Skylark Page #4

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Where is Jacob?

Jacob.

Hyah!

Hyah!

Come on!

Ho!

Ho.

Jacob.

Jess.

Sorry about your trouble.

Come to help.

Can't pay you, Jess.

I didn't come to get paid;

I came to help.

Thanks.

By the way, what's that glass

doing on that post?

That's for rain.

Boom!

Mattie:

Oh, they are

wonderful children.

Yes.

It was hard for Jacob

to send them... to send us away.

They're his life...

after the land.

"After the land"?

Sarah, it seems to me

that what Jacob did

was to put you first

to send you here.

He had no choice, Mattie.

Oh, my dear...

(chuckles)

...he had choices.

How long will you stay?

I don't know.

Will Jacob come?

No, Jacob won't come.

Jacob will write letters.

(chuckling):

Letters again.

It was because of those

letters that you left.

And who was it

who told me to go?

I?

Oh...

I could nevermakeyou

do anything, Sarah.

All I told you was

that every winter

I watched the

geese fly away

to places

I've never been...

leaving me behind.

I didn't want you to

be left behind, too.

Are you sorry?

Sorry that I left here?

I miss the sea.

I miss all the green...

though somehow it doesn't seem

quite as green as I remember.

The sea isn't

as comforting.

I was so frightened,

I remember, when I left here.

But I'm more frightened now,

Mattie.

I never knew.

No one ever told me

how hard it is.

To love someone?

(Brutus barking)

Oh.

Look.

Woman:

Hello.

Hello.

Hello.

The water is cold here.

(both laughing)

Not too cold

for children.

Yeah, only children and

my Aunt Lou swim here.

And Brutus.

Come here, boy.

William?

Uncle William?

Sarah:

Will!

Sarah!

You're home.

For a visit.

Meg, you look wonderful.

(both laughing)

This is Anna.

And Caleb.

We've missed you.

Two years!

Anna. Caleb.

I should've known

the moment I saw them.

And Jacob...

where's Jacob?

Anna:

Home.

Papa is at home.

William, did you hear?

Seal is going to have kittens!

Seal!

(all laughing)

The father

is orange.

(all laughing)

Meg:

I remember Seal--

Independent.

Independent...

like Sarah.

Imagine that--

Seal a mother!

Just shows a change of place

sometimes works wonders.

It's all right.

It's all right, Anna.

(calf bleating)

I'll come tomorrow

for the sheep.

Don't worry.

Things will get better, Jacob.

Hyah!

(calf bleats)

Samuel!

Whoa.

Keep this one.

All right, Jacob.

(calf bleats)

Thank you, Samuel.

Sarah:

"Dear Jacob, we are here now.

"Anna and Caleb are happy,

but they miss you.

"The aunts

have taken them over.

"They will, I fear,

be loved to death.

"They're going fishing

with Lou tomorrow.

Caleb is taken with the sea."

"Anna is, no surprise

"spending her days

watching and listening.

"We think of you every day.

"We miss you.

"Anna asks about

Seal and Nick.

"Caleb wants to know

if it has rained.

"I think of Moonbeam every day.

Love, Sarah."

Are you going

to tell me?

What did

the doctor say?

I'm fine.

The baby's fine.

The baby...

Mattie...

(chuckling)

The baby.

(piano and flute

playing upbeat melody)

(raindrops falling)

(laughing)

(Caleb and Anna laughing)

Whee!

(piano and flute stop playing)

What is it?

What are they

doing, Sarah?

Sarah:

Rain...

It's been so long.

(laughing)

Sarah?

Sarah,

what are you doing?

Oh, look.

(dog barking)

Oh, Sarah.

(laughing)

Yay! Whee!

(opera playing on gramophone)

Anna:

"Lucille's happy and busy.

"Yesterday,

she had four kittens..."

Will:

Four?!

Caleb:

Kittens!

"Three gray

and one orange.

"Nick misses you.

"Sometimes he sits

and looks down the road

"waiting for you to come back.

"I am fine.

"Still no rain, but soon.

"Give Sarah a kiss for me.

Love, Papa."

Caleb:

He forgot to tell us

about Moonbeam.

Will:

Well, you know

he's probably busy

with the farm.

But he forgot.

I'm going to tell you,

Jacob...

Come on, get your end up.

Closer.

Easy now.

Easy now. Watch yourself.

I'll tell you

that's a good

start, Jacob.

I better be

heading back.

I promised Samuel

I'd stop by

and help him

with his stock.

Someday when

times are better

and there's money

to be earned

I'll buy a place

like this.

My papa used to say

a man is rich if he has land.

People, they come and go

but the land is always there.

You got the whole world

under your feet.

The whole world...

That's what I used to think.

The whole world, Jacob.

I'll see you tomorrow.

Jess.

Mail this for me

in town, would you?

Man:

That's it.

(all laughing)

What's so funny?

We had a lovely day.

Catch any fish?

No.

Tell me.

You gonna tell me?

Tell me.

Uh... it's a secret.

Oh, a Chubb secret?

Uh-Oh.

I know how to

deal with you.

You tell me

the Chubb secret

and I will tell you

Chubb's real name.

You can blackmail him.

What's blackmail?

A criminal act,

my dear.

(Caleb giggling)

Aunt Lou:

Come along, Caleb.

Let us go to the porch

where I will reveal--

only to you, mind you--

Chubb's real name.

Aunt Lou would

make Papa laugh.

Papa doesn't

laugh very much.

Caleb:

Aunt Harriet?

Have you ever been married?

Anna:

Caleb...

That's personal.

Aunt Harriet:

That's all right, Anna.

Personal, yes,

but like everything else

it's also history.

No. I never got married.

Almost, but not quite.

I didn't meet

a dashing man

like your father.

Anna's

our family historian.

What's dashing?

That's what I'm doing,

right now--

dashing into the water.

Caleb:

You are?

You want to come?

I'm going skinny-dipping.

No! Not in front

of the children.

Harriet,

what is it you do each evening

when everyone's in bed?

Lou!

No clothes on?!

You mean, you're going to swim

all naked?!

(dog barking)

Everyone goes

skinny-dipping.

Caleb:

Anna!

Anna!

Come here!

In the moonlight,

she looks like a big fish!

Caleb, what is it?

A dream...

A dream I had.

A bad dream?

I dreamed of old Papa.

But that's a good dream.

He... He couldn't

find us, Sarah.

He looked and looked

and couldn't find us.

Oh, Caleb, your papa

knows where we are.

(sniffling)

He does.

I used to dream

about rain.

Remember?

Mmm.

Now I dream about Papa.

Is this our new home

Sarah?

(humming softly)

? Don't say a word ?

? Papa's gonna buy you

a mockingbird ?

? If that mockingbird

don't sing ?

? Papa's gonna buy you

a diamond ring ?

? If that diamond ring

turns brass ?

? Papa's gonna buy you

a looking glass. ?

Caleb:

"Dear Papa

"The water is cold here,

but guess what?

"The aunts swim naked and white

in the water at night.

"They call it skinny-dipping.

"But, Papa,

Aunt Lou'snotskinny!

"Here's a secret:

Chubb's name is

Chubbers Horatio Umberto Bell.

"Sarah says it sounds

like a song.

"I miss you.

"I love you.

Caleb."

Don't go out

on the rocks, Caleb.

The tide's up.

I won't!

Watch your step

on the stairs.

They need fixing,

Will.

Uh-yeah.

They always have.

The town's 200th birthday--

that's a fine thing

to celebrate, isn't it?

Yeah.

How many years

have we sat right here

and watched the fireworks?

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