Chapter 14
I can’t recall a time I haven’t walked this land, a time I haven’t known the Kansas prairie. There’s nothing else in the world but this tall grass, these wildflowers, that endless sky. While the panoramic scenery is stunning—I gasped aloud when I first saw it—by now the pink coneflowers, the blue switchgrass, the golden wheatgrass, and the white pearly-everlastings are the same day after day, too mind-numbing to be noticed. Still, sometimes, even when I think I cannot take one more step, the scenic views refresh me and I’m in awe of the spectacular creation.
Each day at noon we stop for an hour to eat and allow the beasts some rest from their burdens. But we have no release from our labors. For women, there is always something to cook or clean or mend, and if there’s water nea
