Making Bricks

To build a permanent house, as mom and dad called it, they had to make the bricks. It looked so fun, but mom would not let Galilee get into the mud to stomp it around. Galilee wished mom wasn't so worried about her not getting dirty.

One of the men who had come to  help as a missionary had a plan - he made a row of boxes on two long planks.  Small boxes were all formed with divider strips making little boxes all along in a row, with no top or bottom. When the mud was mixed, it was poured it into the boxes. When the mud had set and was firm enough not to lose shape, the box was gently lifted up, leaving the bricks on the ground. None of us were not allowed to touch the wet bricks or play anywhere near where they lay drying.  They made so many, it seemed there were drying bricks everywhere.

Then one morning the men began to carefully pick them up and pile them on top of each other like they were making a wall. It looked like a long house, with an empty tunnel right down the middle. The tunnel was not tall enough to stand in. Four rows of these houses were made. Then the men mixed up mud and spread it all over each house. Galilee again really wanted to help but mom was very careful to keep her away. The comforting part was that none of the kids were allowed to work, only the men.

There were piles of wood that had been  collected for the upcoming fire.  When the houses were all ready, wood was laid down from one end of the tunnel to the other, and a fire was lit on each end of each of the the houses.

Mom and dad called them kilns. Galilee liked that word.  Everyone was fascinated by the fires. Men were hired to tend those fires day and night for ever so long. During the long nights the men carved all kinds of things.  Galilee remembered most the three legged stools they carved, to sit on.  They also carved long stirring spoons for the heavy three legged iron pots that  they cooked in.  They built a fire under the pots and had long metal hooks to lift the lids and stir the food cooking inside and to get the food to eat when it was ready.
　


Beginning to take the cooked bricks out to use

 Then after what seemed like forever, the fires were allowed to die and weeks and weeks later, finally the men began to break the mud off the kilns.

Galilee, who had loved it all, was of course eager to see the cooked bricks. They didn't look like the gray bricks of mud any longer.  Now they were a lovely creamy color.  She loved the smell of the cooked brick.  The smell was quite strong as the mud was removed and the bricks could be seen.  They were still slightly warm so the bricks were lifted off a layer at a time, slowly, so the warm bricks wouldn't break.  She wished she could have that smell all around her every day. It was wonderful.

Laying the corner stone.

A foundation had been made while the bricks were baking. Now, work was started on the house.  Galilee didn’t really enjoy that part much. Maybe being told to move, don’t touch, you are in the way, and go back to the house so often made it not as fun, as she so wished she could help.

For her, the big excitement of making and burning of the bricks, was over.  The building of the house meant when it was done they would move into a brick and stone house.  Galilee liked that but it seemed to take so long she almost forgot that would ever happen.  However, life was so interesting every day she  didn't have time to think about passing time.

Starting School and The Python

The time came to go to school under a new teacher. The Cogburn's had come, with their 2 children, a boy, Terry, who was Dick’s age, and a girl just older than Galilee, named Melody. It was so fun having someone her own age to play with.

Of course, mom would not let her go to Melody’s just any time. She had to be invited with a set time to go and time to leave. However, Melody could also come to her, so it was that they spent quite a bit of time together one way or the other.

 Then Galilee found out Mrs. Cogburn was going to teach school. She was so excited to begin school. Even now she took the Bobbsey Twins books and pretended to read the words like her brothers did, but she wanted to really be able to read.

 

Galilee did find it hard to settle down to sitting at a desk quietly without moving around for such a long time. And no talking? This was almost impossible. Mrs. Cogburn had to teach 4 different grade levels and so  Galilee had to sit quietly until Mrs. Cogburn could help her. The glow of learning to read dimmed as the discipline of a class room was enforced.

Galilee was always squirming and talking without permission. Mrs. Cogburn thought she was just being naughty but Galilee was not trying to be difficult. It just was hard to remember all the rules all the time.

Then, after the fire Galilee had started sucking her thumb and Mrs. Cogburn told her big girls didn’t suck their thumbs. Mrs. Cogburn brought a baby bottle to class and told her babies suck baby bottles.

Of course, Galilee thought Mrs. Cogburn was being unfair but mom was behind whatever Mrs. Cogburn said. This school and learning was beginning to make Galilee very unhappy. Galilee was finding growing up wasn’t all fun.  

There had been reports about a huge python having been seen on the hill between the Cogburn's house where they went to school, and Galilee’s home. Everyone walked back forth on the path, and they keep a watchful eye out for awhile, but no one saw it and soon the rumor of the snake was forgotten. There were enough other snake sightings on the station.

One day, Dick and Galilee were tearing down the hill as they always did when going home from school.  Dick stopped abruptly right in front of Galilee. Dick had done this before to tease Galilee. She had hurt her lip bashing into her brother’s back. So, having seen him stop in time Galilee side stepped Dick and tore down the path to reach the house first. But, halfway to the house she was aware Dick was not catching up with her and stopped to see why. 

He was just standing, like a statute, staring at the path before him.


“Hay Dick”, Galilee called, “Why are you just standing there?


Dick didn’t answer and Galilee started back. But only a few steps back and Dick suddenly came tearing forward and grabbing her arm pulled her along beside him.


In the house, both of them panting from the run, Dick told Mom that he’d seen the python.


Galilee was most disappointed she had not seen it. She had leaped over it and was glad she had not stepped on it and made it mad.


So once again, everyone on the station was on the lookout. They went up on the hill looking for it’s hole but a long time went by and the python was not sighted by anyone. Then one day, some men came running to her Dad.


“Bwana, Bwana. Bring the gun. We have found the python. Come quickly and shoot him Bwana.”
Dad grabbed his gun and went with the men. There on the path was the python. One shot ended his life.

The men stretched out the dead snake. It measured 13 feet long. Dick tried to lift it up by the tail, and could only lift up about 4 feet of tail. It was very heavy.

Galilee felt a bit sorry they killed the python but she was very scared of snakes and was glad that this one, at least, was not going to grab her.