{"id":14023,"date":"2017-06-12T15:21:39","date_gmt":"2017-06-12T19:21:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=14023"},"modified":"2025-09-25T15:41:09","modified_gmt":"2025-09-25T19:41:09","slug":"the-devils-in-the-details","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=14023","title":{"rendered":"The Devil’s In the Details (by McFair_58)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Summary<\/strong>: Ten year old Joseph Cartwright has been assigned a project by Miss Jones to write a paper about his mother. The trouble is, he’s not quite sure what he knows so he asks for her help.<\/p>\n

Rated G \u00a0(2,100 words)<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Devil’s in the Details<\/strong><\/p>\n

Miss Abigail Jones looked up from her desk, noting a shadow blocking the door of the schoolhouse.\u00a0 She frowned as she raised a hand to block the glare.\u00a0 Whoever was there was a student \u2013 a small slender student with a head of curly hair.<\/p>\n

Joseph Cartwright?<\/p>\n

Really?<\/p>\n

Laying her pen down, she stepped from behind the desk and approached the boy.\u00a0 \u201cJoseph, you should be on your way home,\u201d she stated sternly.<\/p>\n

The poor boy jumped, but held his ground.<\/p>\n

Softening her tone a bit, she continued as she approached, \u201cWhat is it you need, young man?\u201d<\/p>\n

He was holding his black hat and ringing it with his fingers.\u00a0 When Joseph looked up, she was struck once again by the simple beauty of the child \u2013 a beauty he knew he possessed and often used to his advantage. \u00a0It was her job as his teacher to impress upon him that beauty was, indeed, more than skin deep.<\/p>\n

The Cartwright boys were children of wealth and it would be so easy for them to lose their heads and their way.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, Ma\u2019am,\u201d he began with hesitation, \u201cit\u2019s about that assignment for tomorrow.\u201d\u00a0 He paused, swallowed and then went on.\u00a0 \u201cThe one to honor our mothers….\u201d<\/p>\n

Oh dear.<\/p>\n

She held out her hand.\u00a0 \u201cJoseph, please, sit down.\u201d<\/p>\n

Those huge green eyes glanced at her and then he reached out and took her hand and let her lead him to one of the school benches.<\/p>\n

\u201cSit down.\u201d<\/p>\n

For once, he did what he was told.<\/p>\n

Joseph had spent more time in the corner of this room than his two brothers combined.\u00a0\u00a0 She gazed at him now, thinking of the great intelligence the boy had.\u00a0 If only she could point it in the right direction.<\/p>\n

When he said nothing, she asked, \u201cWell?\u201d<\/p>\n

He looked down at the hat in his lap.\u00a0 \u201cMiss Jones, well, you know my mama\u2019s dead….\u201d<\/p>\n

She remembered Marie and, while she had not entirely approved of her, she had to admit she had been a diligent mother and wife.\u00a0 She was, however, one of the most undisciplined women she had ever met.\u00a0 Her eyes flicked to Joe.<\/p>\n

The sins of the mother in this case….<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, Joseph.\u00a0 There are other children in the class who have lost their mothers as well.\u00a0 You must write about what you remember.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s just it.\u201d\u00a0 She heard the fire rising in his tone as it did whenever something hurt him emotionally.\u00a0 He was prone to cry, but before the tears there were usually fists.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t remember<\/em> anything!\u201d<\/p>\n

Her hand went out to land on his.\u00a0 \u201cJoseph,\u201d she said and waited.<\/p>\n

He was sucking in air like he\u2019d just come up out of Yorick\u2019s grave.\u00a0 It took a moment, but he looked at her.<\/p>\n

\u201cSurely you remember something.\u00a0 Come now, let me help you.\u201d\u00a0 She released his hand and leaned back.\u00a0 \u201cClose your eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMa\u2019am?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt will shut out other distractions.\u00a0 Close your eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, \u2018m.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, think about your mother.\u201d<\/p>\n

