Of Children and Peasants – Part XIII

Excerpt from “Anna Karenina Comes to America” by Leia Tolstaya*, Millerskaya Ltd., New York, 2009. For earlier installments please click on the keyword phrase “Of Children and Peasants”.

Levin had used the capabilities of time travel for the benefit of all he was close to. His brother had been restored to health, with the medicinal knowledge he had gathered in his many journeys. Once he realized how much time he had wasted in gathering courage to ask for Kitty’s hand in marriage, he had gone back and done that much, much earlier. Therefore they had been married before Anna and Karenin had even conceived their first child.

Anna and Karenin sat in Kitty’s parlour. Kitty was tending to one of the children.

“I love you so much that I am willing to let you go,” Karenin said to Anna.

“I love you too. I didn’t realize you cared that much. You are always so involved in your work.”

“And I didn’t think you were interested in spending that much time with me. Maybe that’s why I get so wrapped up in my work. But I would give that up, if you wanted me to go with you.”

“Really? You would give up your position, everything, for me?”

“You are everything to me, Anna. Without you, it would all be meaningless. But if you don’t want me, if you married me just because your family pressured you, then I would give you an annulment and let you go.”

In the barn, Levin raised the glass roof off the time machine. Slowly, like coming out of a dream, everyone unbuckled their seatbelts and climbed out of the cab.

They traipsed into the house. They first saw Kitty, looking pretty in her modest, pale blue dress. She had a dainty little figure, toned from the manual work was often did on the farm, voluntarily. Her hair was slightly disheveled from tussling with the kids. Her cheeks were rosy from the long hours she spent outdoors. Her eyes shone like stars. Then they saw Anna.

Once you looked at Anna, you couldn’t take your eyes off of her. Her dark red lips, pale cheeks, and deep brown eyes were captivating. Her black curly hair was done up in the modern fashion of the city, set off by the simple pearl earrings and necklace. Every inch of her was styled to perfection. Her dress was a stark, dark blue, evidently tailored by the best seamstress that could be bought. She held herself as if posing for a picture.

She held Karenin’s hand and boldly announced, “We are both coming with you.”

To be continued…

*Leia Tolstaya is a pen name for Elizabeth K. Miller, and as such her works fall under the same copyright.

Of Children and Peasants – Part XII

Untitled

Excerpt from “Anna Karenina Comes to America” by Leia Tolstaya*, Millerskaya Ltd., New York, 2009. For earlier installments please click on the keyword phrase “Of Children and Peasants”.

“Since we have young ones aboard, I’m going to set the time machine at its gentlest entry speed,” Levin announced.

They were all secured by seatbelts in the spacious cab. The space glass protective shield was lowered and sealed. Levin set the coordinates for his farm. The time was set for 10:01 PM, April 1, 1875.

The children and peasants would be sleeping. Kitty would be up waiting for them, accompanied by Anna and Karenin, who had been persuaded of the truth by various documents written by himself in the future. The marriage was still young and intact; there was no child. Anna had not yet met Vronsky; all could be diverted.

The machine started with a gentle hum, which increased to the moderate hum of a commercial aircraft as the engines powered up.

At first it appeared that the trees were moving away from them. Slowly, then picking up speed gradually, so that the trees sped by like a blur. Then the entire cab lifted, and they were above the trees. They ascended through each layer of the atmosphere, until they were as close to the sun as humanly possible.

Now stars, planets, planetary debris sped past them. There was no feeling of time or place. They just existed. Then things slowly down, as gradually as they had speeded up.

The machine lowered through the strata. All of Europe lay before them; then Russia in general. Both Moscow and St. Petersburg were in view. Then all that could be seen were farms. It was greener than anything they had ever seen. The great farmhouse came into view. They settled by a large barn and glided into it.

To be continued…

*Leia Tolstaya is a pen name for Elizabeth K. Miller, and as such her works fall under the same copyright.

Of Children and Peasants – Part XI

Les montres molles

Excerpt from “Anna Karenina Comes to America” by Leia Tolstaya*, Millerskaya Ltd., New York, 2009. For earlier installments please click on the keyword phrase “Of Children and Peasants”.

Together, they walked into the dark backyard, straight through the acre-long property until they reached its edge, where there was a large wood. Levin guided them to its center, where he had hidden the time machine.

It was the technological version of a small, antiquated house that had been transformed through the generations by dormers, extensions, and modern conveniences. The time machine had begun as a horse-and-buggy, with a train steam engine added to the front, as well as multiple automobile parts, then a jet rocket added to the back. It had dials ranging from simple to futuristic.

