Baby

mouth she discovered he had no tongue. Removing her hands from his mouth, she wondered how he could eat or drink. Baby certainly puzzled her.
    “Come along Baby, we have much to do today.” She stood, ready to head home. Looking down, she saw Baby was still sitting with his mouth wide open. She gently reached down and with her fingertips, she closed his mouth. Laughing, she thought about how happy and light hearted he made her feel, even in the face of discouragement. As she walked back to the cabin, she turned to see if Baby followed. Yes, he shuffled behind, rotating his head on its swivel, allowing him to look around to the fading orchard as he followed Netty home.
    After a quick lunch of cold porridge left from breakfast, Netty retired with Baby to the field she had begun to till the day before. As she collected the larger of the fieldstones, piling them to the side of the field, Baby observed her intently.
    “Food?” he probed in her mind.
    “No Baby, we are going to plant seed in the soil to grow our food.” Progress was slow but as she tilled the soil she could smell the rich organic loaminess . Hard work never killed anyone, she thought, energized with the thought of the independence her crops could provide her. As the afternoon wore on, she made excellent progress. The part of the field she was working in was now clear of rock. She raked the smaller stones to the side, adding to her pile of rock she planned to use as field boundary markers. She knew her papa and Mr. Wood never wasted anything on the farm. Everything had a purpose. Even the weeds from the field would be used in her giant compost pile. If this season’s planting were successful, it would enable her to sell more at her stand. Her fervent hope was to purchase a horse to help her plow the field next season. Netty found herself filled with new hope and plans for her success, such an overwhelming change from yesterday. And she knew she had Baby to thank. She reached up to happily rub her nose, smiling at him as he lay rigidity stretched out under an oak tree. Eating again, she laughed to herself. Her mind whispered the golden aura.
    ###
    “Yes Sister.” Oops, I better watch that, not much privacy from Baby .
    Netty realized Baby brought a big lift to her spirits. For the first time in years, she dare think she was not alone. She knew she would go to bed tonight with anticipation for the new day instead of her normal dread. Maybe tomorrow she could begin some planting. She would like to get a jump on the season, and then continue clearing the field. Calling to Baby, she picked up her tools and started home. It had been quite a day.
    As Netty approached the door to the cabin, she dropped her tools, thinking she would open up the seed caskets and scope out her selections for the morning. Some of the beans would require soaking overnight before they could be planted. Walking to the back field, she let herself into her makeshift hospital, now being used strictly for storage. Taking a trowel, she went to the earthen floor under the single window where she knew her papa used to store the seed. Scraping off the top few inches of soil, she exposed the caskets. Even though they were really half caskets they were terribly heavy. Lifting them out of their hole, she lined them up and popped the lids. They came off unusually easily. One sniff of the seeds told the story. Rot. She spilled a casket on to the floor. Most of the seeds were covered with a layer of mold. She was unable to tell how many of the seeds were still good, unwilling to waste precious energy and tilled space to plant bad seeds on the hope they might germinate. Her exultant mood evaporated. She dispiritedly left the animal hospital, passing by Baby as she let herself into the cabin. Baby’s neck was swiveled toward the hospital. Realizing he remained outside, Netty returned to the door to call to him. The last thing she recalled before the pressure hit her was Baby’s golden tail in the air.
    Netty picked herself off the floor, having landed on her bottom again. She detected the same odor she remembered from the cavern. Sulphur. What just happened? Did it mean something? Netty stood rooted to her spot, confusion immobilizing her as Baby strolled past her to the straw mat at the fireplace as if nothing happened.
    Well, she shrugged . I guess that means it’s time for dinner. Putting on the dinner pot, she grabbed a potato from the bin. She wondered if Baby would eat something this