field. "Take a hammer and some nails with you

and fix those rails... You'll find them in that shed next to the barn. I'll be inside if you need me.

11

Terry had no problem finding the tools and in no time he was crossing the field toward the broken fence. The sunlight bounced off the wet foliage around him as he walked. The air was so clear and crisp after the rainfall he breathed in deeply, enjoying its freshness. He smiled to himself as he thought about how lucky he was to be working. And for such a nice woman too!

Reaching the fence he examined the damaged rails. They had just been knocked loose somehow. "Probably a horse or a cow," he thought to himself He hoisted them up and nailed them securely in place. While he was out there he figured he may as well check the rest of the fence so he walked along and examined each joint. Many of them were in need of new nails and would have fallen soon. He hammered and walked for hours until he had covered the entire fence. Having made a complete Susan circle he finished up back at the house. met him at the back door. "My you've been busy! I appreciate your checking the whole fence out for You really are a hard worker! Come on in and have some lunch," she said with a broad smile on her face.

me.

As they ate lunch Terry noticed a photo of a Seeing his glance young girl on the counter. Susan answered his question before he asked it. "She's pretty, " he "It's a photo of my daughter." said. "Funny you should say that. This is one of the few pictures I have of her where she isn't wearing blue jeans and a scarf. I bought her tons lothes but she wouldn't wear them. Getting her to curl her hair and wear make-up was like 11 "Was she a tomtrying to give a dog a bath. boy?" Terry asked. "Very much so. Of course we did live here so she was raised around horses and livestock. But the main reason was her father. He wanted a son and I wanted a daughter. She would help him around the place with everything but I

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"1

I

figured that as she got older she would change her mind and want to learn how to act like a lady. was certainly mistaken! She fought my every attempt with tooth and nail! When I finally divorce my husband she wanted to live with him. I knew that I couldn't handle her so I said fine."! While she was talking she got this strange look in her eye. "You know," she said slowly, "she had hair very much like yours. Terry shifted uncomfortably in his chair. "Times have changed I guess. There have been occasions when people have thought that I was a girl because of my hair but lots of guys have long hair where I come from," he offered. "Things are different nowadays," she agreed. "You know Terry, you amaze me. When I first picked you up I thought that you were a much heavier boy. When you're not wearing that jacket you're really thin! Not skinny mind you, but small boned I was worried that you wouldn't be able to handle the work but your performance this morning more than proves that you can." "Thanks, Susan. I'ZZ do my best to get the work done for you. What would you like me to tackle next?" "I'd like you to chop some firewood for me. Let me show you

where it's at."

The wood pile was behind the barn and there were stacks and stacks of logs to be split. set to work quickly and each second brought the sound of the axe blade cutting into the tough bark. He moved fast but his hair, being fluffier than usual, kept getting in his way. It fell in front of his eyes with every couple of swings and he had to stop and tuck it behind his ears again. Susan noticed his problem when she brought him some lemonade to cool his thirst. "That could be dangerous, Terry. You could cut yourself if you can't see. I'll get something to help you. He paused a moment and enjoyed the lemonade until she returned. "Turn around," she requested. She pulled his hair back into a ponytail and wrapped something around it. "That ought to do it," she said. He thanked her and went back to work. cutting went faster now that he didn't have to stop every couple of minutes and soon he had a large pile of firewood cut.

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The