A Salem Awakening

Chapter 4

Unlike Samuel, Willa Sampson loved to smile. When Samuel could take brief breaks from farming and praying, the two would take walks around the village. Samuel was always serious, staring at the ground with his hands by his side. Willa, conversely, would point her face directly up to the sun, trying to soak in every warm ray of sunlight. Her smile captured the sun's warmth and exuded happiness. She had experienced unimaginable heartache in her life, but she lived each day as if it held the promise of seeing all three of her children happily playing together.

They never held hands on their walks, or ever, really. But their bond was strong, and each had complementary traits to the other. Willa was personable and outgoing, qualities Samuel constantly worried would cause her to be the target of accusations. But she couldn't help it. No matter how hard she tried, she could not contort her face into a frown, a scowl, or even just a neutral gaze. Even if her lips were not smiling, her eyes were. She could not prevent it from happening and she stopped trying years earlier.

Samuel had no such affliction. A scowl was a normal and comfortable facial position for him. If he concentrated and tried very hard, he might force his scowl into a frown. But he did not enjoy trying that. A frown was too close to a smile for his liking.

The two together seemed an odd match. Samuel was tall at five feet eleven inches, very thin and his face was somewhat gaunt, as though he never quite had enough to eat. His skin was tanned and rough from working in the sun all day and his hands were calloused many times over, which to him was a positive sign of hard work. He wore black trousers and a white blouse – every day. His pants were two sizes too big, so he needed to wear straps over his shoulders which were buttoned to his pants to keep them from falling to his ankles. His beard was unkempt and somewhat wiry, and he wore a wide rimmed black farmer's hat to protect his head from the sun. But under his hat hid the most luxurious dark black hair. It was not what one would expect with the rest of him. It was as if a fifty-year-old, tired, tanned and weakened farmer stole the hair from an eighteen-year-old young, vibrant boy. When Samuel met people for the first time, they would typically stare to see if they could find the secret to how he was able to stick someone else's hair on his own head. That peculiar stare from strangers occurred so often he barely even noticed anymore. Once, a new acquaintance thought it appropriate to see if he could pull the hair off Samuel's head. It did not end well for the acquaintance. Samuel was much stronger and faster than he looked, or that anyone would imagine.

Willa was an effervescent personality. She was attractive, but not beautiful. Her radiant smile and glowing eyes more than made up for the averageness of her other features. Nobody would call her a beauty, but every man in the village had noticed her. Standing at five feet three inches, she was about the same stature as most of the other women. She was not thin, but also not overweight. "There's just enough to keep me warm in the winter but not enough to make me sweat in the summer," she would joke with Abigail.

Everyone adored Willa, partly because of her affable nature and partly because her family provided so much for so many others. While Samuel would not accept thanks, Willa enjoyed getting to know those they helped. This annoyed Samuel, but he never tried to stop her – he knew he wouldn't be able to. Willa was almost as strong-minded as Abigail, to a point. She always knew her boundaries – she and Samuel set those when they began their relationship. She could live her life as she pleased, so long as she always respected and feared God, never showed disrespect to Samuel, and always took care of the house and family as her top priority. Willa happily agreed with these terms and was adept at enjoying herself while staying within the boundaries.

She always started her days the same way. She would wake up and pray with Samuel. As he dressed and planned his day's work, she would prepare breakfast for the family. Usually they would have fresh eggs they bartered for with their neighbor, and bread she made the night prior. When Samuel left for the field, she and Abigail would begin their daily chores. They had a system of helping each other, so they would complete the chores by late morning. The two recited poetry as they worked to help pass the time, often incorrectly correcting each other along the way to ensure the other was paying attention.

"Abashed the devil stood and felt how awful goodness is and saw Virtue in her shape how lovely: and pined his loss," Willa recited.

Abigail curled her brow a bit and gave her mother a sideways glance. "Actually, it was 'pinned the moss', Mother."

Willa smirked back at Abigail with a look of feigned derision. "I don't think Milton would approve of that, dear." They both giggled at the idea.

Abigail would stop when it was time for school and Willa would conclude the chores just in time to prepare lunch for Samuel. This meant on most afternoons Willa was free to explore other interests and activities. Some days, she would meet other wives and help with their chores, and often she would assist at Abigail's school.