Lots of years have passed since 1875. Dust and cobwebs have collected in the attic over time. Standing in the middle of that floor I remember stories told of relatives past. One of my favorites was of my great-great-grandfather and the golden haired lady named Arina. The story goes that my great-great-grandfather Beau and his best friend Tom went in search of gold and were very lucky. Beau's heart soon ached to be with Arina, so they loaded their pockets with gold and started the journey home. One afternoon they set up camp and while Tom was at the river getting water he heard yellin' and screamin'. He hurried back to camp but arrived after the indians had attacked. Beau was dead with an arrow through his heart and had been scalped. Tom took the gold from Beau's pockets to give to Arina and then he buried him. Tom arrived back home and told Arina the bad news. Arina didn't believe Tom and accused him of killing Beau for his gold. Tom admitted that he did take the gold only because he knew that Beau would have wanted her to have it and tried to give it to her, but she pulled out a pistol and shot him through the heart, then she put the gun to her head and pulled the trigger.
One summer I remember sitting on the porch with my grandmother who now owns the house that once belonged to Arina and I asked her about the story. She told me that the story wasn't the truth. She said that Beau did leave in search of gold because he wanted to give Arina a wonderful life and asked Tom to keep an eye on her until he returned. Arina and Tom spent so much time together they fell in love. They had just set the wedding date when Beau returned home with a pocket full of gold. Beau quickly went to see Arina and walked in on her and Tom in a passionate embrace. Beau pulled out his pistol and told Arina to move aside, but she stepped in front of Tom and was shot in the head. As she fell to the floor Tom made his move but Beau's bullet found his heart. Two days later a neighbor passing...