Carol was not what you would call a country girl. Her idea of roughing it was eating by candlelight. But, she had agreed to this trip, in spite of her reservations, so she was making the most of it. Here it was Saturday afternoon already, with everyone downstairs getting ready for the party out back. Time had really flown since they had been there, she thought.
When Anthony told her that Gary and his family lived ‘off the grid’, without electricity, she thought he was joking. When she realized he wasn't, that was just about enough for her to back out of the trip. She already had a hard enough time dealing with the issue of the two wives, but to add personal hardship and endurance to it…no electricity…was just about asking too much.
But Anthony made a strong case. They had avoided his brother and family long enough! The fact remained that they were STILL FAMILY, and they couldn't very well attend every event of every long lost relative on Carol’s side of the family, and not turn down an open invitation by Anthony’s brother, especially an important event as their thirty-ninth birthday.
So, she assented ‘this one time’, and made the decision to make the trip. But how would she survive such primitive conditions? She would pack her butane curling iron, her Estee Lauder fall kit (for the ‘no makeup’ look), and tried to find some simpler clothing. After all, she fully expected to see Savanna and Miranda in full prairie dress garb, and she did not want them to feel embarrassed meeting their sister in law for the first time.
To her surprise, the two wives were not anything she pictured. First, there were no prairie dresses; there were no bonnets or head coverings. Secondly, both of them wore makeup, and Carol was surprised to find that the younger wife Miranda was a Mary Kay rep! Third, even though they did not exist on the rural electric power grid, they used solar panels and batteries to provide basic electric needs, and had modern appliances such as a propane fridge and dryer. Plus, on special occasions and when they had visitors, such as this weekend, they would power up the generator.
Her other surprise was the house. Carol maintained the perfect pastor’s home. Everything had a place and was in its place. She had some pretty high standards when it came to her home in St. Joseph, which she strictly imposed on the cleaner when she came in twice a week. She imagined the seven children, two wives, and two dogs living under one roof would make a nightmare of order. Carol had already planned out in her mind the night before exactly what time she would politely excuse herself, so that she could escape to a place cleaned with disinfectant daily: the hotel in New Chariton.
But, she never made that trip, because the ladies kept the old two-story country home in great shape. Oh, you could tell that it was well lived in, of course, but there was never any sign of filth or neglect. Carol had expected that. In fact, Carol had expected a lot of things about this trip, mostly bad, that just weren’t true.
The kids! So many! Carol and Anthony had decided years ago to limit their family to only two children. That was all they could afford, they determined. So when the twins came along on their first attempt at starting a family, she was relieved that she wouldn’t have to deal with the weight gain, the mood swings, the ugly clothes, or the morning sickness ever again. They decided together that it would be better for Anthony to get a vasectomy, as it was cheaper and less invasive than having her tubes tied. As Carol heard all the children outside helping to get things ready for the birthday celebration, she tried to imagine seven, SEVEN children in their own home! No, no, no, she thought.
Getting to know all the names of the children and who belonged to who brought about a lot of laughter the evening before. Savanna was busy in the kitchen, as that tended to be her domain, so that left hosting duties to Miranda to introduce everyone. She took Carol through the house, showing her around, allowing Gary and Anthony some time to catch up and talk to one another before dinner.
“I’ve been told that this house is a hundred years old,” Miranda said, pulling Carol’s hand through the maze of children going through the house. “When we bought the place, it looked like a thousand. Can you believe that we lived in the camper out back for four months until we could get the place in good enough shape to live in? But we did all this work ourselves. I had never done any kind of work like this before…but look at these wood floors. See? I sanded these myself. Me, a girl! Ha!”
The younger wife was definitely the chattier of the two. She went on to explain how they replaced the old insulation, built an extra bathroom, moved walls, replaced railings, and installed ceilings. She was very proud of all the work they had done. Carol had to admit to herself that even with the age of the house, the two wives had done a great job of making it a home.
All the bedrooms were on the second floor, making the most use out of the first floor with an expanded kitchen, a dining room, a living room, and a larger family room which extended to an outside deck. Miranda shared that once a week they had a Bible and fellowship time with other families in the area, and the latter room worked out great for that.
Climbing the stairs, Miranda explained, “Now you get the tour of the bedrooms. It might help to know the kids as we peek in. First, Savanna has four kids; the two older boys you already know, Sarai, who is eight, and Piette, who is four. Now, fair warning. Do NOT call Piette by her name. She says her name is Pinky. Pinky is four. My kids are Peace, Esther and Tony.”
They began to climb another set of stairs that led to the attic. Savanna was athletic, and was a regular runner, whereas Miranda tended to be a little on the heavy side. She did not like the stairs.
