There is still more to gather in the field.
A Bundle for the Field Edge
The bundle reached the path before Su and Rong did.
They had lifted it between them, each holding one end of the cloth. Golden stalks lay across the middle, their long ends spreading beyond the women’s hands.
“Can you see where we’re going?” Su asked.
“I can see the bundle,” Rong said.
“That’s a beginning.”
They took another step. The stalks at Rong’s end brushed the grain still standing beside the path.
“Let’s put it down,” she said.
Together they lowered the cloth onto a clear patch of ground. A few loose stalks settled across Su’s shoes.
Nearby, Fen and Lian had finished gathering the grain they had cut in their section. Fen set her sickle aside while Lian came over with the kettle.
“How far did it get?” Lian asked.
“The front arrived,” Su said. “The rest is considering the journey.”
Too Wide for the Path
Lian poured water into four cups. They looked from the bundle to the narrow path leading to the field edge.
“It fits here,” Rong said, “but the path is tighter past that bend.”
Fen stepped forward to look. Standing grain bordered both sides, and the bundle would brush it if they carried it across the path at its present width.
“We could lift it higher,” Su suggested.
Rong raised her cup. “Then I’d see even less.”
“And I’d have to ask the bundle for directions,” Su said.
Lian laughed and nearly spilled her water. She waited until she had swallowed before setting her cup down.
“Could we carry it in two trips?” she asked.
Su looked at the cloth. “Two smaller bundles would leave us room to see.”
Rong pointed towards a broader patch just beyond the bend. “We can set the first one there while we bring the second.”
Two Smaller Loads
They untied the cloth and divided the gathered stalks into two groups. Fen held one end of a smaller cloth while Su placed half the stalks across it. Lian and Rong gathered the rest, keeping the loose ends together.
“This one already looks more polite,” Rong said.
“How can you tell?” Fen asked.
“It isn’t reaching into everyone else’s work.”
Su and Rong lifted the first bundle. This time they could both see the ground ahead. They walked slowly along the clear part of the path, turning together at the bend, and set their load on the broader patch.
When they returned, Fen and Lian had secured the second bundle. The four women lifted it together and carried it past the standing grain.
At the field edge, they placed both bundles beside the others already gathered there. Golden heads rested against the cloth, and a few loose stalks lay across the top.
“Two journeys,” Su said, looking back at the path.
“And both of them arrived with us,” Rong replied.
The Kettle Has Work Too
They returned for their cups. Lian checked the kettle and found there was still water inside. She filled Fen’s cup first, then passed it to Su.
Across the field, the remaining grain moved gently in the breeze. There was still more to gather, but the bundles at the edge were ready for the next part of the work.
Fen wiped her forehead with her cloth. “The field hasn’t finished with us yet.”
Lian lifted the kettle. “Neither has this.”
She poured the last of the water into Rong’s cup. Rong drank, then looked at the empty kettle.
“Will it need another trip?”
“Yes,” Lian said. “But at least it knows the way.”
They set the cups together in the shade. Fen picked up her sickle, and the four friends returned to their places among the gold.
Livora Gracely ♥
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