Rather than rebuild, Levin had simply added pieces on from many times and places, borrowing the best of each era. The cab was now encased in the most advanced fire-proof, bullet-proof, bomb-proof clear protective glass. It could run on multiple types of fuel, so that he would never get stuck in a place with no energy to get anywhere. In addition, it had solar panels built in that could harness interplanetary energy while traveling; so that the more traveling he did, the more energy it had stored up.

The buggy have been originally intended to carry his own family, it was able to carry Levina’s entire brood.

“I’m setting it to take us to my farm,” Levin explained as he worked the controls. “That’s the safest place to meet. Kitty is expecting us.”

To be continued…

*Leia Tolstaya is a pen name for Elizabeth K. Miller, and as such her works fall under the same copyright.

Of Children and Peasants – Part X

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Excerpt from “Anna Karenina Comes to America” by Leia Tolstaya*, Millerskaya Ltd., New York, 2009. For earlier installments please click on the keyword phrase “Of Children and Peasants”.

William, Levina, and the children sat in the living room, wearing costumes appropriate to the last quarter of the nineteenth century in Russia.

“I feel ridiculous,” said William, squirming in his tight pants. His attire was borrowed from Levin. Although both men were similar in height and build, and William was proud of his regular workouts, Levin’s body had been tightly honed from the long days of hard labor on his farm. Pants that were meant to be tight-fitting were stifling on William.

“I don’t think you were meant for the ballet,” joked Levina. She wore one of Kitty’s modest dresses. It was lemon-yellow with white lace around the bodice, which was cut a little on the high side at Kitty’s request. Because Kitty loved to go for long walks in the country, it was hemmed at the ankles rather than floor-length. Katrina helped her to button up the small, dainty buttons, which ran all the way up her back. Although this was meant to be an every-day dress for Kitty, Levina felt like she was ready to go to a formal dinner. Her look was completed by a French twist up-do.

The children all wore white peasant blouses, with brown skirts or trousers, black leggings, and brown shoes. These had all been borrowed from Levin’s own children.

“We should take one of those pictures, that people take in studios to make themselves look old-fashioned,” suggested Levina.

In breezed Levin, through the front door this time. He had been busy preparing Anna’s house, which he had purchased while it was under foreclosure.

He never changed outfits when he went time-traveling. In their house, he passed as an eccentric, youngish grandfather, to those who dropped in unexpectedly while he was visiting. Although Levina’s great-great-great-grandfather still looked too young to be her grandfather, the kids would still have to call him grandfather, and so that is how he was introduced to outsiders.

Always straight to the point, he nodded approvingly at their attire and announced, “Everything’s ready for Anna Tolstaya. You’ll have to show her the ropes of the modern household, computer skills included, Levina, like a good sister-in-law.”

“Sister-in-law?” This was a real far fetch for an unrelated woman they were going to rescue from the 1880’s in Russia.

“Your being related would explain to the neighbors why you are being so, well – neighborly. And we couldn’t very well let her keep the name Karenina. Even though her story will change, we don’t know how shocking it will be to her world when she suddenly disappears. She could become infamous for other reasons yet unknown to us.”

To be continued…

*Leia Tolstaya is a pen name for Elizabeth K. Miller, and as such her works fall under the same copyright.

Of Children and Peasants – Part IX

Excerpt from “Anna Karenina Comes to America” by Leia Tolstaya*, Millerskaya Ltd., New York, 2009. For earlier installments please click on the keyword phrase “Of Children and Peasants”.

“Are you crazy?” William whisper-yelled, late that night after the children had gone to bed and Levin had left.

“You have no imagination,” Levina said, sulking. She hated it when she got all excited about something, only to have him void out the opportunity.

“You think I’m going to allow you to leave our kids to go into another place and time, to save some woman who couldn’t save herself?”

“It’s not like it’s going to take anything away from our family. I’ll be there and back before you can say boo.”

William was silent for a moment.

“I can see you’re determined to do this thing, although I don’t know why. It’s kind of like how I don’t want to put you alone on an airplane. If one of us is going down, we’re all going down together.”

“You mean…?”

“If you’re going, we’re all going with you.”

To be continued…

*Leia Tolstaya is a pen name for Elizabeth K. Miller, and as such her works fall under the same copyright.

Picture from the 1997 film "Anna Karenina".

Of Children and Peasants – Part VIII

Excerpt from “Anna Karenina Comes to America” by Leia Tolstaya*, Millerskaya Ltd., New York, 2009. For earlier installments please click on the keyword phrase “Of Children and Peasants”.

Levin, William, and Levina had moved into the living room with their tea.