“I think my daughter Peace moved up here because she knew I hated these stairs. Teenagers. You have to be smarter than them. Peace is my daughter from my first marriage. She just turned twelve. She took over this room for her birthday, when the older boys moved out. Personally, I think she paid them off. Anyway, she got the choice of paint for her room. She likes purple. A lot.”
“She is up here by herself?” Carol asked, finally getting the opportunity to actually enter the conversation.
“Peace is very independent,” Miranda replied, “and she needs the space. She had a rough time in our early years. Her dad was pretty abusive to both of us, and she has had some real trust issues growing up. Gary loves her to pieces, like she was his own. They get along great. She and I butt heads once in a while, though….it might be because we are so much alike,” she winked.
Going back down to the second floor, their first stop brought them to an obvious girl’s room. “Peace used to share this room with the two middle girls. Over here is Sarai’s area. This side is Esther’s. Esther is six. Now, even though they are a year and a half apart, these two are like twins. Inseparable. They share everything, including getting in trouble at times. You have to watch these two like a hawk sometimes. Hold on…” she said, stooping down to pull something out from under the younger one’s bed, “what is this? Oh dear, Lord. That girl has brought another animal in this house. ESTHER!”
Suddenly the sound of what had to be a hundred little girls came bounding up the stairs, and there appeared Sarai, Esther and Carol’s daughter.
“What is in this shoebox? I know something is in here, I heard it move. What is it this time? Did you get another rat out of the barn?” Miranda asked. Carol cringed at the thought of a wild animal living under the sweet blonde’s bed.
“Nope. Sarai found a snake! It’s a pretty one, too! We’re gonna put it in the old fish tank in the garage. Daddy said he would get it out after the party.” Esther pleaded.
“Oh. My. God.” Miranda said, rolling her eyes and looking at Carol “Now you girls take this box and get this snake out of this house. If Momma Savanna saw this, she would make her best half-marathon time yet! Now go!”
Esther held on to the box like lost treasure, peaking under the lid to make sure ‘Napoleon’ was fine, asking Susan if she had ever seen a snake before.
“No. No. No.” Carol said, begging, “Please take it outside. Thank you.”
The girls ran out with their prize, and bounded down the stairs. Miranda said, “I grew up on a farm, so I am used to all sorts of animals. I guess Esther gets that from me. Oh, well…on with the tour,” waving Carol on to the next room.
“Now this room,” Miranda explained, “Pinky and Little Tony are sharing. Since they are so young, it is working okay for now, but give them two years, and we will have to come up with another solution. He’s really too young to stay with the older boys, and she’s really too young to be by herself. Pinky loves anything with fish, Little Tony loves football, like his Daddy. Go Chiefs!”
“’Little Tony’?” Carol asked.
Miranda smiled, “Yes…Gary insisted. The night before Little Tony was born here at the house, Gary had a dream. The dream was that the two brothers were walking along, and an earthquake happened. They could have pulled one another to the other side, but instead, they let a giant crack in the ground separate them. Gary said it was God’s way of telling him that he needed to fix the relationship with his brother. The next day, the baby came, and Gary named him Anthony after his brother. Besides, he sort of looks like the two of them, don’t you think?”
“I had Peace at the hospital, “Miranda added, “and they had to dope me up to get that kid out of me,” she laughed. “When Gary and I had Esther, we also went to the hospital, no drugs that time. When we found out I was pregnant with Little Tony, Savanna had talked me into using a midwife like she had with Sarai and Pinky. Scared. Me. To. Death. I thought, ‘midwife, what is this the frickin’ middle ages?’ But, I did it! I’m glad I did it, too. Delivery went great, right in my bedroom. I thank the Lord for it. Now, “ she said, pulling Carol again, “I will show you MY room!”
Opening the door, Miranda said, “I like country stuff,” and she did. On the walls on display were two quilts that she had won prizes on in competition. Everything in the bedroom exuded a very laid back, rural appeal. Even the bathroom and closet gave the impression of a restored barn.
“I like it here. This is my sanctuary,” she said, smiling as she fell back on her bed, “This. THIS HERE. Is a REAL feather mattess. I know a couple of Amish ladies nearby that I trade with, and they made this for me. For my birthday two years ago, “ she said proudly.
“Hee, hee!” Miranda laughed, almost with a sinister twist, “Now let’s see Savanna’s room…shhh! Don’t tell her I showed you!”
Savanna’s room was the opposite of Miranda’s. It was contemporary, custom draperies, comforter and pillows, with an area in the corner that served as an office. She loved candles. Displayed on the walls and shelves were trophies and memorabilia from athletic competitions in high school and college, and pictures of her early years of marriage to Gary. Whereas Miranda’s bathroom had a tub, Savanna’s had a shower, the kind that also sprayed from the sides.
