Has anyone ever told you the saga of the Jenkins family? It’s a sad story that reveals a lot about how history shapes lives.
It starts with Nathan Jenkins, a strapping young man, full of hope and optimism, who loved nothing more than to hunt, fish and farm. In the early 1920s, Nathan married an 18-year-old Emily Watson, of good Irish stock, and settled on Briar Ridge, a sprawling farm in the Appalachian wilderness of the US.
Supported by a team of diligent workers, the couple proceeded to build an idyllic life for themselves. Briar Ridge produced grapes, wheat, honey and fresh milk from cows that grazed on the rich land. By 1929, they had six children and their farm had become a symbol of boundless All-American prosperity.
Then, the stock market crashed and the Great Depression hit. The economy collapsed, but that wasn’t the worst of it.
A drought swept through the land, slowly choking off everything Nathan and Emily had built. The rivers dried up, and the once-fertile soil turned to dust. The fields that had once fed them became barren. The wheat wilted, the grapes shrivelled and the cows starved. Their workers left one by one, joining thousands of others heading to the cities, desperate for jobs.
Nathan tried to hold out, but there was no more harvest to sell. When the last cow collapsed, he knew it was time to go. He left Briar Ridge and his young family and went to the big city, looking for work. He ended up in the coal mines – dirty, dangerous work – but it was all he could find. Every week, he sent what little money he could back to Emily. But it was never enough. Emily struggled to keep the children fed, and the once-thriving farm became a shadow of what it had been.
Then, one day, a stranger showed up at the gate.
His name was Darryl Finch, though he didn’t share much about himself. He wore ragged clothes and hunger was written on his face, but his eyes were sharp and calculating. He knocked on the door, asking for work. Emily was exhausted, and with six hungry children to care for, she wasn’t in a position to turn down help. Finch moved in, saying he could save the farm.
His arrival seemed like a blessing at first. Finch worked tirelessly, fixing the fences and trying to coax life from the land. Emily was grateful but as time passed, Finch began to wield a strong influence over her. His words were subtle at first, but he planted doubts in Emily’s mind. He told her that the children were too much of a burden, that they were the reason things were so hard. Emily, worn down by stress and hunger, started to believe him.
It was Grace, the youngest of the Jenkins children, who saw through Finch. She was Nathan’s favourite and like her father, she had a fighting spirit. Finch didn’t like that. He saw Grace as a threat to the control he was gaining over Emily. When Grace began questioning Finch’s intentions, things took a dark turn. He convinced Emily that Grace was the cause of their misfortune, that her rebelliousness was bringing them bad luck.
Emily, under Finch’s influence, locked Grace in the cellar. The other children were scared of Finch and they did as they were told. Grace was left in the cold, dark cellar without food or water. For days, she lay there, weak and hungry, hoping her father would return. Finch would sometimes come down and beat her and worse, he made her brothers join in. They were terrified of him and even though they hated what they were doing, they were too scared to resist.
Grace never stopped believing that her father would come back for her.
One night, Caleb, the eldest, snuck down to the cellar. He slipped Grace a piece of bread and whispered that he was sorry. Grace saw her chance. She begged Caleb to take a message to their father, to tell him everything that was happening. Caleb agreed. The next morning, he sneaked into town and found a man heading to the city. He passed along the message.
Days went by and Grace’s hope began to fade. But then, one evening, heavy boots sounded on the porch. The front door flew open, and there stood Nathan – dust-covered and worn out from the mines, but still standing strong.
He had come for his daughter...
TO BE CONTINUED NEXT WEEK...
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Ryan Fortune is a former news journalist turned film screenwriter. He can be reached at: https://topmate.io/ryan_fortune