The front door burst open again. In burst the three older children: Katrina, age 12; Becca, age 10; and Zachary, age 8.

“Great-Grandpapa!” exclaimed Zachary. They dropped their backpacks, ran into the living room, and smothered him with hugs and kisses.

Great-Great-Great-Grandpapa sized them up and quizzed them on their scholastic knowledge.

“When can we meet your kids?” asked Katrina.

“That’s a very good question.”

“Do you tell them about us?” asked Becca.

“Hmmm….”

“Do you eat cats or dogs?” asked Zachary.

“That one’s easy. No.”

“Will you be staying for dinner?” asked Levina.

“Why not? I have nowhere else to be right now,” jested Levin.

“That’s part of the problem,” grumbled William under his breath. Levina threw eye-darts his way.

Over the baby monitor, they could hear Leia waking up. “I’ll get her,” offered William.

“We’ll continue our conversation after the kids have gone to bed,” Levina said quietly to Grandpapa.

To be continued…

*Leia Tolstaya is a pen name for Elizabeth K. Miller, and as such her works fall under the same copyright.

Above, a scene from the 1997 film "Anna Karenina".

Of Children and Peasants – Part VII

Excerpt from “Anna Karenina Comes to America” by Leia Tolstaya*, Millerskaya Ltd., New York, 2009. For earlier installments please click on the keyword phrase “Of Children and Peasants”.

“Let’s just say that I decide to come to your time and help you bring Anna Karenina here to avert the tragedy she brought on herself,” Levina mused.

“Yes?” prodded Great-great-great-grandfather Levin.

“What’s to say she won’t do the same thing here?”

“That is a very good question. And that is one of the reasons I am going to put her assets in trust to you.”

“Assets?”

“Well, she will need a place to stay, right?”

“And not here, to be sure.”

“There is a nice starter house in foreclosure down the block from you. I can purchase that and set her up with a nice bank account.”

“And where would that money come from, and how would you set up owndership without the proper papers?”

“I go talk to Karenin and Vronsky, separately. They both feels terribly responsible about what happened. They can give me money to put in trust for her. Let it grow a century or so and she will be independent and comfortable.”

“As she is used to.”

“Yes. And as for the papers, remember there is no limit to where and when I can go. I can procure the necessary papers for her identity and citizenship, and set up her accounts so it will look like she has been a long and established citizen here.”

“It looks like you’ve got things worked out. Of course, William will have to approve of the plan.”

“Of course. I wouldn’t have you going against your husband’s wishes – even though you are free to do so in your time, it is never the right thing for either husband or wife to do.”

Just then she heard the key turn in the front door. William was home for a late lunch.

“Hey, looks like the house down the block finally got a buyer,” he said, cheerfully kissing her on the cheek. Levina gave her grandfather a suspicious look.

“Hi Grandpa, good to see you,” said William, giving him a friendly hug.

To be continued…

*Leia Tolstaya is a pen name for Elizabeth K. Miller, and as such her works fall under the same copyright.

Of Children and Peasants – Part VI

Excerpt from “Anna Karenina Comes to America” by Leia Tolstaya*, Millerskaya Ltd., New York, 2009. For earlier installments please click on the keyword phrase “Of Children and Peasants”.

“I’m sure you’ve heard about the tragedy of Anna Karenina,” began great-great-great-Grandpapa Levin.

“Yes, Grandpapa, I have heard about it in great detail. I know it weighed heavily on the whole family.”

“I have never stopped thinking about it, Levina. You know she wasn’t Kitty’s favorite person, but when she heard about it she cried for days.”

“I can only imagine.”

“And while I can’t say she was a good woman, I did feel an affinity for her during our brief introduction. And I couldn’t help feeling that she was a woman born in the wrong time.”

“I think I see where you’re going with this.”

“Now I know I’ve said a lot about faith guiding us in the right direction, in God’s way, so that we can be happy, but what if there are so many obstacles to your faith that you can’t even get that tiny mustard seed to take hold?”

There he was taking the farmer’s view of things again. Levina merely nodded and listened.

“Anna was coerced into marriage at an early age, by parents who valued their status over Godly values. Her married brother also never got the right start in life, and wound up straying from his good wife instead of appreciating her and the children as he should have. And her bachelor brother never had the courage to choose the good wife he could have had. All of them unhappy but her most especially; why?”

“Because she was a woman?”

“That’s right. She was trapped in all ways a woman can be. If her mind could be trained at one of your universities, she could have the discipline of thought to really do something with herself.”

“And what of all you’ve said about taking a person out of his or her own proper time?”

