“The Meeting in the Mountains”

This is the first section of my several without-a-slant-stories for you. – Amorella.  

 [© 2009 orndorff]

One

Once Upon A Time not long ago and not too far away two people fell in love in a place neither had expected. She lived alone up in the mountains, a rugged area along the Continental Divide.

Her name is Mattie and she is a rugged and conservative-minded woman of athletic build who strongly believes in state’s rights and free will and essentially in living a free unencumbered life alone among the bounties of higher nature. So far Mattie has been on top of the food chain and she expects she will be until she is called to the Hereafter. After death her body will be taken back by those who provided her with food in short order. ‘Fair trade,’ thinks Mattie, and she is not in the least resentful of this fact of nature.

Mattie’s newly found partner to this individualistic and monastery life was but a stranger less than a week earlier. He is also strongly built and equally strong-willed. His name is Monty, short for Montgomery. Monty is as practical-minded as Mattie and that is the fact that immediately drew them together. Their first meeting was in the nearby woods surrounding the acre or so pond. Here is their introduction.

“Hello,” he said sheepishly. “I didn’t want to startle you.”

After a quick glance at his costume, she replied strongly voiced, “You one of the lost hikers that comes walking onto my camp land from time to time?”

“No. I have not been here before.” He pointed, “I came from up there.”

Immediately sympathetic, said retorted, “Over the ridge. That’s quite a trudge.”

“You been up there?” said Monty surprised.

“A few times; I wanted to see what was on the other side.”

He laughed, “More mountains.”

“Too many to count,” smiled Mattie for the first time in many ages. “Please, let’s have a warm drink at the table under the tree over here.” She inquisitively added, “And you can tell me about yourself to have taken on such a perilous journey.” He has a small wart-like appendage in his left ear, perhaps it is for computer storage, she thought, or it is for GPS? You would be lost on this planet without GPS. With the slight dialectal hesitation in his voice, he is a foreigner no doubt. Humor silently popped to mind, ‘otherwise I wouldn’t take an almost immediate liking to you.’

In very little time the two were sitting in the two old rough shod chairs at the course and battered table which to Monty looked like she used mostly for scaling and gutting fish from the lake. He glanced at the hot drink in the weather-beaten cup. He hesitated then asked politely, “It has an interesting aroma. What is this?”

“You are a foreigner, aren’t you?” Before he could respond Mattie added, “I suspected as much. You’re dialect is off the native by a good half second.”

Monty smiled, sheepishly and a little embarrassed, “I have a small translator. I’m sure it appears ancient to you.”

Mattie loosened her vocal cords into a more comfortable tone, “It is odd to have one show, but I knew anyway. When, like me, you don’t have conversations much, you listen very closely to what a person says.”

“Are you a scholarly naturalist or do you belong to a particular religious order? I mean to appear so content up here on your own.” He paused, “By the way, this tastes delicious. It has just the right touch of cinnamon.”

For the first time since the initial meeting Mattie’s radiant face immediately took an uncertain appearance as she uttered, “Cinnamon? What is this word, cinnamon?”