Laura thought about what she was going to say to Almanzo as she walked home that afternoon. The air was pleasantly cool and Laura enjoyed every moment of it as she took in the unfamiliar sights of the city. As Laura approached the Kendall house, she began to hear the sounds of a hammer rising and falling. As she got closer, she realized the sounds were coming from behind Mary and Adam’s house. Laura walked around to the back to find Adam putting the finishing touches on an infant's highchair. At first, he didn't notice Laura. Adam was wearing the brown pants from his work suit, but he was also wearing a blue and brown plaid shirt instead of the white shirt that he had worn to the office that morning. Laura silently appraised the workmanship that had gone into the highchair. It was good, for a novice carpenter but Laura knew that her Pa would have produced a piece of superior craftsmanship. Charles would have carved more detail into the seat and headrest, perhaps roses. She thought Adam looked ridiculous in the plaid shirt. You can put a city boy in a country shirt, but that doesn’t make him a country boy. Laura laughed out loud and Adam lifted his head in her direction.

“What’s so funny? Is my work that bad?”, he asked with smile.

“Oh Adam, the chair is beautiful, but where in the world did you get that shirt?”

“Caroline sent it for my last birthday. Is there something wrong with it?”

“It’s just that it’s a farmer’s shirt and I could never imagine you being a farmer.”

Laura continued to laugh, and at first Adam did too. Then he thought about the times that Mary had expressed regret about moving away from the country. Sometimes Adam felt that Mary secretly compared him to her father, and that he came out short more often than not.

“Laura, can I ask you a question? As Mary’s sister?,” Adam said quietly

“Of course.”, Laura said with concern

“Do you think Mary is happy?”

Laura was puzzled by the question and wasn’t really sure what her brother in law was asking.

“What do you mean Adam? Why wouldn’t Mary be happy?”

“Well, she’s a country girl at heart and living in the city has been a big adjustment for her.”

Laura began to understand what Adam was talking about. Mary was a country girl and she always would be. Her youth has been spent on the wild prairies of the Midwest picking flowers and playing in the woods with her sisters. If Mary hadn’t lost her sight, she probably would have married a farmer and set up house just as Laura had done, but that wasn’t what God had planned for her.

“Adam, don’t think about the choices that you could have made. So what if you’re not a farmer or a country boy like Almanzo. It hasn’t stopped you from loving or providing for Mary. Mary will hold the prairie in her heart wherever she goes. Do you know what she once told me?”

“What?”, Adam said

“Before Mary left Walnut Grove to move to New York, she told me that she holds the prairie in her heart, not in her eyes…and that it didn’t matter where she was as long as she was with you.”, Laura said comfortingly

“She told me that once too.”, Adam remembered aloud

Music started to drift from the open windows of the parlor. Caroline had put a record on the phonograph and Jeannie with the Light Brown Hair could be heard both inside and outside the house.

Adam and Laura both smiled. The former put down his hammer and bowed. He extended his right hand to Laura.

“May I have his dance?”

Laura accepted with a laugh and she and her brother-in-law began to dance in the backyard. As they danced, they talked about the old times in Winoka and Walnut Grove. Almanzo, who had been sitting in the parlor, was drawn out onto the back porch by the sound of their voices. The sight of Laura warmed his heart and he was relieved to see that she had made her way back to the house safely. Almanzo called out to the dancing pair.

“May I cut in?”