All of The Things You Gave Me (Chapter One)

Allie stepped off the porch and headed for the fields. She found her mother there tugging the weeds out of the small crop of tomatoes. 1

"Mother, Mrs.Winnfrey is at the door colecting taxes. Do you have the crops that I should give her ready?" Allie asked mother.2

"But it's only the middle of July! most of the time she comes at the end of July. But that doesn't matter, it matters that we have not alot to give because the crop is little. There is a basket of vegetables on the table in the house, give that to her." Mother said.3

Allie headed back to house. The rickety old screen door banged shut behind her as she entered the kitchen. She found the basket on the table and took it. She then headed for the door but found that Mrs.Winnfrey was allready sitting on the couch in the living room. Today she had a egg blue hat and shawl on. Allie handed her the basket.4

"What? That is all? There must be more!" Mrs.Winnfrey shrieked "If this is all then at the end of August I will have to double your taxes!"5

Aliie looked with horror in her 13 year old face.6

"Double! But thats impossible! We wouldn't have enough food for the winter if you double!" Allie said.7

"Well it's not my problem!" Mrs.Winnfrey stood up and left. 8

Allie was thinking this over. Double the taxes? They wouldn't have anything to eat if they doubled the taxes! And mother never aproved of going to the grocer to buy food! 9

Allie ran for the back door. She threw the door open and ran outside. Her mother was still removing weeds when she ran up to her.10

"Mother! They want to increase taxes because we didn't give them enough this time!" Allie said to her mother.11

"Go back to house! Now! There might be a tornado coming!" her mother yelled.12

Allie ran back to the houyse as fast as she could. If a tornado was coming then it would be a bad one. 13

Allie and her mother lived on a farm in Kansas. If a tornado came it would ALWAYS be a strong tornado. Allie looked through the window. There were dark clouds and a huge funnel of dark was coming right towards ther house. 14

The back door banged shut and then a small click was heard as her mother locked the door.15

"Allie! Lock all doors leading to the out side and make sure all windows are closed and then head to the basement.!" her mother yelled through all the wind blowing so hard that it was still heard.16

Allie rushed through the whole house checking doors and windows. When she was done with that she headed for the basement. 17

Downstairs there was a door. She opened the door and headed down. It was cold, dark and damp in the basement. The basement was huge! She headed to where she thought she saw a candle burning. She was right. Her mother was sitting on a straw carpet with a candle in the middle of the hole she had picked out.18

The basement was made up of some series of holes in the dirt walls and of huge main room. Mother sat in the hole that was farthest away from the stairs. She thought it was safe but you had to think again.19

Alli sat down. She looked up. Above her were several long planks of wood. They kept the whole hole up and if even one fell the whole place would colapse. That would be the biggest dissaster ever.20

CRASH! BOOM! WAM! Something up-stairs crashed down. Alli wimpred. She was scared out of her mind. what if her whole house was gone and the only thing left was the basement?21

Comething creaked up above. And then one of the planks fell! As Alli watched it fall it was as if the whole world slowed down. The plank fell down, down, down and hit mother's head. Mother fell sideways. Alli screamed and ran towards her mother.