It is done. Well, the rough first draft, anyway. 50,167 words or thereabouts. I figure some of you musta been channelling my dad, telling me you thought I should do the one on his oral history. I really, really wanted to finish today, not wait 'til the deadline of midnight tomorrow. I didn't know why esp., but just checked my dad's obit thread. He died four years ago to the day...somehow I think he knows what I have done and it's okay with him. Thanks, again, my friends. It seems I owe so many thanks and for so much in the wonderful world of Mudcat.

luvyakat

And for now, here is how it starts out,unedited, pretty much how my great-grandparents hooked up:

There was a load crash against the outside door. The snow was deep and the air bitterly cold. It seemed to magnify every sound; tree branches breaking with loud cracks sounded like the crack of whips the muleskinners used. One had to keep their mouth well-covered when outside; the cold was so deep and relentless it could freeze the lungs with a deep breath.

Leadville was at the top of the world, it seemed, so different than the green and warmth of West Virginia. Mary started when the crash came. Looking at her father, she said, "Who in the world could that be?"

With his soft, slow drawl, her father, Abraham, glanced out the window, but it was too iced over. The snow was so deep, they'd had to dig down to get to the doors of the houses. Rows of them lined every street; their rooftops barely visible, tunnels leading to the streets which were kept as clear as possible. There was so much snow, it took teams of horses, men, and sledges all day, every day it snowed, to keep up with removing it. It was important work, as the mining for ore never stopped. The workers and townspeople needed to get out no matter the snow, cold or wind. Abe walked over to the kitchen door, the one which looked out on the side yard where they had a small coal shed. Opening it up, he was surprised to see a bundle of a man lying on the ground with a crutch next to him. His other crutch was up behind him at the top of the snow bank. He wasn't a very big man, but what there was was solid and it was obvious he knew how to handle himself.

Mary stood behind her father, looking on. Seeing who it was, she turned the corners of her mouth down, and said with a frown, "That's a fine way to enter other people's houses!"

Lots more description, dialogue and research to do, but I've got the skeleton at least! Thanks, again!