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    On the Wind: One Woman's Journey Through Life
    On the Wind: One Woman's Journey Through Life
    On the Wind: One Woman's Journey Through Life
    Ebook73 pages53 minutes

    On the Wind: One Woman's Journey Through Life

    By Gladys Dorris

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    About this ebook

    A young Canadian girl grows up fast in a mostly dysfunctional childhood. As if she is blown in the wind, her life takes her to unexpected places. The story chronicles her journey as she quietly endures unimaginable trials and finally finds safety, security and love in another country.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherAuthorHouse
    Release dateOct 2, 2012
    ISBN9781477273432
    On the Wind: One Woman's Journey Through Life
    Author

    Gladys Dorris

    Gladys Dorris, a retired high school English, computer applications and journalism teacher, ranches with her husband in Pecos County, Texas. She was born in Canada and is a naturalized American citizen. Dorris grew up in a small, predominately German-immigrant town in Ontario, Canada. She is the 12th child in a family of 13, and has traveled throughout both Canada and the United States. On the Wind is a fiction/romance/Christian story. While it contains a few basic correlations with her life, the story is predominately a work of fiction. Her vivid imagination, somewhat quirky sense of humor and extensive travels give her writings a unique perspective. Dorris’ writings cover a wide variety of topics and genres. Her short stories and poems have won first place several times in annual State-level competitions sponsored by The Texas Federation of Women’s Clubs; her work has been published in both The Texas Clubwoman (TFWC publication) and in the Big Lake Wildcat (a weekly newspaper for Big Lake, Texas). Dorris’ post-secondary education includes the following: • Conestoga College of Applied Arts and Technology, Stratford Campus, Ontario, Canada – business and secretarial studies • University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada – interior decorating • Midland College, Midland, Texas, USA – Associates in general studies • University of Texas of the Permian Basin, Odessa, Texas, USA – Bachelors Degree in literature and journalism (double major) with a minor in education • Sul Ross State University, Alpine, Texas, USA – Masters in education • Sul Ross State University, Alpine, Texas, USA – Reading Specialist She graduated Magna cum Laude from Midland College, Suma cum Laude from University of Texas of the Permian Basin and Magna cum Laude from Sul Ross State University.

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      Book preview

      On the Wind - Gladys Dorris

      On theWind

      One Woman’s Journey Through Life

      Gladys Dorris

      US%26UKLogoB%26Wnew.ai

      AuthorHouse™

      1663 Liberty Drive

      Bloomington, IN 47403

      www.authorhouse.com

      Phone: 1-800-839-8640

      © 2012 by Gladys Dorris. All rights reserved.

      No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

      Published by AuthorHouse 09/26/2012

      ISBN: 978-1-4772-7345-6 (sc)

      ISBN: 978-1-4772-7344-9 (hc)

      ISBN: 978-1-4772-7343-2 (e)

      Library of Congress Control Number: 2012917775

      Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

      Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

      Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

      Contents

      On the Wind

      Chapter One

      Chapter Two

      Chapter Three

      Chapter Four

      Chapter Six

      Chapter Seven

      Chapter Eight

      Short Stories

      The Wet

      The Man in the Casket

      Meme’s Man

      Toppling Toilets

      On the Wind

      by

      Gladys Dorris

      image001.jpg

      This book would not have been possible without the support of

      • my friend and former school principal-superintendent, Jerry Stinson, who gave me confidence;

      • my loving husband, John Dorris, who gave me encouragement and inspiration;

      • my friends, Gloria Odom and Mary Martha Arana, for their review and recommendations;

      • and my friend, Fraron Holik who pre-read and critiqued.

      Also, thanks to everyone who inspired the characters and events in this story.

      image002.jpg

      Chapter One

      August 1955

      As eight-year-old Kathleen Schmidt lay on her back watching maple keys spin slowly ground-ward on the early August breeze, warm sunbeams sliced through the leaves of the towering hard maple. Kathy, as she was called by her family and occasional friend, watched raptly as the keys mimicked tiny helicopters on the seeds’ germination journey thus ensuring new growth in the spring and survival of frigid Canadian weather common in Kathy’s mostly-German-immigrant home town.

      Kathy, kommen liebchen, macht schnell! her mother called from their front porch two doors down. It’s almost time to go. Kathy jumped dutifully to her feet tossing her long, blonde, incredibly straight hair over her shoulders, dislodging the daddy long leg spider from her hair exiling it to the ground.

      Kathleen hated to leave. She loved her childhood home even though childhood was a term she couldn’t comprehend. Home was comforting because it was familiar and predictable; it didn’t mean safety, security, love, or any other amorphous concept that mysteriously separated her from classmates and, thus, from forming any long-term friendships.

      Kathleen’s best friendship rating belonged to her older sister Sharon whose advanced age, one year older than Kathleen, afforded Sharon the respect of one near-adulthood. Even though she was almost a grown-up, the two girls shared powerful imaginations. They could play for hours launching leaf-sailboats in the puddles formed by rain droplets that dripped from maple trees into depressions alongside the Canadian Pacific Railway that cut through their small-town neighborhood. Lack of toys never concerned the girls. They never knew anything different and were adept at creating playthings from a small block of wood, empty soup can, piece of string, or almost anything they could find.

      Now they were leaving. Hurry Kathy, her mother called again. We have to be gone before your father gets home from work. Kathleen couldn’t delay any further. She straightened her hand-me-down shorts and faded pink t-shirt and reluctantly hurried home. Sharon was already there, helping their twelve-year-old brother Larry stuff suitcases into their uncle’s car. Kathy saw their platinum-blonde hair popping in and out of the car’s open trunk. Departure was essential and now appeared imminent. Father had come home drunk again the night before and, predictably, wasted no time beating Larry, leaving him with the usual black eye and purple-black bruises scattered about on his thin, lanky frame. The girls had avoided Father’s punishing blows again by hiding beneath soiled laundry in their bedroom closet.

      Neighbors averted their eyes in a see no evil pretense as Uncle John backed out of the driveway. What happened in the Schmidt house would forever remain in the Schmidt house; knowledge of their family

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