“It’s nice, huh?” Miranda asked. “Gary redid this whole room and bathroom for her for their last anniversary. Believe it or not, he even decorated it. I’ll tell you,” she whispered, “they had had a fight four days before, and Savanna was just upset about a lot of things, in particular about bringing on a third wife. She needed some space, so she went and visited family in Tennessee with her girls for a couple of days. While she was gone, Gary just basically locked himself in the bedroom and worked day and night. The only time the rest of us saw him was when he came out to eat. He would be sawing and hammering at three in the morning. Finally, the morning of the day she was coming back, he had finished, but the room was off limits until she got home. You could tell she was still a little upset when she got back, but they talked in the yard for a while, and he took her to show her this room. I had never seen Savanna cry so much before. She was so happy.”
Miranda wiped a tear from her eye, “Now look! It’s just a bedroom! Nothing to cry over! Well, that’s it on the bedrooms!”
The tour of the two wives bedrooms got Carol to thinking, and since it seemed that she and Miranda had developed some level of rapport, she asked, “Uh? What about Gary?”
“Gary? He doesn’t get a bedroom,” she laughed, “he likes to ‘roam’. He’s like Jesus; he has no place to lay his head! Oh, and if he’s been on bad behavior, sometimes there is no room at the inn, either, if you know what I mean, and he gets to sleep in the barn with the rest of the animals, oh, and the boys.”
“The barn?” Carol asked.
“Yep. Gary Jr. and Claude sleep in the barn. Now, don’t feel too sorry for them. They converted two old stables and a milking station into their own version of a ‘man cave’; women dare not enter. Peace worked that deal out, because she wanted her own space, and that space was the attic. So, she sweet talked Gary, and the next day, he and the boys redid a big area of the first level of the barn. They have all their toys and gadgets out there, just like any other fifteen and thirteen years old would. And, like I said, sometimes Gary is out there, too. I think that when the boys go off to college, Gary might just make a play for it,” she laughed.
“Come on, let’s go downstairs” Miranda quipped, once again taking Carol’s hand. “Remember: you were NEVER in this room.”
Carol was impressed with how Miranda just so easily accepted the fact that she was Gary’s second wife. In fact, if Carol didn’t know about Savanna, by all appearances, Miranda was just like any other wife or partner. Miranda, was, except for her excessive taste in country knick-knacks, completely NORMAL.
After dinner, Carol offered to help Savanna with the cleanup, leaving to Miranda the duty of getting the herd of children bathed and prepared for bed. All the little kids decided they would sleep in the family room on the floor in makeshift tents, a compromise from sleeping outside. Pinky had chosen ‘Finding Nemo’ as the movie selection, and insisted on having all her stuffed animals join her in the presentation. David at first protested the selection, but when he was bribed with intermission popcorn, he was convinced. The older boys and the men headed to the ‘man cave’ for a tour, and Peace said goodnight and proceeded to her attic.
In the kitchen, Carol brought dishes from the dining room, and she and Savanna bantered in small talk until the first wife asked abruptly, “Carol, why are you here?”
Savanna was never known for being coy or apprehensive, and preferred honesty as opposed to appearance. Carol was caught a bit off guard by the question, and responded, “What do you mean?”
She replied, “Well, you and Tony have had plenty of opportunity to come here before now. I know that you don’t agree with our lifestyle, and I understand that. But, I knew Tony and Gary before you ever did, and I know that even though the boys had their differences, they could have reconciled years ago. So what gives? Why are you here?”
Carol looked down into the rinse water, and considered her response, and spoke, “My sister has cancer.”
“Oh, no,” Savanna comforted, “ I am so sorry to hear that…”
“My sister has cancer,” she interrupted. “It’s incurable. Stage four lymphoma.” Her eyes reddened and she looked up at Savanna. “She will be gone in less than six months. It’s already starting to set in pretty hard, and the chemo is making her sick as can be. I meet her once a week in KC, and take her to the clinic, because she can’t drive home after her visits. She’s my only sister. She doesn’t have any children. And I can’t imagine what it will be like when she is gone,” she cried.
Savanna wrapped her arms around her, and Carol continued, “I realized how lost I am going to feel without her. Then, one night lying in bed, and Anthony was on the couch, I thought how hard it must be for my husband to be separated from his family. I realized that it was my fear, and my pride that had kept him, and me, out of contact with your family. I was scared. I was afraid that Anthony would become a polygamist.”
The first wife began to laugh and cry at the same time with the pastor’s wife, “Oh, Carol, honey….it’s not a disease, you know! It’s not transmitted by touch!”
They both laughed, and Carol responded, “I know, and I’m sorry. I really have missed talking to you. And Miranda seems really nice.”
