Aloha au iā 'oe

Nā Hua o kā Mākou Hana (The Fruits of our Labors)

Clank clink cling clank!

I shot up out of my bed disoriented, feeling a slight Frenzy as I turned and rolled off the bed. I struggled to untangling myself out of the heap of blankets and sheets piled on top of me. Once I gained free of their grip, I bounced up as if nothing happened and kicked my blankets to the side out of reflex.

As I gathered my bearings I saw my Uncle Frank in the corner of the room, trying not to laugh, holding a wooden spoon and chrome pan. My face turned red in what was happening. Soon a loud booming roar came out of my uncle. He was laughing so hard that his face turn tomato red, I thought he might blow a gasket.

I started laughing in confusion of what was so funny until my uncle calmed down.

He bent down, lowering his hands on his knees, giving a light chuckle as to calm down. "Lani.. Oh man...That was great. Your reaction...priceless!"

My cheek began to burn as my face turned rouge. I was getting flustered with mixed emotions of anger and embarrassment. However, my face and lungs did not match my inner feelings. I was laughing. The whole house was engulfed with laughter.

"For a second there Lani, you had me feelin' lika cow tippin', But when ya started laughin' I was breathin' again."

Slightly confused by his words, I just said with a smile, "I was not expecting this type of wake up call."

"Welcome to yer' life as a farmer kiddo. Now get dressed while I whip up some grub. The crops ain't gonna water themself, ya hear?"

I gave my best salute, "yes sir!" Today was the day I learn to become a farmer.

****

"Lani!" I hear my uncle call. I put the brush I was using to groom Betsy, one of my uncles cows, down and patted her head. "I wonder what my uncle wants?" Betsy mooed. I smiled at the Oreo cow and walked out of the barn.

Upon exciting the barn, I noticed my uncle talking to someone who looked as old as my grandmother. As soon as I came into view, my uncle stoped his conversation and walked towards me, followed by the old lady.

"Lani! Come here. There is someone I wantcha to meet." He gestured to the tall, grey haired women. "Lani, this right here is the towns elder, Megan." I took off my gloves before shaking her hand. "A pleasure to meet you Megan. Please excuse my apperance, it seems you have caught me off guard and at a busy time." I smiled.

A smile crept up the side of her mouth, "my, my Frank. When you told me about your niece, you never said she was quite the looker and well mannered I might add." I blushed at her comment. "Its nice to finally met you Lani." Her sweet tone made me smile. "Oh and don't worry about your appearance dear. If we farmers put the same effort into our dress as we do our crops and animals, our product might not be the best it can be."

Her words rang true, that is one way to look at it.

"Megan is another farmer here in Westown. Technically she's our neighbor." Frank stated.

"Howdy- diddly-doo! And what a mighty fine neighbor I say to that." She said with a wink, forcing me to laugh.

"Come to think of it, I dont reckon I ever showed you our little town yet. I've been so busy teachin' ya the ways of the farm that I completely forgot!"

"Frank! You mean shes been slaving away on this here farm the whole time?"

"She was so eager to learn and she was just so natural, it was like leading a fish to the water. It was captivatin'."

Listening to my uncle talk to someone other than me was refreshing. But Megan was right. The past weeks I have been on this farm, learning and working. I didn't mind it though, it was relaxing doing farm work. I guess that's why it was never an issue with me. Besides, I need to prove to my father that I can do this.

"If I may interject. I have to agree with my uncle. Being here, tending the crops and animals, it is almost hypnotizing, relaxing even." I placed my hand behind my head and looked up at the sky in embarrassment. "In all honesty, I forgot we have a town a couple miles away."

Megan and Uncle Frank stared at me with wonder. "She's definitely your kin, that's for sure. And she's got the heart of a farmer to boot."

"She sure does Megan." Their compliments made me blush with pure joy. I was ecstatic that they approved me as one of their own, for now. I can't wait to get my own farm and show them what I'm really made of. Baby steps I tell myself. Baby steps.

After some tea and a couple of laughs, Megan pointed her finger in the air like she had an idea. "That's right! How could I forget the reason why I came here?" She smiled. "Oh yea, ye did tell me you wanting to speak to Lani and me." Uncle Frank said placing his hand to his chin.

"What business do we have to discuss?" I stated, straight to the point.

"Oh, right to the point are we? Very well then. Before you came down to our little town to live with your uncle here. He told me how you had your eyes set on being a farmer. So we all thought it'd be best if we found ya one. A farm that is. As the town elder, I know everyone and everything. With a little luck and know-how, we found just the place!"

I almost jumped out of my chair upon hearing the news! My own farm. It was so close I could almost taste it! I wondered if it would look like Uncle Frank's farm or something completely different. I could barely hold in my excitement.

"Are you serious?! I get a far-- I mean, *cough* thank you for this humble gift. I am very thankful for the time and effort you put in. The both of you. You have my gratitude."

"My, my Lani. We don't have to be so serious. Loosen up a little, you're like a poor hen locked inside its coop all day. You're in the county now, No need for them formalities here!"

A sigh came from my lips.

"I've been tellin' her the same thing since she got here. I wonder what my brother has done to ye poor kids."

"No need to fret about it dear, you'll get use to life here in no time, once you stop hanging round this old bucket of oats." Megan laughed.

"You ain't no spring chicken yourself there Megan." Both of them started laughing. I could tell they were really good friends by the way they interacted with each other. Maybe I could have a friendship like that one day.

"Now about the farm we found you...its...well how would I put it-"

"A disaster." My uncle blurted out.

"Frank!"

"Well theres no need sugar coatin' it."

Megan let out a sigh, "I guess your right." I looked at the two of them. "What do you mean by...disaster?" Megan looked at me with honesty and sorrow. "Its more like an outhouse than a farmhouse. We have been trying to sell the property for almost a decade now and still haven't found any takers." "Until you that is." My uncle added. "Because of the amount of work and maintenance you need to do for this place, we decided, as a town, to give it to you for 5000 gold. Which I say is a harpen good deal if you ask me."

I looked at them both with a smile. "I came here with the mission to prove to my father that I can be a farmer and if this is just part of the job, then heck with it! This will only make me stronger and better, one more step to reach my goal."

The both of them smiled as me. "Its settled then! Now I don't expect the pay now, I'll wait until your farm starts making progress." I placed my hands in the air as if to stop her from talking. "Oh I have that now! I saved up for this. I was expecting it to be much more than 5000 gold. I'll get it for you know." Without a second to spare, I leaped from my chair, grab a little bag and place the 5000 pieces of gold inside. Handing my Payment to Megan, I said with a smile. "Here you are. 5000 gold. Paid in full."

"This is very impressive. well thank ya kindly for your business, farmer Lani." Farmer Lani. That's what she called me. A farmer.