A Will and a Way

Jolley had discarded. “And the bird cage out of Popsicle sticks. Uncle Jolley said it took him six months to finish it, then he didn’t have the heart to put a bird inside.”
    “Lucky for the bird,” Michael muttered, but found himself, as always, drawn to the dusty charm of the place. “Spats,” he said, and lifted a pair from a box. “Can’t you see him in them?”
    “And this hat.” Pandora found a huge circular straw with a garden of flowers along the brim. “Aunt Katie’s. I’ve always wished I’d met her. My father said she was just as much fun as Uncle Jolley.”
    Michael watched Pandora tip the brim over her eyes. “If that was her hat, I believe it. How about this?” He found a black derby and tilted it rakishly.
    “It’s you,” Pandora told him with her first easy laugh in days. “All you need’s a high white collar and a walking stick. Look.”She pulled him in front of a tall cheval mirror that needed re-silvering. Together, they studied themselves.
    “An elegant pair,” Michael decided, though his sweater bagged over his hips, and she already had dust on her nose. “All you need is one of those slim little skirts that sweep the floor and a lace blouse with padded shoulders.”
    “And a cameo on a ribbon,” she added as she tried to visualize herself. “No, I probably would’ve worn bloomers and picketed for women’s rights.”
    “The hat still suits you.” He turned to adjust it just a bit. “Especially with your hair long and loose. I’ve always liked it long, though you looked appealingly lost and big-eyed when you had it all chopped short.”
    “I was fifteen.”
    “And you’d just come back from the Canary Islands with the longest, brownest legs I’d ever seen in my life. I nearly ate my saucer when you walked into the parlor.”
    “You were in college and had some cheerleader hanging on your arm.”
    Michael grinned. “You had better legs.”
    Pandora pretended little interest. She remembered the visit perfectly, but was surprised, and pleased, that he did. “I’m surprised you noticed or remembered.”
    “I told you I was observant.”
    She acknowledged the thrust with a slight nod. There were times when it was best to pad quietly over dangerous ground. “We’d better start digging out the decorations. Sweeney said the boxes were back along the left and clearly marked.” Withoutwaiting for agreement, she turned and began to look. “Oh good grief.” She stopped again when she saw the stacks of boxes, twenty, perhaps twenty-five of them. Michael stood at her shoulder and stuck his hands in his pockets.
    “Think we can hire some teamsters?”
    Pandora blew out a breath. “Roll up your sleeves.”
    On some trips, they could pile two or three boxes apiece and maneuver downstairs. On others, it took both of them to haul one. Somewhere along the way they’d stopped arguing. It was just too much effort.
    Grimy and sweaty, they dropped the last boxes in the parlor. Ignoring the dust on her slacks, Pandora collapsed in the nearest chair. “Won’t it be great fun hauling them all up again after New Year’s?”
    “Couldn’t we’ve settled on a plastic Santa?”
    “It’ll be worth it.” Drumming up the energy, she knelt on the floor and opened the first box. “Let’s get started.”
    Once they did, they went at it with a vengeance. Boxes were opened, garland strewed and bulbs tested. They squabbled good-naturedly about what looked best where and the proper way to drape lights at the windows. When the parlor, the main hall and the staircase were finished, Pandora stood at the front door and took a long look.
    The garland was white and silver, twisting and twining down the banister. There were bright red bells, lush green ribbon and tiny lights just waiting for evening.
    “It looks good,” she decided. “Really good. Of course, Sweeney and Charles will want to decorate the servants’quarters and that entire box goes into the dining room, but it’s a wonderful start.”
    “Start?” Michael sat on the stairs. “We’re not entering a contest, cousin.”
    “These things have to be done right. I wonder if my parents will make it home for Christmas. Well…” She brushed that off. They always considered wherever they were home. “I’d say we’re ready for the tree. Let’s go find one.”
    “You want to drive into town now?”
    “Of course not.” Pandora was already pulling coats out of the hall closet. “We’ll go right out in the woods