“She IS really nice,” Savanna said, “and she is a good mom and a good friend. Friends like you and I used to be. Carol, I know that when we told you guys about our beliefs that it would be hard for you. It was hard for us, too. And we made mistakes in the way we went about it. We were still learning about the do’s and the don’ts of what God was telling us about marriage. We have learned a lot, and I mean A LOT, since then.”
She continued, “And just so you know, it’s not perfect. We still deal with the same issues that any marriage has to deal with: money, kids, sex, in laws,” she laughed, looking at Carol, “and at times it seems multiplied, because of the doubling of relationships. But, what is different is that when those troubles do come, I know that I am not alone. Miranda is there. I went through a tough time a while back, thinking that I had missed out on things in my life, opportunities that I could never get back. I even went so far as to pack up the minivan and went back to Tennessee with the girls. But it was Gary’s love and Miranda’s insistence on me coming back home that made the difference. She would call me every hour when I was gone, asking how I was,” she said, rolling her eyes.
Carol said, “Anthony and I have had a rough spot lately.” She looked out the window to the barn and saw Gary, the older boys, and her husband walking in from the barn. “I always imagined in the ministry that husbands and wives were perfect. They never had any problems. Now that he has resigned the church, it means a lot of changes for us. I’m praying that God will do something.”
“Resigned?” Savanna asked, “What’s going on?”
“Our district has a new superintendent, someone you guys may remember, who has asked Anthony to serve as the assistant. It’s a full time position in the district office, which means more money, but it also means more traveling, more time away from home. He’s already accepted, and it’s the right career move, but I don’t know if it will help or hurt our relationship.” Carol explained.
Savanna wanted to know, “So, who is going to be Tony’s new boss?”
“Frank Willis. BISHOP Frank Willis.”
Savanna had to sit down on that one. It was years earlier that a younger Frank Willis sat in the ministerial ethics committee, and the then Pastor and First Lady Gary and Savanna Carter of Mountain Home Country Church were ‘invited’ to answer some questions. That was the beginning of the end of their ministerial career in the ABF.
“You know, Carol,” Savanna explained, “that it was Brother Willis that called Tony and asked him come down to Tennessee to talk to Gary and me. It was Brother Willis that basically said that unless Tony came out strongly against our plural marriage views, it would hurt his career. We were on our way out; the witch hunt of a committee was a done deal. What wasn’t fair was trying to bring Tony into it, basically telling him to disavow his own brother.”
Carol responded, “I know. Anthony told me. He felt like he didn’t have a choice. He wanted to protect his career. He wanted to protect his father, Bishop Carter. He also wanted to protect me from embarrassment. That choice has haunted Anthony all these years, but it gave him favor through the years. It was Willis’ recommendation that got us the church in St. Joseph. Now, Frank Willis is the district superintendent.”
The ladies had reconciled. Years of holding grudges against one another disappeared in sharing stories of kids, ministry, and husbands. It was good for two friends to be back together again.
The husbands came in, and they were joined a few minutes later by Miranda who had finally gotten the impromptu campers to quiet down and find Nemo. They enjoyed a late night dessert of Mason Jar Apple Pie, canned a couple of weeks before. Tired and ready for bed, Miranda and Gary were going to spend the night in the camper, and Tony and Carol would have her room.
This morning was a typical family morning. Breakfast was a madhouse, as nine children had nine different opinions of what is the best breakfast food. After cleaning up, the wives decided that they would visit the Amish market, as Miranda had some quilts to sell. The husbands would be in charge until lunch, and then there would be the birthday party in the afternoon.
Which, as Carol looked at the window, was about to start.
Thinking back over the night before, and the morning activities, she felt guilt about not wanting to come down here for the three day weekend. She had missed the long talks she used to have with Savanna, and it felt good to reconnect. Miranda seemed like someone who could be a friend. Her husband and brother in law acted as if nothing had transpired in the years since their father’s funeral. Cousins were meeting cousins for the first time, and acting as if they had known each other all their lives.
Anthony was standing with his brother looking over the birthday preparations, as kids of various ages were making last minute preparations before the party started. Pinky had been assigned by her mother to find out what kind of cake to fix, and though Gary wanted angel food, and Tony wanted chocolate, the little girl insisted on red velvet because ‘it tasted good and was red’. There also needed to be a white icing fish on the cake.
He looked up and saw his wife Carol standing at the window, and smiled at her. It was the first time he had smiled at her in a long time. It was also the first time in a long time she smiled back.
“This is family,” she thought, looking down at children, and husbands, and wives, “and this is NORMAL.”
She turned, made one last look in the mirror, and headed down to the thirty-ninth birthday celebration of twin brothers Gary and Anthony Carter.
