Marianne's Meadow Road

"Mother, I don't want to go."

"You'll be fine dear. You always are."

"I don't know what to do there."

"You'll figure it out. You're so smart."

"People will stare at me Mother."

"They won't dear. Listen, you've written the letter to your uncle and enclosed the money for your stay?"

"Yes Mother. It cost me half of my savings."

"It was worth it, wasn't it? To see your father again?"

Marianne's eyes filled with tears. "Yes Mother," she whispered.

When Marianne's father left he took with him all of his children except for Marianne; a seven year old girl who could barely remember her father's face. The family had been happy when they first arrived in Lanzelden; a small village near the border of France and Germany. They were welcomed into the village by their new neighbors, and they managed to find a home not too far from where the town square was located. Her father worked hard as the blacksmith in town, but suddenly he left one day without saying goodbye and without taking anything with him except for his horse. He didn't even leave behind any money to pay for his work at the smithy. For two months her mother kept trying to fix things between them and then when she realized that her husband was never coming back she tried her best to raise up her children on her own. She continued working hard in order to make ends meet while Marianne helped out as much as she could around the house, taking care of her younger siblings until one day when her mother fell ill with a fever that lasted for weeks and didn't seem to go away no matter how many herbs and potions they tried. Finally when all hope was lost, their neighbors found a letter among their things after she died and gave it to Marianne along with some money that her mother had left for her own funeral expenses. It was enough for Marianne to travel the short distance from their village to Lanzelden where she would meet up with her uncle, the only family member still living in Germany after so many years away from home: her father's older brother who had long ago left to serve in King Henry V's army in France; fought hard against the French till he returned after many years as an experienced soldier who had seen enough blood shed that he would never be able to wash off just like how scars were etched into his skin forever after so many battles, only this time not on a battlefield but instead on his face and hands as a reminder of what he had sacrificed. All these thoughts raced through Marianne's mind as she walked towards the town square where other travelers were gathering before setting off towards Burgund, eager to start a new life at university: young men excited about studying philosophy or theology while young women like herself were just as excited about meeting people from all over Europe who might be different from those they grew up with in small-town Germany, hoping perhaps to find a love interest among them or maybe even someone more serious; marriage perhaps? Or perhaps nothing more than friendship? They were each burdened by their own worries and hopes as they stood waiting impatiently for the wagon driver who would take them on the journey through the narrow roads through villages and towns that looked almost identical with its buildings made of wood and stone each occupied by families like hers who were just so tired of struggling every day just like hers had been every day since she was seven years old; ever since she'd watched helplessly as her mother slowly faded away before finally dying in front of her very eyes...