Jana Nolan
Earth Star Publications
Eckert, Colorado
FIRST EDITION
First Printing August 2018
All Rights Reserved
Copyright © 2018 by Jana Nolan
ISBN 978-0-944851-54-8
Printed in the United States of America
CONTENTS
PART 1
STORM BEFORE THE CALM
1. The Unexpected ........................ 1
2. Questions and More .................... 6
3. Fast Thinking ........................ 15
4. More Dreams .......................... 22
5. Crazy or Tricked ..................... 30
6. The Truth Finally Known .............. 36
PART 2
FEAR AND WHAT IT BRINGS
1. Wanting To Be Normal ................. 45
2. Infatuation or Love .................. 51
3. Jealousy and a Controlling Mother .... 55
4. Reality and a Best Friend ............ 63
5. Truth and Realization ................ 79
PART 3
ON THE ROAD AGAIN
1. Memories to a Beginning ............... 91
2. Feelings Shared ....................... 97
3. True or Not True ..................... 106
4. Search and Situation ................. 118
5. Big Brother to the Rescue ............ 129
6. Connection in Unity .................. 139
PART 4
THE TOWN THAT DIDN'T EXIST
1. 1912 and Moving Forward .............. 143
2. New Occupation ....................... 151
3. Can't Go Backward .................... 154
3. Sadness and Imagination .............. 159
PART 5
THE FACE BEHIND THE MASK
1. Awkward Meeting ...................... 163
2. Taking a Chance ...................... 170
3. Waiting and Watching ................. 175
4. On the Boardwalk ..................... 183
PART 1
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Today is a warm, clear sky day in the Woodberry Cemetery as I stand here amongst many people, listening to a minister talking about redemption and how my half-sister would always be loved and remembered by her family and friends.
Standing next to me is her mother, my father, and her boyfriend. People have come together in this spot to say goodbye to a young woman that I barely knew.
She had been my half-sister for twenty-one years, and I am ashamed to say that I really didn't take the time to get to know her. Several years ago, when my parents decided to divorce, I was only four years old. I didn't understand why my father didn't come home at night as he had always done before.
As I grew older, Mother explained to me that Father didn't live with us any longer, and was living in a different town for now. None of this made sense to me at the time, but because she had told me this, I believed what she said and accepted Father visiting us whenever he could.
Each year that went by became easier for me, as I not only looked forward to his visits, but also was involved with my friends and school.
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Mother never talked about Father when he wasn't there, and for years I had no idea what his life consisted of, or even where he was living.
In fact, I was 10 years old when I was told by him that he had a daughter by another woman that he lived with for a while. He said at that time he was not allowed to visit her, and that someday he would bring her with him so that I could see my half-sister. Each year I waited to meet her, and finally I gave up and realized that it probably wasn't going to happen.
Three years ago, when I was getting ready to leave the office for the day, my receptionist came in and told me that there was a young woman waiting to see me before I left.
I told her to show her in and that after I did leave the office, to only direct important calls to my home phone.
She agreed and told the young woman that she could come in now. When she entered the room, she smiled at me. I looked at her and was fairly sure that she wasn't one of my business acquaintances as she was attractive but young, and wearing simple clothes like someone who didn't have a lot of money.
I told her to have a seat, and if she would like a glass of water, I would be happy to get it for her. She said no.
"My name is Trinity Austin. This might come as a surprise to you, but I am your half-sister," she said.
"No. Many years ago, my father told me that he had a child by another woman, but failed to tell me your name," I replied.
"It took me quite a while to find you. I never really got to know my father, other than a few brief visits, which only lasted a couple of hours at a time. My mother refused to let him be a part of my life, but during a visit he did tell me your name. Now that I am a grown woman, I wanted to find you," she said.
"I, too, waited years to meet you after Father told me about you, and finally I gave up. It is nice to finally meet you, Trinity," I commented.
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PART 2
-1-
Growing up in a small town would have been easy for most people. Lying in bed at night, listening to nothing but silence and looking out the window, seeing a full moon, would have given anyone peace and serenity. The still of the night gave me too much time to think before I finally fell asleep. What I thought about should have given me a calming effect, but instead, it led me down a dark place in my mind. Feeling this way made me wonder, when I woke up in the morning, if I was going to wake up every day wondering and dreading the next one.
My name is Angelina Guild. At the age of 6 is where I am taking you back to. At that age, and years to follow, was when I was taken on a journey that I wouldn't wish on anyone.
My parents tried hard to help me be a normal child, like the other children that lived in Rockford, Idaho. Unfortunately, this didn't work. Being an only child, I should have loved all of the attention they gave me. There were always plenty of Christmas presents under the tree for just me, and when my birthday came around, I knew I would probably get everything that any child could want. Once again, it should have helped to make me happy, but it didn't.
If someone knocked on my bedroom door, it made me
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jump. The fear of not just whoever was knocking, but also the knock itself caused me none other than fear.
Just like my mother and father, I knew that there was something wrong with me. There were times as I sat in my room that I had the feeling of walls closing in on me, or spinning around me.
At the age of 6, my mother enrolled me in a public school. I only lasted a week before my parents took me out of it. It was decided by them that I would do home school. I had too many fears that haunted me inside. All of the teachers and children looked at me funny and were afraid of me. At the time, there was an older boy in school who would smile at me and try to be my friend.