There was a piece of red velvet cake waiting for her. It had a fish on it.
READ CHAPTER SIX HERE: http://www.biblicalfamilies.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=30&t=3693
When Anthony told her that Gary and his family lived ‘off the grid’, without electricity, she thought he was joking. When she realized he wasn't, that was just about enough for her to back out of the trip. She already had a hard enough time dealing with the issue of the two wives, but to add personal hardship and endurance to it…no electricity…was just about asking too much.
But Anthony made a strong case. They had avoided his brother and family long enough! The fact remained that they were STILL FAMILY, and they couldn't very well attend every event of every long lost relative on Carol’s side of the family, and not turn down an open invitation by Anthony’s brother, especially an important event as their thirty-ninth birthday.
So, she assented ‘this one time’, and made the decision to make the trip. But how would she survive such primitive conditions? She would pack her butane curling iron, her Estee Lauder fall kit (for the ‘no makeup’ look), and tried to find some simpler clothing. After all, she fully expected to see Savanna and Miranda in full prairie dress garb, and she did not want them to feel embarrassed meeting their sister in law for the first time.
To her surprise, the two wives were not anything she pictured. First, there were no prairie dresses; there were no bonnets or head coverings. Secondly, both of them wore makeup, and Carol was surprised to find that the younger wife Miranda was a Mary Kay rep! Third, even though they did not exist on the rural electric power grid, they used solar panels and batteries to provide basic electric needs, and had modern appliances such as a propane fridge and dryer. Plus, on special occasions and when they had visitors, such as this weekend, they would power up the generator.
Her other surprise was the house. Carol maintained the perfect pastor’s home. Everything had a place and was in its place. She had some pretty high standards when it came to her home in St. Joseph, which she strictly imposed on the cleaner when she came in twice a week. She imagined the seven children, two wives, and two dogs living under one roof would make a nightmare of order. Carol had already planned out in her mind the night before exactly what time she would politely excuse herself, so that she could escape to a place cleaned with disinfectant daily: the hotel in New Chariton.
But, she never made that trip, because the ladies kept the old two-story country home in great shape. Oh, you could tell that it was well lived in, of course, but there was never any sign of filth or neglect. Carol had expected that. In fact, Carol had expected a lot of things about this trip, mostly bad, that just weren’t true.
The kids! So many! Carol and Anthony had decided years ago to limit their family to only two children. That was all they could afford, they determined. So when the twins came along on their first attempt at starting a family, she was relieved that she wouldn’t have to deal with the weight gain, the mood swings, the ugly clothes, or the morning sickness ever again. They decided together that it would be better for Anthony to get a vasectomy, as it was cheaper and less invasive than having her tubes tied. As Carol heard all the children outside helping to get things ready for the birthday celebration, she tried to imagine seven, SEVEN children in their own home! No, no, no, she thought.
Getting to know all the names of the children and who belonged to who brought about a lot of laughter the evening before. Savanna was busy in the kitchen, as that tended to be her domain, so that left hosting duties to Miranda to introduce everyone. She took Carol through the house, showing her around, allowing Gary and Anthony some time to catch up and talk to one another before dinner.
“I’ve been told that this house is a hundred years old,” Miranda said, pulling Carol’s hand through the maze of children going through the house. “When we bought the place, it looked like a thousand. Can you believe that we lived in the camper out back for four months until we could get the place in good enough shape to live in? But we did all this work ourselves. I had never done any kind of work like this before…but look at these wood floors. See? I sanded these myself. Me, a girl! Ha!”
The younger wife was definitely the chattier of the two. She went on to explain how they replaced the old insulation, built an extra bathroom, moved walls, replaced railings, and installed ceilings. She was very proud of all the work they had done. Carol had to admit to herself that even with the age of the house, the two wives had done a great job of making it a home.
All the bedrooms were on the second floor, making the most use out of the first floor with an expanded kitchen, a dining room, a living room, and a larger family room which extended to an outside deck. Miranda shared that once a week they had a Bible and fellowship time with other families in the area, and the latter room worked out great for that.
Climbing the stairs, Miranda explained, “Now you get the tour of the bedrooms. It might help to know the kids as we peek in. First, Savanna has four kids; the two older boys you already know, Sarai, who is eight, and Piette, who is four. Now, fair warning. Do NOT call Piette by her name. She says her name is Pinky. Pinky is four. My kids are Peace, Esther and Tony.”
They began to climb another set of stairs that led to the attic. Savanna was athletic, and was a regular runner, whereas Miranda tended to be a little on the heavy side. She did not like the stairs.
“I think my daughter Peace moved up here because she knew I hated these stairs. Teenagers. You have to be smarter than them. Peace is my daughter from my first marriage. She just turned twelve. She took over this room for her birthday, when the older boys moved out. Personally, I think she paid them off. Anyway, she got the choice of paint for her room. She likes purple. A lot.”
