A Cobbler Was A Shoemaker And Something Good To Eat

 "If you remember right, I told you that Nell was very poor and that her shoes were old and the soles on them were very thin. Since she had to walk hundreds of miles her shoes were getting holes in them. She could feel the sharp rocks and the wet mud seeped into her cotton stockings. In those days farmers would hunt for their food in the woods or timber and use animal hide for making shoes themselves. There weren't any shoe stores out on the prairie and very few in the cities. Remember when Nell was traveling in the wagon train was almost two hundred years ago."

 Nell felt herself limp one day because her feet were so sore. One of the ladies asked her why she was limping. Nell told her that that even though she had walked barefoot for many miles her shoes had holes in the bottom and the sides. She didn't know what to do about it. Remember she was a city girl. The lady told her that the men in the wagon train that hunted for their food may have some cured leather that she could make foot coverings out of. On the wagon trains folks shared everything they could with each other. Nell was so happy because she was able to cobble together some of this leather for her feet. Some of the other ladies loaned her scissors so that she could cut the thin leather in strips. She made laces out of them and tied them to her shoes. They weren't pretty, but the leather skins would keep her feet warmer and protect her feet from getting cut on the sharp rocks.

Grandma Lu said, "Would you like to see a pair of scissors that are over a hundred years old? I have a picture of my grandmother's on my phone. These would be similar to the ones that Nell used."

Marlee said, "My Grandma B and I make blackberry cobbler." Grandma Lu said, "You know our English language is a very hard one to learn if you weren't born here. A cobbler is a person who makes shoes, a fruit dish like you and your grandma make and Nell cobbled the leather skin and strips together in a hurry so that she would have protection from the cold." Marlee said, Well maybe I will be a teacher someday." Grandma Lu said, "I'm sure you can be whatever you would like to be, my dear."

 The weather was getting very cold. Just that morning they had seen feathery little snowflakes swaying gently through the air. Nell saw some in the trees. If she hadn't been so cold she would have enjoyed the beauty of nature. She shivered thinking of over the hundred miles they still needed to travel before they got to Fort Des Moines. She didn't even let herself think of traveling to two more Forts after their rest at Fort Des Moines. Their trip to Fort Dodge and then to Fort Cherokee was going to be even worse than even Nell could imagine.

Marlee Ada and her family were having heavy rains that were threatening the crops in the field. The rain showers were cold. The temperature was dropping to near freezing. Her pa didn't talk much. He came in the house wet and tired. He  quietly made their meals then often went out to the porch and stared into the distance. Marlee was really worried. Were they going to have food to eat during the winter? Was there going to be corn and hay for the animals? Where was her new ma? Her pa needed her help really bad. 
At night Marlee Ada curled up to Zeke and wondered how much longer it would be before she got a new ma.