“It’s all too late for anything to come of her in her own time. We could give her a second chance. If we could just get her before she left for that train station, convince her to come with us…”

“Us? Why do you need me?”

“You understand, of course, it would be improper for me to spend any kind of time with this woman, for one thing. For another, why would she trust me – men have taken all she has. If you, a modern woman, could speak with her, she would understand what she must do.”

To be continued…

*Leia Tolstaya is a pen name for Elizabeth K. Miller, and as such her works fall under the same copyright.

Of Children and Peasants – Part V

Excerpt from “Anna Karenina Comes to America” by Leia Tolstaya*, Millerskaya Ltd., New York, 2009. For earlier installments please click on the keyword phrase “Of Children and Peasants”.

Grandpapa Levin rested his chin on his hands and look pensively at Levina. “Are you happy, my dear?” he asked.

“Happy? Well, I do get irritated at the kids and their messes. Things aren’t perfect but all in all, yes, I think I am happy.”

“I’m so glad. That’s all I ever wanted for you. Happiness isn’t about things being all peachy all the time. It’s a state of being, deep in your soul, that is always there, no matter what happens.”

“I wish I could feel more content and satisfied. I do appreciate all I have, but I can’t seem to help complaining about things. But when I can make myself cut it out, I can return to a state of happiness.”

“Happiness, like love, doesn’t require that you are perfect either, granddaughter. Do you know how often your great-great-great-grandmother and I get into fights, and about the most insignificant of things? Then we kiss and make up and are happy again.”

“I wish I could meet her.”

“As do I. In the past, I thought it might present too many problems to bring you to my time, or her to yours. But, I may need your help with something, in which case you might have to come and meet her after all. But first, let me ask you this: Is this a good time to be a woman?”

Levina laughed. “Absolutely! We’ve come a long way, Grandpapa! A woman these days can do just about anything she wants. Of course, that presents its own problems, but like we’ve talked about, with faith guiding your choices you can choose a good and happy life.”

“I’m so glad to hear you say that. Let me tell you what I have in mind.”

To be continued…

*Leia Tolstaya is a pen name for Elizabeth K. Miller, and as such her works fall under the same copyright.

Photo is of the happy couple Levin and Kitty, from the 1997 film “Anna Karenina”.

Of Children and Peasants – Part IV

Excerpt from “Anna Karenina Comes to America” by Leia Tolstaya*, Millerskaya Ltd., New York, 2009. For earlier installments please click on the keyword phrase “Of Children and Peasants”.

Levina was scrubbing potatoes at the kitchen sink, looking out the window at the family of deer in the woods, when she saw someone. She looked for the orange marks of a hunter. None. Could it be he? She studied his posture as he came closer.

“Grandpapa!” she exclaimed.

Levin was Levina’s great-grandfather several times over, but she simplified it with this tender term. He and his scientific friends had together invented a time machine, and he often paid visits to his heirs to see how they were doing in their own times and places. He had a particular fondness for Levina, his namesake. She was like him in so many ways.

At one point in time (his own, to be exact), he had thought he might find a better time and place in the future in which to bring up his own family. However, he had soon found that each time and place has both its advantages and drawbacks; and God had placed him in his for good reason. He did not see anything amiss in his curiosity, however, and continued to travel as time allowed. Now, he definitely would not have been in Europe for the Plague; but, apart from that, he could not see why a family could not be happy in any particular time.

He had not given up on his book devoted to Russian worker and his relationship to the land. Originally he had been traveling about Europe to prove no one had come up with a system that worked better than his. The time travel experiment had begun as a mission to see if anyone in the future had come up with a workable system. So far, no one had solved the problem. This was greatly pleasing to his ego.

Levina quickly dried her hands, put on a kettle for tea, and opened up the back door as he strutted across the yard and onto her back deck. They embraced and he nonchalantly sat down at the kitchen table, ready for a chat with his great-great-great-granddaughter. (As I have said, they long ago lost track of how many “greats” that was.)

“I have so many things I want to discuss with you,” he said, his mind obviously bursting with thoughts.

“And I have been storing up many questions I have for you,” said Levina, grateful that her little one was sleeping and the older ones in school.

“But the little ones – how I longed to see them!” he said, looking around for signs of young life.

“Oh, they’ll be soon be stomping through the front door – they’ll be so excited to see you – but now we have time to talk alone – so what is on your mind, Grandpapa?”

To be continued…

*Leia Tolstaya is a pen name for Elizabeth K. Miller, and as such her works fall under the same copyright.

Of Children and Peasants – Part III

Excerpt from “Anna Karenina Comes to America” by Leia Tolstaya*, Millerskaya Ltd., New York, 2009. For earlier installments please click on the keyword phrase “Of Children and Peasants”.

