The Remembered Read Free Page B

preparing their evening meal. A few people were in the 'Bull and Swan' public house. Richard could hear their laughter and singing as he passed by. Some must be travelers who stopped in for the night, others would be townes' people who had stopped before going home. The crowd at the public house would undoubtedly grow as early evening transformed itself into night. And the crowd would surely get louder as gallons of ale were consumed.

Richard passed the Sheep Market and St. Mary's. During parts of the year the Sheep Market was a place of great activity. People bought and sold sheep and wool in immense quantities at the market. It was still too early in the year for much trading in wool and lambs had not yet been born this year, so the market was instead used as a farmer's market. Tonight all was quiet.

Richard couldn't get his mind off the girl who had passed near the Glazier's shoppe. He wanted desperately to meet her, but she was so beautiful that he didn't dare try. Just the thought of speaking with her made him get all fidgety and forget all else. That was why he had made such a fool of himself today he thought. Normally, he could cut glass with skill beyond his few months of training, but when he thought of her being nearby he got all clumsy.

Tomorrow was Saturday and Richard was hoping that the Master Glazier would call a half day. The half day was to allow for some recreation prior to the commencement of the Lord's Day of rest. Richard hoped that he would get a better look at the girl sometime on Saturday.

Richard now passed the ruins of the castle. Sometimes he thought that he had been born at least a hundred years too late. If only he had been born during the time when the castle was in use, he would have been a great knight, instead of a glazier's apprentice. A knight could impress maidens with acts of valor. The best that a glazier could hope for was to impress a priest with his fine work. Of course, impressing a priest was a valuable thing to do, reasoned Richard. An impressed priest may offer many prayers to heaven on your behalf. Each day when the priest looked upon the delicate craftsmanship that made the window he would be reminded of the craftsman who had created it and may feel obliged to pray for his soul. Maybe being a glazier was not such a bad thing after all.

Richard passed through the unmanned gate and crossed the bridge over the River Welland. He then left the road and walked through the towne meadow. Leaving the road would mean that his walk home would be a little shorter. The grass of the meadow came to Richard’s mid-calf. It was wet from the moisture that had fallen all day. A small footpath led through the meadow to Easton-on-the-hill, it would take Richard about 20 minutes to reach his home where he hoped that his mother would have an evening meal prepared.

A quarter moon was showing just over the trees to Richard’s left. It was barely visible behind the thin layer of clouds that persisted. Richard was not a stranger to the dark, but he did prefer greater illumination from the moon and the stars than he had tonight. Despite the fact that he was accustomed to the dark, he did not relish passing through the stand of trees that stood between the edge of the meadow and the top of the hill where Easton-on-the-hill stood. Vagabonds were not uncommon in the woods. Most decent people would stay on the roadway between Stamford and Easton-on-the-hill. Some decent people might stay in the woods for lack of money for an inn. Some, however, were either criminals or others hiding from a past. Richard tried not to dwell on such thoughts. By exercising an element of caution he could avoid most dangers.

His mind instead drifted between thoughts of his work and of the girl that had so captivated his mind. She wasn’t a tall girl, she was perhaps a head shorter than Richard. She had long, light-brown hair that she wore tied in a tight coil on her head. To hold her in his arms would be so