Lindsey closed the door on the blowing snow outside and melted into the love seat in front of the fireplace. “Mother, the whole town is dressed up for Jeff’s homecoming.” Her excitement ended in a sigh.
“You sound tired.” Mom got up from the couch and headed for the kitchen. “I’ll make you some hot chocolate.”
“No, I’m not tired. I’m too wound up to be tired. Dana and I got everything done at the church. We covered the chairs in cream-colored tulle and tied gold chrysanthemums on the backs with black velvet ribbon. The Christmas tree is a big Scotch pine hung with gold and black ornaments. It’s Hardee High all over again, just like Jeff and I planned. Everything’s done but meeting him at the train tomorrow.”
“You still need something warm and cheery. It’ll just take a moment.”
Lindsey stared into the flickering flame, remembering. On a hot summer Texas afternoon, she had sidled up to the creek bank, trying to look nonchalant. Jeff was the cutest boy she had ever seen. He told her, if she wanted to hang around with the guys, she had to put a wiggly worm on a hook. She would have eaten the worm to be with him. She took the disgusting thing and impaled it on a piece of metal shaped like a question mark. She was nine and he was eleven. From that day on, wherever he went, she wasn’t far behind.
In junior high, he took her to the Sweetheart Dance. On the night of his senior prom, he gave her his class ring and they were officially going steady. In her mind they had been going steady from the moment she skewered the worm.
When only nine years old, she wanted to be Mrs. Jeff Baldwin. By the time she graduated from Hardee High, Jeff shared her dreams and asked her to marry him. He had just finished his sophomore year at A&M. Upon graduation he enlisted in the Marines, was commissioned a second lieutenant, and shipped out to the war in Afghanistan. He had that runaway American
hero gene: love of God, country and family. She was proud of the man he had grown to be.
In a flurry of emails, they planned a wedding that would make a special memory for them and everyone in Hardee. His tour of duty was scheduled to end the week before Christmas. It was the perfect time to begin their lives together and celebrate with friends and relatives.
“Drink this. It’ll warm you up.” Mom set a steaming mug on the lamp table and bustled off to do laundry.
The front door opened. “Yoo-hoo.” Dana waltzed in, arms waving, twirling around with a big smile on her face. “Have you ever seen Hardee look so beautiful? Every tree and lamp post is tied with gold ribbon. The town looks like one big Welcome Home present.”
Lindsey grinned. Everything sounded wonderful, but she hadn’t expected anything less from the good folk of Hardee. Several friends had helped her decorate the tree at church, and instead of having a catered affair, the ladies insisted they provide the food. Who could resist these Texas cooks turning out their prized recipes for Jeff’s homecoming?
The big day dawned bitter cold and sunny. Lindsey held her wedding dress in front of her and looked into the mirror. A tear slid down her face. The white silk shantung gown glimmered with seed pearls and iridescent beads that covered the tight-fitting bodice in a pattern of dainty flowers. It was like a fairy princess dress. When Mom took her all the way to Dallas to buy it, all she could think about was how Jeff would stand in his Marine uniform and look at her when she walked down the aisle.
Mom opened the door and stuck her head in. “Honey, can I help you with your dress?”
“Yes, thanks. I don’t want to get blush or mascara on it.”
Mom placed the wide skirt on the floor so Lindsey could step into it. She pulled up the dress and zipped the back.
Lindsey gave a pleasure-filled sigh, glad she had resisted Mom’s advice to not put on the dress until she got to church. Wearing it to the train station was the perfect choice. “I hope the train’s on time so everyone doesn’t freeze.”
“Oh, honey, I don’t think anyone will mind.”
Her father’s voice came through the closed door. “Lindsey, it’s time to go.”
Jeff’s Marine buddies would be at the train station to form an honor guard. At the church, they would line the walkway with their swords aloft. It was the highest honor they could pay one of their own.
The living room was filled with people who wanted to caravan to the train station. When their white limousine reached Main Street, her mascara began to run. Every few feet, a Hardee flag-waver stood ready to welcome their hero back. Near the courthouse, veterans stood with the Boy Scouts, poised for a salute when the caravan returned. Then there were all the young men and women with whom she and Jeff had grown up, some holding bundled babies in their arms, others with toddlers at their side. Parents and grandparents were there—all the good folk of Hardee—each holding a tiny American flag. The limo moved slowly, allowing her to wave to everyone.
At the train station, the high school band was
already playing “God Bless America.” The limo passed the police motorcycles that would be their escort. Lindsey got out and walked with Mom, Dad, and Dana to the platform.
A distant train whistle sounded.
Jeff would soon be home. She hugged Jeff’s parents, feeling like she had always been part of their family.
Jeff’s mom wore a peach wool dress. Jeff always told her how pretty she looked in peach. He was right. Her auburn hair looked so much like his, and with her chocolate brown eyes, peach was definitely her color.
The distant clatter became a deafening roar before the train came to a stop. The whistle sounded one last time. Marines filed out of a passenger car. The crowd waited patiently while the honor guard took their place. Then the band struck up the Marine hymn and everyone stood at attention.
The trainmen opened the big metal door. Six Marines took hold of the flag-draped coffin, lifted it onto their shoulders, walked across the platform and down the steps, and loaded it onto the caisson.
Lindsey took her place beside the casket in the procession toward the church. Family and friends followed. The band played “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” as they walked in-cadence down Main Street. Everything was as she hoped it would be. Jeff would be proud.
Jeff Baldwin had come home to the people who loved him. Today would soon be gone, but the memories would last forever. With the townspeople’s help, she would look to the future and new relationships, but Jeff would forever be her first love.