“She is up here by herself?” Carol asked, finally getting the opportunity to actually enter the conversation.
“Peace is very independent,” Miranda replied, “and she needs the space. She had a rough time in our early years. Her dad was pretty abusive to both of us, and she has had some real trust issues growing up. Gary loves her to pieces, like she was his own. They get along great. She and I butt heads once in a while, though….it might be because we are so much alike,” she winked.
Going back down to the second floor, their first stop brought them to an obvious girl’s room. “Peace used to share this room with the two middle girls. Over here is Sarai’s area. This side is Esther’s. Esther is six. Now, even though they are a year and a half apart, these two are like twins. Inseparable. They share everything, including getting in trouble at times. You have to watch these two like a hawk sometimes. Hold on…” she said, stooping down to pull something out from under the younger one’s bed, “what is this? Oh dear, Lord. That girl has brought another animal in this house. ESTHER!”
Suddenly the sound of what had to be a hundred little girls came bounding up the stairs, and there appeared Sarai, Esther and Carol’s daughter.
“What is in this shoebox? I know something is in here, I heard it move. What is it this time? Did you get another rat out of the barn?” Miranda asked. Carol cringed at the thought of a wild animal living under the sweet blonde’s bed.
“Nope. Sarai found a snake! It’s a pretty one, too! We’re gonna put it in the old fish tank in the garage. Daddy said he would get it out after the party.” Esther pleaded.
“Oh. My. God.” Miranda said, rolling her eyes and looking at Carol “Now you girls take this box and get this snake out of this house. If Momma Savanna saw this, she would make her best half-marathon time yet! Now go!”
Esther held on to the box like lost treasure, peaking under the lid to make sure ‘Napoleon’ was fine, asking Susan if she had ever seen a snake before.
“No. No. No.” Carol said, begging, “Please take it outside. Thank you.”
The girls ran out with their prize, and bounded down the stairs. Miranda said, “I grew up on a farm, so I am used to all sorts of animals. I guess Esther gets that from me. Oh, well…on with the tour,” waving Carol on to the next room.
“Now this room,” Miranda explained, “Pinky and Little Tony are sharing. Since they are so young, it is working okay for now, but give them two years, and we will have to come up with another solution. He’s really too young to stay with the older boys, and she’s really too young to be by herself. Pinky loves anything with fish, Little Tony loves football, like his Daddy. Go Chiefs!”
“’Little Tony’?” Carol asked.
Miranda smiled, “Yes…Gary insisted. The night before Little Tony was born here at the house, Gary had a dream. The dream was that the two brothers were walking along, and an earthquake happened. They could have pulled one another to the other side, but instead, they let a giant crack in the ground separate them. Gary said it was God’s way of telling him that he needed to fix the relationship with his brother. The next day, the baby came, and Gary named him Anthony after his brother. Besides, he sort of looks like the two of them, don’t you think?”
“I had Peace at the hospital, “Miranda added, “and they had to dope me up to get that kid out of me,” she laughed. “When Gary and I had Esther, we also went to the hospital, no drugs that time. When we found out I was pregnant with Little Tony, Savanna had talked me into using a midwife like she had with Sarai and Pinky. Scared. Me. To. Death. I thought, ‘midwife, what is this the frickin’ middle ages?’ But, I did it! I’m glad I did it, too. Delivery went great, right in my bedroom. I thank the Lord for it. Now, “ she said, pulling Carol again, “I will show you MY room!”
Opening the door, Miranda said, “I like country stuff,” and she did. On the walls on display were two quilts that she had won prizes on in competition. Everything in the bedroom exuded a very laid back, rural appeal. Even the bathroom and closet gave the impression of a restored barn.
“I like it here. This is my sanctuary,” she said, smiling as she fell back on her bed, “This. THIS HERE. Is a REAL feather mattess. I know a couple of Amish ladies nearby that I trade with, and they made this for me. For my birthday two years ago, “ she said proudly.
“Hee, hee!” Miranda laughed, almost with a sinister twist, “Now let’s see Savanna’s room…shhh! Don’t tell her I showed you!”
Savanna’s room was the opposite of Miranda’s. It was contemporary, custom draperies, comforter and pillows, with an area in the corner that served as an office. She loved candles. Displayed on the walls and shelves were trophies and memorabilia from athletic competitions in high school and college, and pictures of her early years of marriage to Gary. Whereas Miranda’s bathroom had a tub, Savanna’s had a shower, the kind that also sprayed from the sides.