She saw him do it.\u00a0 Saw the pain register on that beautiful face.\u00a0 Saw his lips tremble.<\/p>\n

Her hand returned to his.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat do you see?\u201d<\/p>\n

For a moment he was silent.\u00a0 \u201cI can hear her,\u201d he whispered.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh?\u00a0 How?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHer skirts swishing.\u00a0 Her…voice.\u201d\u00a0 His jaw clenched.\u00a0 \u201cBut I can\u2019t see her<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

She bit her lip.\u00a0 \u201cWhat do<\/em> you see when you think of your mother, Joseph?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA pretty little woman. \u201c<\/p>\n

Marie was that.\u00a0 \u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n

He shook his head.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat color was her hair?\u201d\u00a0 She knew, of course, that it had been golden blonde.<\/p>\n

Joseph sighed.\u00a0 After a moment, his eyes opened up and he looked at her.\u00a0 \u201cPa\u2019s got, well, more than one picture.\u00a0 He said he had two painted in New Orleans and the artists got it wrong<\/em> both times, making her hair too dark so it looked almost brown and her face not \u2018her\u2019 face.\u00a0 He…gave those to me anyhow and one of her likeness.\u00a0 Since I…. Since I can\u2019t remember, Miss Jones, she\u2019s all sort of…jumbled up in my head.\u00a0 Sometimes I think one of them is her, \u2018cause I can see it in my head, and then other times….\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause.\u201d<\/p>\n

He looked up.\u00a0 \u201cMa\u2019am?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBe<\/em>cause, not \u2018cause.\u00a0 You sound like one of your father\u2019s ranch hands.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHoss says \u2018cause,\u201d he said innocently.<\/p>\n

Yes, Eric did.\u00a0 Ten years of working with that boy and it had done her no good.\u00a0 Eric had grown up with his father\u2019s ranch hands and was more one of them in speech than of the Cartwright family.\u00a0 There had been no persuading him that he should speak better English.\u00a0 It had been one of her failures as a teacher.\u00a0 Still, Eric was a big gentle boy and was no slouch when it came to learning or retaining facts.\u00a0 Good grammar simply did not enter into his world.<\/p>\n

She was going to see that it was different with his little brother.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll right, Joseph.\u00a0 Maybe if we go back farther to your father’s and brothers’ memories, that will help.\u00a0 What do you know about your mother from them?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s confusing too, Ma\u2019am. \u00a0My Pa met her in New Orleans.\u00a0 He was there doing something for the first man she was married to who was dead.\u00a0 There\u2019s….\u201d\u00a0 The boy paused.\u00a0 His head went down.\u00a0 \u201cPeople are always talking about her.\u201d<\/p>\n

So he\u2019d overheard the whispers.\u00a0 She supposed the other children had too.<\/p>\n

She tapped his leg and he looked at her.\u00a0 \u201cYou must learn to ignore idle speculation, Joseph.\u00a0 All that matters is what your father and brothers have told you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Poor child.\u00a0 His mother\u2019s past had been conversation for wide speculation, accusing the woman of everything from bigamy to being a dance hall girl.\u00a0 The schoolmarm sighed.\u00a0 In spite of it all, there had to be more, else Benjamin Cartwright would not have married her.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, Adam said he called her Marie and that she was about the most beautiful woman he\u2019d ever seen.\u00a0 She was funny and a bit of a….\u201d\u00a0 His eyes flicked to hers.\u00a0 \u201cA bit of a Hellcat.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her brown brows popped.\u00a0 \u201cOh.\u00a0 And Eric?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWho?\u201d<\/p>\n

She drew a breath and let it out slowly.\u00a0 Why Benjamin Cartwright ever allowed his middle boy to become known by such a common appellation she would never understand.<\/p>\n

\u201cHoss.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh.\u201d\u00a0 Joseph smiled for the first time.\u00a0 \u201cHoss said she was pretty as a day of sunshine.\u00a0 Hoss called her \u2018mama\u2019 like me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere, see.\u00a0 You remembered something.\u201d<\/p>\n

