arguingou2042

@@@@@ Scarlett knelt in the sun by Gerald O'Hara's graveThe black Irish soil filtered through her fingers to mix with the red clay dust of Georgia"Ach, Pa," she murmured, and the meter of her words was Irish, "it's a grand place to be sure, County MeathYou're remembered well, Pa, by all of themI didn't know, Pa, I'm sorryI didn't know you should be having a fine wake and all the stories told Ubout when you were a boy She lifted her head and the sunlight gleamed in the flood of tears down her faceHer voice was cracked, clogged with weeping, but she did the best she could, and her grief was strong"Why did you ieavc me? O:lion! O:lion, Cchon, Ubogon 01" Scarlett was glad she hadn't told anyone in Savannah about her plan to take Wade and Ella back to Ireland with herNow she didn't have to explain why she'd left them at Tara; it would have been so humiliating to tell the truth, that her own children didn't want her, that they were strangers to her and she to themShe couldn't admit to anyone, not even herself, how much it hurt and how much she blamed herself She felt small and mean; she could hardly even be glad for Ella and Wade, who were so obviously happyEverything had hurt at Tara She'd felt like a strangerExcept for Grandma Robillard's portrait, she hardly recognized anything in the houseSuellen had used the money every month to buy new furniture and furnishingsThe unscarred wood of the tables was glaringly shiny to Scarlett's eyes, the colors in the rugs and curtains too brightAnd the baking heat she'd longed for in the Irish rains gave her a headache that lasted the whole week she was thereShe'd enjoyed visiting Alex and Sally Fontaine, but their new baby only reminded her how much she missed CatIt was only at the Tarletons' that she had a good timeTheir farm was doing well, and MrsTarleton talked nonstop about her mare in foal and her expectations for the three-year-old she insisted that Scarlett admire The easy, no-invitation-required visiting back and forth had always been the best thing about the CountyBut she'd been glad to leave Tara, and that hurt, tooIf she didn't know how much Wade loved it, it would have broken her heart that she could hardly wait to get away