When school was out for the day, I would wait outside for Mother or Father to drive there to get me. If I was standing next to another child, his or her parent would embrace them and pull them away from me. They all thought I was crazy or dangerous. After Mother saw this, she told the other parents they were wrong about me and told them how rude they were. This did no good as each day was the same until Mother walked out of the school with me after telling the principal that she would teach me what I needed to know -- at home.
Sometimes the boy who wanted to be my friend would stop by the house to check on me and see if I wanted to go outside to play. Of course Mother would tell him that I was fine, but couldn't leave the house. With my parents knowing that I was different, and not normal, they were worried about other people in the town hurting me. So, for several years, I spent my life inside of our home, where they could watch me.
At times, sitting at the kitchen table, I would stare out the window to see what was outside. Sometimes I would see the boy who came to check on me staring back. He would wave at me and leave to go play somewhere else.
The year that I turned 13, my father got injured at the mill where he worked. For several months, my mother had
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to not just watch me but also was taking care of and helping him.
One day, from exhaustion, she passed out and my father called our family doctor. After hours of examining her and talking to them, they were forced into making a decision that they really didn't want to make.
...
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PART 3
-1-
As I slowly turn the steering wheel of my big rig onto the entrance ramp going east, I see another rig up ahead with a tire that looks like it could blow at any moment.
I lean forward to pick up my CB radio, to make the person driving aware of the situation before things go bad. This particular rig was not just pulling one trailer, but two.
"Hey, big buddy, I am on your back side, coming up on you quick. I'm letting you know that you have a tire ready to blow on the west side of your rig. Keep truckin' and your ears on as there could be a Smoky up ahead. Over and out."
"Thank you, good buddy. I'm pulling off at the next exit to take care of the problem. Keep truckin'," said the rig driver.
As I passed him, I blew my horn a couple of times, to show him that I was a good buddy and that I had his back as I knew he had mine, with this being the code of a trucker.
My next stop would be Memphis, to unload the big trailer that I had picked up and been hauling since I left King City, California, a week ago. After the truck was unloaded and the trailer dropped off, my next journey would take me to my aunt's house in Atlanta, where I would be until it was time to haul again on the open road. There would be lots of time for me to spend quality hours with family and a few ...
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other people that I knew there.
My name is Kim Cross. I bet you expected me to be a man, considering that I drive a big rig from one state to another. I have gotten many looks from people standing around or walking by when I climb out of the cab. Whenever anyone thinks of a truck driver, they think of a big, hairy, gnarly looking guy weighing in at 200 pounds. Instead, I am 29 years old, 110 pounds soaking wet, and 5 foot 2 inches tall. Many people have asked me, "How do you handle that?" Of course, they are referring to my truck. When I reply back to them, my words are, "Even though I am a woman, I have had good training and I drive a safe rig that goes down the highway as easy as a car."
...
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PART 4
-1-
As I walked, I heard the sound of my footsteps walking down a long hall leading to my grandfather's study, where he spent many hours typing one of many books that he had written over the course of his lifetime. As I pressed the light switch on the wall, I saw that I had entered a large room.
In the room I saw several bookcases filled with novels of famous authors, such as William Shakespeare, Jane Austen, Edgar Allan Poe, Charles Dickens and many others. I was sure that if this oak desk could talk, it, too, would have many stories of its own to tell. In the middle of the desk was his last novel. Sitting in his chair, I opened it and started reading.
The year listed in the beginning of his book was 1912. Many things happened that year. On the introduction page he had indicated that New Mexico became the 47th state as Arizona became the 48th state. The Girl and Boy Scouts were founded, the overseas railroad opened, and the first train arrived in the Key West. Alaska became a territory of the United States, the famous Wilbur Wright died of typhoid fever, the White Star liner, Titanic, departed from Southampton with 2,225 passengers and crew on it, bound
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for New York on April 10, and on April 14-15 it struck an iceberg in the Northern Atlantic and sunk, taking with it 1,517 lives. The wreck of the ship wasn't discovered until 1985. In November, Woodrow Wilson became the President.
Grandfather told about many other occurrences that happened that year. He wanted to take his readers back to the year when his story began.
...
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PART 5
-1-
I drove down the coast on a Saturday morning with "KISS" blaring on the radio, and the people passing me were giving me a "thumbs up" because they like the music I chose to listen to. With the sun shining brightly, I was ready to meet a woman I had been messaging on line.
My name is Ellie Bowen. I was born in a small town in Colorado. When I was 14, my parents and I made a trip to San Francisco, where my father had a job interview. He had gotten a call from the owner of a big bank, asking him if he would be willing to relocate from the small town we lived in, to work in the city. At that time, Father told the man that he would need to discuss this with Mother first, before he could give an answer. Also, he would need to go there to speak with the man directly and see the bank he would be working for.
The man told Father that would be fine. That evening, Father did speak to Mother about the move and they agreed that it would be a consideration, and a trip to San Francisco was planned.
Two weeks later, we were on the highway going west. When we arrived here, we saw the large city, which was
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something that none of us had seen before. Mother and Father talked about the change that would happen in my life if they did move here with me.
When Father went to the tall, large bank where he would work, to meet with the owner, he discussed his concerns with him. After finding out that the owner also came from a small town before moving here with his family, and how much they learned to love it, Father then told him that he would take the job.
Within a couple of months we had gone from being country folk to city people.
For me it was a good decision as I like it here. I love the beach, the ocean, surfing, and all of the friends that I have made. I have no desire to go back to where we started from. When Father retired, he and Mother went back to Colorado, where their roots would always be. But for me, I had no interest in leaving and made San Francisco my home.
...
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