Levina woke up on the late side, dreaming about making a stir-fry, which she rarely did. It was such a deliciously pleasant dream that she had several times half-woken and purposely slipped back into it. Now she could hear the baby stirring, and she woke herself up for good.

There were 100 ways in which she could spend her day. She felt so fortunate. Although she had imposed on herself a schedule of sorts, including meals and naptimes, she could get her work done at her own leisure and still have some time for optional activities that also contributed to the household – reading the newspaper, playing games with the baby, doing a crossword, baking a cake.

Although she loved to read Victorian novels, she was often puzzled about how the nobility passed the time. They seemed to do no real work. Maids cleaned the house and nurses took care of the babies. They went visiting from house to house, to the opera, and hunting. If they were bored in their present location, they would up and leave for a season, sometimes imposing themselves on friends or family without notice. (And it was the host’s obligation to take care of these visitors, wanted or not, for as long as they wished to stay!)

While they would never seek to lower themselves to the position of a peasant, they also occasionally confessed to being jealous of their carefree ways, of the pure love between husband and wife, and the richness of the relationships they had with their children.

Not so in her time. People - rich, poor, and middle-class alike – all had full-time jobs with very little free time. Many people were unable to get a full eight hours sleep, or sit down for three square meals per day. Those who worked outside the house during the day might have others to care for their children part-time, but usually they took that back up upon their return home. Only the very wealthy had nannies caring for their children full-time; and some, although they could hire help, chose not to, because of their intense desire to be with the children as much as possible.

Considerate people would never think of just dropping in unannounced. Of course, there were no telephones back then. Now, the telephone seemed to be a constant intruder in her house. But at least they would give notice or make an appointment.

All except for one special time-traveling relative. At first, his sudden appearances had been a bit disconcerting. But his presence was always welcome, and she soon got used to his random visits. He always came ready to burst with thoughts he just had to share with her.

To be continued…

*Leia Tolstaya is a pen name for Elizabeth K. Miller, and as such her works fall under the same copyright.

Of Children and Peasants – Part II

(To read Part I click here.)

Excerpt from “Anna Karenina Comes to America” by Leia Tolstaya*, Millerskaya Ltd., New York, 2009

Levina had thrown in her lot with the children for a day, thrilling in the physical labor of shoveling snow. “Hot chocolate with marshmallows for all if we reach the street by dark!” she had hollered.

On the skirts of her enthusiasm, the children had cleared the entire driveway. Levina had slept well that night, dreaming of leading the simple life of a child again. She was tired of intellectualizing all the time.

But waking up with her husband next to her, knowing all they shared in their happy responsibilities towards each other and their children, she also realized that the simple bliss of a childlike mental life was neither possible nor to be desired.

So she returned to the puzzle of how to get the children to work more efficiently while making it worth their while.

She had given them each their own room, thinking that naturally pride would cause them to care for their own space. If she told them to clean them, they would disappear for hours, without accomplishing anything that could be seen. They were so easily distracted.

“Give them a good education,” she had been advised by her elders.

That gave them even more to distract from their duties! Reading, writing stories, and illustrating could wile away the hours, as could chess games and backgammon.

All they wanted to do was have fun! She could not fault them in this, which was their natural inclination. She needed a better system, one which would work in accordance to their natures.

To be continued…

*Leia Tolstaya is a pen name for Elizabeth K. Miller, and as such her works fall under the same copyright.

Of Children and Peasants

Excerpt from “Anna Karenina Comes to America” by Leia Tolstaya*, Millerskaya Ltd., New York, 2009

Levina stared out the kitchen window as her children played in the lightly falling snow. She’d been trying to work out a new system whereby the children would get their chores done quickly and efficiently, at the same time seeing that such a system was for their own betterment.

Her new Kitchenaid whirred, stirring a batch of chocolate chip cookie dough. Levina sighed. She’d been told to invest in new and better technologies to improve the production of her household. But leave this new appliance in the hands of her children and they’d throw rocks in it, then say, “Oh well, you should’ve let us do it the way we’re used to.”

Little Katrina came in, looking at the blue monster in disgust. “Ugggh,” she grunted, “the Kitchenaid is taking over our job. We could’ve mixed that for you.” They reluctantly admitted the appliance was more efficient at mixing, and even did a better job, but would rather do it the old-fashioned way. Levina couldn’t understand why they didn’t appreciate all she had given them, in the hopes of making their own little lives easier, as well as her own.

To be continued…

*Leia Tolstaya is a pen name for Elizabeth K. Miller, and as such her works fall under the same copyright.