Front Porch Tales

However, all of the beauty did little to lift Victoria’s mood. As soon as she walked through the immaculately carved doors, she found herself swept in to the bright colors of gowns and decorations. Laughter and voices mingled with the orchestra of music. Jonathan and Peter were waiting with their parents in what looked like a welcoming line. “I am so glad that you ladies could join us this evening.” Victoria had to strain her ear to hear the pleasantries exchanged. Following Marie’s lead, she smiled politely and gave a short curtsy. Alice apparently still preferred a hand shake for a greeting. ‘We will be starting momentarily. Feel free to acquaint yourself with the refreshment table.”

Jonathan and Peter took their father’s comment as a cue to escort the new arrivals to the large table that was positioned near a window. “Mother had a large cake made for this occasion. You will notice that a large section has already been eaten, and no doubt by these hungry ranch hands.” Jonathan smiled at Victoria as if she should understand his joke more than the others. As if to prove Jonathan’s statement, a large man, probably near Jonathan’s age, came up to the tale and placed three large slices of cake on his plate. Just as he shoved a bite in his mouth he seemed to notice that he had and audience. His full mouth and wide eyes made a very hilarious picture, and Victoria had a difficult time keeping the smile off of her face. She distracted herself by grabbing the glass of punch that Peter handed her. She had no sooner taken a drink when the large man moved away from the table toward the other side of the room and called for everyone’s attention. His voice was loud enough to silence the room. “Tom is going to come say a few words, but before he does I want to say thanks to his lovely wife for putting this wing-ding together.  Applause erupted in the room and Victoria saw Anne standing near the door entrance smiling appreciatively at her guests. “Of course,” The attention returned to the big man. “I don’t know why she insists on cutting the cake pieces so small!” Laughter filled the room as Tom made his way toward through the crowd. “Well not everyone has the large mouth that you have, Lucas.” He fondly slapped the large man on the shoulder and turned to face the crowd.

“Welcome everyone! We are pleased that you all have come for this annual Christmas party. Our wonderful musicians will begin to play some of our favorite dances and waltzes. So without any further ado, grab a partner and enjoy the evening.” Applause followed Tom as he made his way back to his wife and twirled her onto the dance floor. Everyone quickly began to choose partners and follow their host’s lead. Victoria made her way to a chair that sat against the wall. She soon realized that the dancing was more chaotic than beautiful. Each couple seemed to be dancing their own style and there were more than a few collisions. She began to feel her mood lighten even more as she listened to the laughter. Several young men asked her to dance but she politely declined. It seemed to her that this disordered sort of dancing would only serve to frustrate her. She preferred rather to grab some more refreshments and stay hidden in a corner.

She was nearly to the table when the music to the song ended. Some couples moved toward the refreshment table but quickly changed their minds when a gentle sound came from a single fiddle. Victoria had not heard the fiddle before this song, but she was fascinated by the clear and precise notes. Victoria moved along the wall so that she could avoid the couples and still see the front of the room. She was shocked to see Philip was the one playing the fiddle. He wore a suit which was completely different from the outfit he had worn when he had picked Marie and her up to take them to church that one Sunday. Victoria felt herself drawn the music and began to sway back and forth.