“It’s nice, huh?” Miranda asked. “Gary redid this whole room and bathroom for her for their last anniversary. Believe it or not, he even decorated it. I’ll tell you,” she whispered, “they had had a fight four days before, and Savanna was just upset about a lot of things, in particular about bringing on a third wife. She needed some space, so she went and visited family in Tennessee with her girls for a couple of days. While she was gone, Gary just basically locked himself in the bedroom and worked day and night. The only time the rest of us saw him was when he came out to eat. He would be sawing and hammering at three in the morning. Finally, the morning of the day she was coming back, he had finished, but the room was off limits until she got home. You could tell she was still a little upset when she got back, but they talked in the yard for a while, and he took her to show her this room. I had never seen Savanna cry so much before. She was so happy.”
Miranda wiped a tear from her eye, “Now look! It’s just a bedroom! Nothing to cry over! Well, that’s it on the bedrooms!”
The tour of the two wives bedrooms got Carol to thinking, and since it seemed that she and Miranda had developed some level of rapport, she asked, “Uh? What about Gary?”
“Gary? He doesn’t get a bedroom,” she laughed, “he likes to ‘roam’. He’s like Jesus; he has no place to lay his head! Oh, and if he’s been on bad behavior, sometimes there is no room at the inn, either, if you know what I mean, and he gets to sleep in the barn with the rest of the animals, oh, and the boys.”
“The barn?” Carol asked.
“Yep. Gary Jr. and Claude sleep in the barn. Now, don’t feel too sorry for them. They converted two old stables and a milking station into their own version of a ‘man cave’; women dare not enter. Peace worked that deal out, because she wanted her own space, and that space was the attic. So, she sweet talked Gary, and the next day, he and the boys redid a big area of the first level of the barn. They have all their toys and gadgets out there, just like any other fifteen and thirteen years old would. And, like I said, sometimes Gary is out there, too. I think that when the boys go off to college, Gary might just make a play for it,” she laughed.
“Come on, let’s go downstairs” Miranda quipped, once again taking Carol’s hand. “Remember: you were NEVER in this room.”
Carol was impressed with how Miranda just so easily accepted the fact that she was Gary’s second wife. In fact, if Carol didn’t know about Savanna, by all appearances, Miranda was just like any other wife or partner. Miranda, was, except for her excessive taste in country knick-knacks, completely NORMAL.
After dinner, Carol offered to help Savanna with the cleanup, leaving to Miranda the duty of getting the herd of children bathed and prepared for bed. All the little kids decided they would sleep in the family room on the floor in makeshift tents, a compromise from sleeping outside. Pinky had chosen ‘Finding Nemo’ as the movie selection, and insisted on having all her stuffed animals join her in the presentation. David at first protested the selection, but when he was bribed with intermission popcorn, he was convinced. The older boys and the men headed to the ‘man cave’ for a tour, and Peace said goodnight and proceeded to her attic.
In the kitchen, Carol brought dishes from the dining room, and she and Savanna bantered in small talk until the first wife asked abruptly, “Carol, why are you here?”
Savanna was never known for being coy or apprehensive, and preferred honesty as opposed to appearance. Carol was caught a bit off guard by the question, and responded, “What do you mean?”
She replied, “Well, you and Tony have had plenty of opportunity to come here before now. I know that you don’t agree with our lifestyle, and I understand that. But, I knew Tony and Gary before you ever did, and I know that even though the boys had their differences, they could have reconciled years ago. So what gives? Why are you here?”
Carol looked down into the rinse water, and considered her response, and spoke, “My sister has cancer.”
“Oh, no,” Savanna comforted, “ I am so sorry to hear that…”
“My sister has cancer,” she interrupted. “It’s incurable. Stage four lymphoma.” Her eyes reddened and she looked up at Savanna. “She will be gone in less than six months. It’s already starting to set in pretty hard, and the chemo is making her sick as can be. I meet her once a week in KC, and take her to the clinic, because she can’t drive home after her visits. She’s my only sister. She doesn’t have any children. And I can’t imagine what it will be like when she is gone,” she cried.
Savanna wrapped her arms around her, and Carol continued, “I realized how lost I am going to feel without her. Then, one night lying in bed, and Anthony was on the couch, I thought how hard it must be for my husband to be separated from his family. I realized that it was my fear, and my pride that had kept him, and me, out of contact with your family. I was scared. I was afraid that Anthony would become a polygamist.”
The first wife began to laugh and cry at the same time with the pastor’s wife, “Oh, Carol, honey….it’s not a disease, you know! It’s not transmitted by touch!”
They both laughed, and Carol responded, “I know, and I’m sorry. I really have missed talking to you. And Miranda seems really nice.”