Joseph frowned and then the smiled widened.\u00a0 \u201cHey, I did!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, let\u2019s go on.\u00a0 Like I\u2019ve taught you in school, you have to investigate.\u00a0 What did your Pa tell you about the day you were born?\u201d<\/p>\n

The frown returned.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoseph?<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s confusing too.\u00a0 When Pa and Adam and Hoss and me \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI<\/em>, Joseph.\u201d<\/p>\n

He sighed.\u00a0 \u201cWhen Pa and Hoss and Adam and I was \u2013 \u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWere<\/em>, Joseph.\u201d<\/p>\n

He sighed even bigger.\u00a0 \u201cMa\u2019am, I gotta get home sometime.\u00a0 If you keep correcting me, we could be here all night.\u201d<\/p>\n

She hid her smile.<\/p>\n

\u201cGo on.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen Pa and Adam and Hoss and…I were sitting in the great room one night, we got to talking about just that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018Got too\u2019<\/em>, she inwardly sighed.\u00a0 Eric\u2019s influence was definitely not the best. \u00a0She would have to talk to their father about it.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPa looked up the stairs and said I was born in the little room upstairs.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd that is confusing because…?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, Pa was talking about a time when we went to New Orleans when I was just a little boy and Mama was still living, but I don\u2019t remember it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou had to have been very young.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I do remember playing with a friend in New Orleans.\u00a0 Just not being<\/em> in New Orleans.\u201d\u00a0 He thought deeply for a moment.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m not sure which one I was dreaming.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, you\u2019ll sort it out as you get older.\u00a0 Maybe you need to ask your father again.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the hands told me I was born in New Orleans.\u201d<\/p>\n

She could imagine why.\u00a0 Probably trying to disparage the poor child\u2019s birth and plant a seed that would trouble the boy later \u2013 maybe make him think he was illegitimate.<\/p>\n

People could be so cruel.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, let me see what we do<\/em> have.\u00a0 Your mother was from New Orleans.\u00a0 She met your father there.\u00a0 She was very pretty and loving and had spirit, and your father loved her as much as she did him.\u00a0\u00a0 She left the life she knew to come out West and build the Ponderosa.\u00a0 She was a good mother to your other brothers and gave birth to you.\u00a0 Your remember her voice and how much she loved you. \u201c\u00a0 She smiled gently.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cDoes that about sum it up?\u201d<\/p>\n

He was looking half-convinced.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoseph?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s one more thing, Ma\u2019am.\u201d<\/p>\n

He looked quite upset.\u00a0 \u201cYes?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI ain\u2019t…I\u2019m not sure what her name was.\u201d<\/p>\n

That surprised her.\u00a0 \u201cYour mother\u2019s name was Marie.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut pa called her Felicia too.\u00a0 I know, I heard it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAre you sure?\u201d<\/p>\n

Joseph nodded.<\/p>\n

She thought a moment.\u00a0 \u201cCould it be,\u201d she asked, \u201cthat he used the word \u2018felicity\u2019 instead?\u201d<\/p>\n

Those green eyes narrowed with puzzlement.\u00a0 \u201cWhy would he do that, Miss Jones?\u201d<\/p>\n

Her lips quirked.\u00a0 \u201cDo you remember the meaning of \u2018felicity\u2019, Joe?\u201d\u00a0 They\u2019d studied it not all that long before.<\/p>\n

He looked extremely guilty.\u00a0 \u201cNo, Ma\u2019am.\u201d<\/p>\n

She rose and went to her desk and picked up the dictionary that lay there.\u00a0 Turning to the page to where the letter \u2018F\u2019 began, she continued on until she found the word. \u00a0Sitting once more beside the boy, she handed it to him.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou want me to read it?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n

