Chapter Nine
Chapter Nine
B y the time Saturday rolled around, Natalie had a rough model for the Bee-Cause website. The home page was a video close-up of a honeybee. As the bee exited, the headline P OLLINATORS : B ENEFICIAL FOR O UR E NVIRONMENT popped up. Under that was a welcome message with a brief description of why pollination is integral to our existence. Natalie pulled a few quotes from Garrett’s symposium and posted them on the page. There was also a box the user could click to watch a demonstration. The website was simple for an average user and directed the viewer to the ordering page. That was where she stopped. Could they, would they, want to do e-commerce? She left that spot blank. Natalie walked herself through the website as if she were a first-time visitor and was pleased with the results. If Georgia and Garrett weren’t, then it was no big deal. If nothing else, she was honing her creative chops.
* * *
Saturday morning was another bright, beautiful day. Natalie tucked her laptop into a tote, gave Mr. Meowzer a kiss on the head, and went into the kitchen. She made coffee and a slice of toast and wrote a note to her parents explaining she was leaving early for the market. She didn’t say why, but it was because she wanted to spend a few minutes with Georgia before the market opened to the public.
When she arrived, there was a lot of hustle and bustle, with people setting up their booths and putting their wares on display. The market was divided into several categories. There was the fresh produce area, baked goods, seafood, and prepared food such as chicken pot pies, cheeses, and a variety of home-canned goods, such as Natalie recalled what she’d observed recently. A separate section was devoted to handcrafted items such as jewelry, leather goods, paintings, and pottery.
Natalie found her way to Georgia’s booth. “Hey there! Need a hand?” Natalie offered.
“Hi, Natalie. Yes, thanks. That would be great. Garrett usually helps, but he’s running a little late today.”
“I have something I wanted to talk to you about,” Natalie said casually, while she placed the jars of honey on a table.
“Sure. What about?” Georgia handed Natalie another case of honey.
“I was really impressed with the demo and your shop.”
“Thanks. We do our best.”
“So . . . I went to your website.”
“Oh, gee. It’s really not up to speed. We just haven’t had time to do anything with it. Busy season, ya know?”
“I understand. Did I tell you I am a web designer?”
“Uh-boy. I bet you were underwhelmed,” Georgia replied.
“I hope you don’t mind, but I took it upon myself and came up with an idea.” She pulled her laptop from her bag. “May I?”
Georgia gestured to the table. “Of course.”
Natalie powered up her device and opened the link she created for their site. “Now, it’s just a concept.”
Georgia looked over Natalie’s shoulder as Natalie explained the simple pages. The only words from Georgia were, “Wow. Oh my. That’s amazing.”
“I didn’t know if you wanted to include e-commerce, so I left it blank.”
“This is really impressive, but to be honest, we can’t afford it right now.”
“Oh, I am not going to charge you for my work, and I’ll be happy to maintain it for you. All you would have to do is let me know what flavors are available and fulfill the orders that come through.”
Georgia was dumbstruck. “This is incredible. We’ve been talking about getting up to speed so we can generate more income. This could be a game changer for us.” Georgia stared at the website.
Natalie could sense Georgia’s uncertainty. “Consider it my contribution to pollination. What you and your brother are doing is admirable. I am happy to help.”
“I really don’t know what to say.” Georgia was genuinely speechless.
“I am sure your brother will have some thoughts. Can I email this link to you so you can show him?”
“Of course. That would be swell!” Georgia blinked several times. “I am blown away.”
“That was the reaction I was hoping for. Now let’s hope your brother agrees.”
“I don’t see why he wouldn’t. Thank you so very much.” Georgia gave Natalie an awkward hug.
“I’ll see you at the end of the day. Is Garrett going to be here?”
“Probably. But if not, I will show it to him tonight. How can I reach you?”
Natalie pulled a business card from her pocket and handed it to Georgia. “Talk to you later.”
Natalie was almost skipping past the stalls. Then she spotted them. A stall had baskets full of plums. Just what her mother wanted. Natalie bought a basket and asked the farmer to hold them until the end of the day.