“She IS really nice,” Savanna said, “and she is a good mom and a good friend. Friends like you and I used to be. Carol, I know that when we told you guys about our beliefs that it would be hard for you. It was hard for us, too. And we made mistakes in the way we went about it. We were still learning about the do’s and the don’ts of what God was telling us about marriage. We have learned a lot, and I mean A LOT, since then.”
She continued, “And just so you know, it’s not perfect. We still deal with the same issues that any marriage has to deal with: money, kids, sex, in laws,” she laughed, looking at Carol, “and at times it seems multiplied, because of the doubling of relationships. But, what is different is that when those troubles do come, I know that I am not alone. Miranda is there. I went through a tough time a while back, thinking that I had missed out on things in my life, opportunities that I could never get back. I even went so far as to pack up the minivan and went back to Tennessee with the girls. But it was Gary’s love and Miranda’s insistence on me coming back home that made the difference. She would call me every hour when I was gone, asking how I was,” she said, rolling her eyes.
Carol said, “Anthony and I have had a rough spot lately.” She looked out the window to the barn and saw Gary, the older boys, and her husband walking in from the barn. “I always imagined in the ministry that husbands and wives were perfect. They never had any problems. Now that he has resigned the church, it means a lot of changes for us. I’m praying that God will do something.”
“Resigned?” Savanna asked, “What’s going on?”
“Our district has a new superintendent, someone you guys may remember, who has asked Anthony to serve as the assistant. It’s a full time position in the district office, which means more money, but it also means more traveling, more time away from home. He’s already accepted, and it’s the right career move, but I don’t know if it will help or hurt our relationship.” Carol explained.
Savanna wanted to know, “So, who is going to be Tony’s new boss?”
“Frank Willis. BISHOP Frank Willis.”
Savanna had to sit down on that one. It was years earlier that a younger Frank Willis sat in the ministerial ethics committee, and the then Pastor and First Lady Gary and Savanna Carter of Mountain Home Country Church were ‘invited’ to answer some questions. That was the beginning of the end of their ministerial career in the ABF.
“You know, Carol,” Savanna explained, “that it was Brother Willis that called Tony and asked him come down to Tennessee to talk to Gary and me. It was Brother Willis that basically said that unless Tony came out strongly against our plural marriage views, it would hurt his career. We were on our way out; the witch hunt of a committee was a done deal. What wasn’t fair was trying to bring Tony into it, basically telling him to disavow his own brother.”
Carol responded, “I know. Anthony told me. He felt like he didn’t have a choice. He wanted to protect his career. He wanted to protect his father, Bishop Carter. He also wanted to protect me from embarrassment. That choice has haunted Anthony all these years, but it gave him favor through the years. It was Willis’ recommendation that got us the church in St. Joseph. Now, Frank Willis is the district superintendent.”
The ladies had reconciled. Years of holding grudges against one another disappeared in sharing stories of kids, ministry, and husbands. It was good for two friends to be back together again.
The husbands came in, and they were joined a few minutes later by Miranda who had finally gotten the impromptu campers to quiet down and find Nemo. They enjoyed a late night dessert of Mason Jar Apple Pie, canned a couple of weeks before. Tired and ready for bed, Miranda and Gary were going to spend the night in the camper, and Tony and Carol would have her room.
This morning was a typical family morning. Breakfast was a madhouse, as nine children had nine different opinions of what is the best breakfast food. After cleaning up, the wives decided that they would visit the Amish market, as Miranda had some quilts to sell. The husbands would be in charge until lunch, and then there would be the birthday party in the afternoon.
Which, as Carol looked at the window, was about to start.
Thinking back over the night before, and the morning activities, she felt guilt about not wanting to come down here for the three day weekend. She had missed the long talks she used to have with Savanna, and it felt good to reconnect. Miranda seemed like someone who could be a friend. Her husband and brother in law acted as if nothing had transpired in the years since their father’s funeral. Cousins were meeting cousins for the first time, and acting as if they had known each other all their lives.
Anthony was standing with his brother looking over the birthday preparations, as kids of various ages were making last minute preparations before the party started. Pinky had been assigned by her mother to find out what kind of cake to fix, and though Gary wanted angel food, and Tony wanted chocolate, the little girl insisted on red velvet because ‘it tasted good and was red’. There also needed to be a white icing fish on the cake.
He looked up and saw his wife Carol standing at the window, and smiled at her. It was the first time he had smiled at her in a long time. It was also the first time in a long time she smiled back.
“This is family,” she thought, looking down at children, and husbands, and wives, “and this is NORMAL.”
She turned, made one last look in the mirror, and headed down to the thirty-ninth birthday celebration of twin brothers Gary and Anthony Carter.
There was a piece of red velvet cake waiting for her. It had a fish on it.
READ CHAPTER SIX HERE: http://www.biblicalfamilies.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=30&t=3693