She nodded.<\/p>\n

Joseph ran his finger along the page.\u00a0 He was frowning at first, but as he read, he began to smile.\u00a0 \u201cFelicity – intense happiness.\u00a0 Something that is pleasing or well chosen<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her hand went to the boy\u2019s riotous curls this time.\u00a0 \u201cPerhaps your father called your mother \u2018Felicia\u2019.\u00a0 It has the same meaning. \u00a0Sometimes grown-ups have pet names for each other.\u00a0 Terms of endearment, so to speak.\u201d\u00a0 She released her hold.\u00a0 \u201cSo you can add that to your paper, now can\u2019t you?\u00a0 Your mother was a blessing to your father and well-chosen.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut what about all the other stuff?\u201d he asked as he laid the book down.\u00a0 \u201cWhat about her looking different and whether or not I was born upstairs or in New Orleans or whether I\u2019ve ever been there or not?\u201d<\/p>\n

She reached out and took both of his hands in hers.\u00a0 They were so small.\u00a0 He was so <\/em>young, and with so much life ahead of him.\u00a0 A boy\u2019s connection to his mother was primal.\u00a0 He needed to have it clear.<\/p>\n

\u201cJoseph, no matter what you have been told \u2013 or what you choose of your mother\u2019s story to tell others \u2013 you know what?\u201d<\/p>\n

He shook his head.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Devil is in the details.\u00a0 God is in the greater picture and God has gifted you with a loving family and though it is missing one member, she is still there \u2013 Marie Felicia is still there \u2013 within you and she always <\/em>will be.\u201d<\/p>\n

Someone cleared their throat and both their heads turned toward the open door.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo there you are, you little scamp,\u201d Ben Cartwright said with affection \u2013 and just a touch of relief in his voice.<\/p>\n

Joseph was on his feet in an instant.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m sorry, Pa.\u00a0 I….\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI kept Joseph after school to help him with his project, Ben.\u00a0 I\u2019m sorry.\u00a0 I didn\u2019t realize so much time had gone by.\u201d<\/p>\n

She looked at the boy as she said it.\u00a0 Maybe tonight would help to erase the image of her as an ogre that she was sure his brothers had planted in his young mind.<\/p>\n

Ben came straight for them.\u00a0 Upon arrival he ruffled his son\u2019s brown curls and smiled.\u00a0 \u201cNo harm done.\u00a0 What project are you working on, Little Joe?\u201d<\/p>\n

Joseph looked at his feet.<\/p>\n

She bit the bullet, so to speak, as her eyes sought the older man\u2019s.\u00a0 \u201cIt is a project for our Remembrance of Mother day.\u201d<\/p>\n

She saw the pain flash.\u00a0 Five years later, with the boy now ten years old, it was still raw.<\/p>\n

\u201cI see.\u00a0 And what did Little Joe need help with?\u201d<\/p>\n

There was fear in that question \u2013 fear and more<\/em> pain.<\/p>\n

Before Joseph could answer, she did.\u00a0 \u201cGrammar and punctuation.\u00a0 Sentence structure.\u201d\u00a0 She glanced at Joseph and managed a surreptitious wink. \u00a0\u201cJust a little help with the details.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The End<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Author’s note:\u00a0 This grew out of a discussion on Bonanza Boomers regarding all the conflicting info about Joe’s mother and his birth.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Tags:\u00a0 Abigail Jones,\u00a0Adam Cartwright,\u00a0Ben Cartwright,\u00a0Hoss Cartwright,\u00a0Joe \/ Little Joe Cartwright<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Summary:\u00a0 Ten year old Joseph Cartwright has been assigned a project by Miss Jones to write a paper about his mother. The trouble is, he’s not quite sure what he knows so he asks for her help.<\/p>\n

Rated G \u00a0(2,100 words)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10058,"featured_media":30533,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"template-full-width-post.php","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_members_access_role":[],"_members_access_error":""},"categories":[4,30],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14023","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-humor","category-prequels","wpcat-4-id","wpcat-30-id"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/Little-Little-Joe.jpg?fit=2160%2C2552&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14023","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/10058"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=14023"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14023\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/30533"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=14023"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=14023"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=14023"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}