The day moved quickly, but still no sign of the bee guy. By the time everything was packed, Natalie noticed he was still nowhere to be seen. She shrugged. Later, gator.
When she arrived at the pantry, Reverend Brooks was holding a large box. It was filled with flyers for the Fourth of July Jamboree. “Natalie, I was wondering if you could help put some of these up in town?”
Natalie set her box down on a table and looked at the flyer. “Sounds like quite the extravaganza.”
“Yes, we have become the most popular July Fourth celebration. Contests, music, food trucks, and fireworks in the field behind the bandstand.” Pastor Brooks was proud of his personal holiday project. “They say we may have close to three thousand people this year.”
“And it’s only for one day?” Natalie asked.
“Yes. We tried to make it a two- or three-day fair type of thing, but people needed to go to work, and it wasn’t worthwhile. Now we pack everything into one day, including half the county residents. We might have to find another locale for next year. Our modest fairground will be filled to the brim. Good thing the local middle school offered use of the parking lot, and we have shuttle buses.”
“Pastor, you have done an extraordinary job.”
“With the world moving so fast, and people staring at their phones, I wanted to have at least one event where people could gather, enjoy the company of their neighbors, and celebrate our country.” He leaned closer and whispered, “Without all the politics.”
“I am so with you. We need good, family fun. No fighting, no whining.”
“Natalie, you have always been one of my favorites, and I was happy to hear you are going to be with us for the rest of the summer.”
“Maybe longer.” She gave him a wink. Ah, now she understood the friendly, co-conspirator wink. It was one way of conveying a number of thoughts.
“You are forever welcome here.” The pastor stopped short of mentioning church services. He wished more of his parishioners had the integrity and generosity that Natalie possessed.
“Thank you. And I will be sure to paper the town with these. Can you set aside a box while I unpack?”
“Absolutely.” Reverend Brooks took a box that contained one hundred flyers and placed them on an outdoor picnic table. “They’ll be here when you leave.”
“Thanks, Rev,” she called over her shoulder, and finished her chores for the day.
* * *
When she got home, she carried the basket of plums into the kitchen. “Look what I found!”
“I am so happy!” Her mother clapped her hands. “You and your father will be my guinea pigs.”
“Count me in!”
That evening, Natalie got an email from Georgia. “We are beyond grateful. This is fantastic! Thank you so much! Talk on Saturday!”
Natalie was walking on a cloud. Life did have a way of turning things around . . . if you paid attention.
The following week, Natalie put signs in every window she passed. Everyone was excited about the annual festival. Once again, she was all atwitter. She was truly looking forward to an old-fashioned holiday celebration, and the start of her garage project.
Diana’s husband graciously offered to help with the contractors once the garage was cleared out. Natalie underestimated how much grunt work was involved and hired Diana’s people to help. With the two men, they were able to pull everything from the inside to the driveway. It looked as if a junkyard had moved in. Sally came outside and gasped. “All of that was in there?” She pointed to the now-empty building.
“Yes, it was. Now we have to figure out what to do with all of it.”
“I’ll go get your father.” Sally hurried inside, as if the rubbish police were hot on her tail. Robert carefully traversed the sidewalk that led from the kitchen, past Sally’s garden, and to the driveway.
“What is all this?” he asked, half joking.
“Most of it is yours, dear.” Sally stood with her arms folded. “Can you honestly say that you want to keep all of it?”
“Keep it? I forgot I had it!” He laughed. “Isn’t there a number you can call? Something like, 1-800-get-rid-of-it?”
Natalie laughed. “Yes, Pop. I’ll manage the details. Just give it one quick look-over and let me know what you want to keep.”
“He doesn’t want to keep any of it,” Sally proclaimed. “You know what they say? If you haven’t used it in five years, then you don’t need it.”
“Who said that?” Robert teased.
“Doesn’t matter. Gone. All of it.” Sally suppressed a smile and then winked at Natalie. There it was again. A wink.
The following day, Natalie began to make phone calls to have the remains of the garage removed. There was nothing she found salvageable for her needs, nor did either of her parents. “I’m gonna miss that lawn mower,” her father kidded.