Daily Ramblings

Aug 15 HH 591 words

She stared at the huge oak tree in front yard. Dripping with Spanish moss, Carey had never seen anything like it. Coming from Washington State, the auburn-haired child was much more accustomed to trees with pokey needles instead of flat leaves.
"Wow, that's cool," the little girl said, not realizing she spoke aloud. Her mom, passing by with a big box in her hands, grinned.
"I'm sure you'll find lots of things different down here," Mom's voice came from somewhere behind the cardboard. "South Carolina is a whole new world."
Carey's dad sent her a hidden wink as he walked by with his arms full. That was his thing, what he always did to make her feel better. She could feel the warmth from that wink all the way down to her toes.
"So, what do you think, Missy?" Dad asked, using his special name for her. "Think you might like it here?"
"Yeah, its pretty here. Our house is neat," Carey said with a grin.
Dad gave her a big hug and walked back to the car. It had been a long trip from Washington, and they were all tired. Mom and Dad were unloading the cars, bringing in the things that had seemed necessary when they left their home several weeks ago. In comparison to the loaded truck that would arrive in a few days, only a few boxes were coming through the front door.
It wasn't a huge house, smaller than the one they had moved out of, but Carey ran all around it anyway. She picked out her room (which wasn't hard, since there were only three, and Mom and Dad naturally got the biggest), checked out the empty rooms, laughed at the colors in the bathrooms, wandered to the back porch, and ended up on the front lawn underneath the huge oak tree.
"We never had a tree like that a home, huh, Kiddo?" Mom asked on her next pass through the driveway. "I think the hammock would be perfect there, don't you?"
Carey and Dad agreed heartily. They had gotten the hammock a year ago, but the rain in Washington meant that they hadn't had an opportunity to set it up yet. Carey was excited to lay in it under the sun-dappled leaves. Dad and Mom always talked about how relaxing a hammock was, and she couldn't wait to try.
"When can we set it up?" Carey asked excitedly.
"I don't remember hoisting it on top of the car, do you?" Dad laughed. "You're gonna have to wait until the truck gets here. Then you'll have to wait until it gets unloaded, and we have a chance to put it together."
Carey's impatience, ill-logical and short-lived, was typical for her eight years. Within minutes, she had found something else to capture her attention. As she ran back inside, she saw Mom's tired arms go around Dad's waist.
"I'm so glad we're here," Mom said to Dad. "I know this will be a great new start for us. I'm pleased with the house and neighborhood. I hope Carey will make some new friends soon. It was hard for her to leave Brooke and Erin. Those three have been inseperable nearly all their lives."
Carey didn't hear Dad's response, but her happiness dimmed a bit thinking about her two best friends. Brooke and Erin were her cousins, but were also her best friends back home. Carey wondered if she would find someone new to play with. It was awesome here, but lonely.