door, which made things more complicated. With the extra help, they began to catch up. The twins proved to be nimble climbers and swift workers as they poured all their considerable energy into the task at hand.
The scent of fresh sawdust coated the air as hammers rang and saws scraped. Men yelled back and forth for whatever they happened to need at the moment. Occasional “ow’s” punctuated the rhythm of hard work. The women drifted around the work site with fresh water to drink and cool rags to mop overheated brows.
“Nails.” Bryce took the small pouch from Jamie’s hand and traded him an empty one. Daisy filled the small pouches so Jamie didn’t ever touch the sharp points of the nails. “Thanks, buddy. We make a good team.”
He rushed back to lift a heavy piece of timber with Logan. They’d nearly finished constructing the bents; now they’d need to raise the skeleton of the wall. He looped a strong rope around the topmost bar while Logan did the same. The twins were ready with the long, spiked stockades to brace the fledgling structure while Logan and Bryce pulled it upright.
His muscles strained at the weight. If this barn were any bigger, he and Logan couldn’t have raised this wall even with the twins’ assistance. Nate Rucker ambled over and grabbed an extra rope Bryce had thought to tie in case one gave way. With the help of the burly blacksmith, the frame rose far more quickly.
“Thanks, Nate.” Bryce grinned at the enormous man, affectionately called “Li’l Nate” because his father, the blacksmith of the holler before him, was “Big Nate.” Bryce had been in the holler for just a
Murmurs of surprise and excitement filled the air as people sought out friends to form teams.
“We’ve got a team right here, Logan!” Ed Trevor waved his hammer in the air. “Me, m’ boys, and their uncle Asa.” He turned to the crowd. “And we aim to win that pony!”
“Not if we have anything to say about it!” Nate Rucker called out the names of the men on his team.
“All right then. Otis Nye’ll be our judge. Watch yourselves. He’s got the keenest eyes in the holler.” Logan set out the rules, listed the dimensions of the walls, and explained how the lumber had already been divided. “Everybody ready? Let’s go!” The race was on. Bryce grabbed a bag of nails and strode up to Daisy.
“Our team’s a bit short on manpower. How ‘bout if you let Jamie here hold our tools for us so we can get to them real fast?
“Shore thang.” Daisy set Jamie down on a small patch of grass just outside of the range of swinging lumber. She sat down next to him and arranged the drills, saws, hammers, and such in front of them where it would be easy for Bryce and Logan to see them. “Thanks, buddy.” Bryce winked at Jamie and Daisy and ran to help Logan heft the lumber. They were already behind, but that didn’t matter. He didn’t aim to win this race.
I don’t want the pony
. Bryce glanced over at Daisy and Jamie.
I’ve got my eyes on a sweet little filly who’s a much finer prize. Too bad she’s so dead set on running the other way
.
“And the winner is …,” Otis Nye bellowed grandly, “Team Two! Ed, Ted, Fred, and Asa win the pony!”
“Yea!” Ted jumped in the air while Fred whooped. The rest of the men grumbled good-naturedly and threw a few overblown glowers toward the winners.
“That don’t mean yore done, men!” Otis squawked. “Everybody get back to work!”
Ted and Fred joined Logan and Bryce, who lagged far behind, in part because it was just the two of them but also because they’d taken on the wall with the door, which made things more complicated. With the extra help, they began to catch up. The twins proved to be nimble climbers and swift workers as they poured all their considerable energy into the task at hand.
The scent of fresh sawdust coated the air as hammers rang and saws scraped. Men yelled back and forth for whatever they happened to need at the moment. Occasional “ow’s” punctuated the rhythm of hard work. The women drifted around the work site with fresh water to drink and cool rags to mop overheated brows.
“Nails.” Bryce took the small pouch from Jamie’s hand and traded him an empty one. Daisy filled the small pouches so Jamie didn’t ever touch the sharp points of the nails. “Thanks, buddy. We make a good team.”
He rushed back to lift a heavy piece of timber with Logan. They’d nearly finished constructing the bents; now they’d need to raise the skeleton of the wall. He looped a strong rope around the topmost bar while Logan did the same. The twins were ready with the long, spiked stockades to brace the fledgling structure while Logan and Bryce pulled it upright.
His muscles strained at the weight. If this barn were any bigger, he and Logan couldn’t have raised this wall even with the twins’ assistance. Nate Rucker ambled over and grabbed an extra rope Bryce had thought to tie in case one gave way. With the help of the burly blacksmith, the frame rose far more quickly.
“Thanks, Nate.” Bryce grinned at the enormous man, affectionately called “Li’l Nate” because his father, the blacksmith of the holler before him, was “Big Nate.” Bryce had been in the holler for just a
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