Into the Garden (Wildflowers 5)

private lessons, but he had no ambition to be wealthy

and powerful. He was a beautiful man: poetic,

romantic, a dreamer I suppose, and he was very

handsome. I expect you will inherit his good qualities,

Cathy. I really do.

"However by the time you begin reading these

letters, I don't suppose you will know all that much

about Alden. The family wasn't proud of him as they

should have been and they refrained from talking

about him if they could. It was as if his personal

creative ambitions were considered a sign of-

madness. Perhaps he was a little mad, but all creative

people are. I found his disregard for material wealth

and for all the things Franklin and his family found

important to be charming. He was refreshing, as

refreshing as a warm but crisp late summer breeze,

and he had a sm

ile that could melt the hardest, iciest

heart-- yes, even Geraldine's.

"He spent a lot of time with Geraldine. He tried

to get her to play the piano and she did take lessons

from him, but I think she did it more to be in his

company than out of any love of music. She did

passingly well, but the moment she found out about us, she stopped the lessons and hasn't put her fingers

to keys ever since.

"I know Geraldine felt more betrayed by Alden

than she did by me. Her deep love and affection for

him soured into jealousy and hatred. It got so she

wouldn't speak to him unless she absolutely had to

and she avoided him as much as she could. She didn't