This story is a continuation of the previously posted first 9 chapters of the series of this name. It will make a good deal more sense to the reader if you have read the previous chapters.
Lisa was sitting on the front porch of the old house enjoying her first cup of coffee. The sun was just barely peaking over the big ridge far to the east of the family's remote Oregon ranch. The Owyhee high country was totally silent at this hour. A Golden Eagle was soring over the low ridge a mile beyond the house. She had been watching the big bird for ten minutes or more as he made turn after turn over the ridge and their pasture land before it. "Looking for your breakfast, aren't you big fella," she said softly to herself. She smiled and took another sip of coffee as she watched the eagle. "And to think," she said, "How close Luke and I came to pissing this all away. If I'd divorced him, we probably would have sold this and I might have done something really stupid like going back to live with my Mother in Virginia. All over that little red headed slut Sally over in Salem." She shook her head and clucked her tongue.
She heard the screen door creak behind her. Looking over her shoulder, she saw her daughter Melissa pushing through the screen door, a coffee cup in hand. Her hair was a sleep tangled mess, and her eyes were blinking at the bright light of the early morning.
"What was that Mom?" she asked.
"Oh nothing really. I was just sitting here watching that big eagle out there looking for his breakfast, and . . ." She took a sip of her coffee and then continued, "thinking out loud about how much I love living here. Even when we were raising kids and it was a working ranch, I loved it. But I love it even more now that I have the time to just sit here and watch that big bird hunt while the sun comes up.
"Set a spell and enjoy it, while I go get the coffee pot," she continued as she rose from her chair. "You'll be back in Eugene in another couple of months where it's rainy and cold all the time. One thing I've learned in life is to enjoy what you got while you got it."
Lisa went through the noisy screen door to get more coffee. Melissa sat in one of the rocking chairs. It creaked a bit as she stretched her long tanned legs out in front of her. She watched the eagle riding the thermals up and then cruising back over the pasture looking for a rabbit or ground squirrel or some other tasty treat for his morning meal. She was silent, not fully awake yet, but the warm sun just coming over the ridge felt delicious on her bare legs. She was still wearing on old shirt of Jamie's that she was in the habit of wearing to bed at night, if she wore anything.
Lisa returned and set a campfire blackened coffee pot between them after refilling her own cup and her daughter's. Melissa looked at the old pot and laughed. "If my boss at the coffee house in Eugene could see that pot he would have a fit."
"Why? You said yourself, it makes good coffee."
"It does, but he thinks everything has to be shiny, bright, gleaming, stainless steel to be any good."
Lisa harrumphed. "Like to see him make coffee out here with all that stainless steel when a lightening storm takes out that rickety old power line your grandfather got strung in here. We lose service on that line at least once a year and then it takes the Electrical Coop a couple of days to get around to fixing it. That line doesn't have much priority now that your grandfather's not still around and serving on their board. It's even worse since your Dad gave up politicking."
"Yeah Mom, but now you've got that fancy new back-up generator Dad put in here."
"That's just to keep that big refrigerator going he bought to replace the root cellar, and the internet setup so he can still run the business from here." There was a pause. "It's not for coffee," she said firmly.
Lisa laughed at her Mother, and then took a sip of her coffee. She had to admit to herself it was good coffee.
They sat in silence until they saw the eagle plummet to the ground and then rise, a struggling rabbit in its talons. "Hot damn," Lisa said. "He's got his breakfast." She took another long sip on her coffee and said, "My god I love it here."
"Mom," Melissa scolded.
"What? You didn't know that eagles eat rabbits? You grew up here. You and your brother used to shoot rabbits with a 22 just for target practice. Your Dad said it was okay because they were eating our alfalfa."
Melissa smiled. "No. You're right. I grew up here, and I know that eagles eat rabbits and farm kids shoot rabbits and most anything else small enough to hunt with a 22. I just never took so much glee in it. I guess I've spent too much time hanging around city kids the last three years."
"Harrumph. You're getting citified."
"Me? You're the one who grew up in Washington D.C."
"It was Alexandria, over on the Virginia side of the river," she responded, knowing it didn't make any difference.
They sat in silence sipping their coffee. The eagle was gone now and the sun was high enough so that it's light was on the pasture. "You know Mom, you're right. It's beautiful here, but you know I'm going to have to go where I need to go to make my own life someday."
Lisa gave her a sideways look. "You got something in mind you haven't been telling me about?"