BooksBarbecue
Back Promises of Change Save as PDF
Chapters (53)
  1. Cover
  2. Everyone loves the ladies of Covington!
  3. Also by Joan Medlicott
  4. Title Page
  5. Copyright
  6. Dedication
  7. Acknowledgments
  8. 1
  9. 2
  10. 3
  11. 4
  12. 5
  13. 6
  14. 7
  15. 8
  16. 9
  17. 10
  18. 11
  19. 12
  20. 13
  21. 14
  22. 15
  23. 16
  24. 17
  25. 18
  26. 19
  27. 20
  28. 21
  29. 22
  30. 23
  31. 24
  32. 25
  33. 26
  34. 27
  35. 28
  36. 29
  37. 30
  38. 31
  39. 32
  40. 33
  41. 34
  42. 35
  43. 36
  44. 37
  45. 38
  46. 39
  47. 40
  48. 41
  49. 42
  50. 43
  51. 44
  52. 45
  53. Discussion Questions

Doc Johnson had been Ida’s doctor for more years than she could remember. He reprimanded her and wagged a long bony finger in her face.

“You know better than to let this go like this. You’ve got you a mighty big infection going on in that chest of yours, Ida. I’d put you in the hospital, but I know what a stubborn old woman you are. So, I’m gonna give you a shot.” He looked at June. “You get these antibiotics right away. See that she takes them every four hours and call me in the morning. Let me know how she is. If she’s not better in two days, she’s going into the hospital.

“Now don’t you start with me, Ida,” he said in response to her open mouth and raised hand. “Not a word out of you.” He turned to June. “That’s how it’s gonna be, so you see that she doesn’t miss taking a pill, not one of them, or so help me, I’ll send the ambulance to carry her off.”

“See me here?” Ida poked her chest. “I’m sitting right here. Why are you talkin’ to June like I’m not here?” She doubled over with a bout of coughing.

“Well, I’m telling you to your face now, Ida,” the doctor said. “You take these pills to the very last one and don’t be saving none of them for one of your goats. Goats don’t use people medicine. It won’t help them not one little bit. You got a sick goat, you take it to the vet.”

Ida waved a hand at him. “That was just that one time. You gonna keep reminding me?”

Doc Johnson laughed, put his arm about Ida’s shoulders, and led her to the door. “You go on home now and rest, Ida. Let yourself get better. It would probably be best if you took her home with you, June, so she gets looked after properly. Better get someone reliable to see to her goats or she won’t stay still.”

It was guilt made her sick, Ida knew that. Guilt for losing good money, like flushing it right down the toilet. She longed to tell someone, but how could she? She’d acted high and mighty when her neighbors were feeling real bad. She’d acted uppity and said, right out there in front of them all, that she’d been too smart to get taken in by a scammer. She thought about this as she coughed until she thought she’d die. The bronchitis was God’s punishment, and she’d have to bear it.

25

Teenage Angst

Several days after the meeting at the church, Grace returned home to find Tyler perched on the top step of her front porch, twiddling a twig between his fingers. His long legs, stretched out in the warm spring sunshine, reached almost to the bottom step.