Over and over he said how good everything looked. He breathed deep of the smell of the woods full of bay-blossoms. The splash of Julia’s feet in the shallow branch made the water come into his eyes. Everybody who walked alongside the buggy could see it.
When they got in sight of the barnyard, Julia broke into a trot. It was her supper time and she was in a hurry to eat. April laughed at her sudden willingness to go. “No, Julia. You can’ stop at de barnyard, not dis time. You got to pull me home. You don’ know I can’ walk, enty?” But his voice broke, and Uncle Bill began telling about the crop, how fine it was, how loaded with fruit. When he got stronger, April must take Julia and the buggy and ride everywhere. Sherry did very well, but he was young and needed advice about a lot of things.
Joy and Leah’s little children stood waiting out in front of the cabin to meet him. A quiet awed group. April was the only one who felt at ease.
“How you do, honey?” he said gently to Joy, who came forward first, but she looked uncertain what to do or say. “I reckon I is look strange to yunnuh. But I’m thankful to git home widout comin’ nailed up in a box.”
The children huddled together watching April as if he were a perfect stranger.
“Come speak to you Pa, chillen,” Joy bade them, and they came forward slowly, shyly. Brudge snuffled and sobbed right out loud, so moved was he, but one of the littlest boys looked at his father’s shortened body and giggled. Joy grabbed his shoulder and shook him soundly and sent him behind the house, just as she did when he laughed at April months ago.
“E don’ mean nothin’, April. E ain’ got so much sense. E’d laugh if e was a-dyin’ himself. His mammy must ’a’ marked him so.”
Joy spoke kindly, but April’s face changed. His mouth quivered; a strange weary look wrung all the life out of his eyes. His own child had made sport of him. Laughed at his shame. The last time it happened he had reared and pitched, but this time his bosom heaved and he wiped his eyes with his sleeve.
Joy helped Sherry to take him inside the cabin and lay him on a bed in the shed-room. It did look inviting. The feather mattress was puffed up high and covered with a clean white spread. April sighed deeply as he sank in its soft depths, and he closed his eyes in enjoyment.
His head was too low to see well, and he asked Joy to get him another pillow. She looked at the long empty trousers that twisted about foolishly over the white counterpane. April whispered to her that she’d have to cut them off shorter for him, or pin them back. Joy didn’t answer, but she got a quilt from another bed. When April saw what she was going to do, he protested that it was too hot to lie under a quilt. But something he saw in Joy’s eyes made him change his mind, and he let her cover him up.