Chapter 20 - The Ranch

After returning from Waskesiu, XL had five days of school to look forward to, and it turned out to be a busy week. He and Beeba were in the same classroom, and there seemed to be an extraordinary amount of homework to do after class. The school year had only one more month to go, and it seemed that the teacher was trying to cram in everything that she hadn't taught quickly enough earlier.

On top of that, this was a time of year with many special activities to do. There was a track-and-field day coming soon at the school, and all the children were practicing their running, and high jump, and long jump, among other things. Also there were several school visits to the nearby outdoor pool planned, as well as a field trip, and an end-of-year party. The weather was warm, so on evenings and weekends the children's attention was drawn to outdoor activities like bicycling, hiking, and sports, which competed for their time against the homework.

After he returned, XL had given Susan's letter to Florence, of course. He did that the very next evening after he got back. She was very pleased about the news, but she was still sick so XL didn't visit her for long.

A couple of weeks after that, Florence phoned XL's home during an evening. XL was out, but his dad spoke with Florence, and passed the news on to XL when he got back from bike riding with his friend Beeba Boeboo. He and his friend planned on playing some "virtuality" games in XL's basement for a while, before Beeba returned home. But when his mom told him that Florence had called, XL was eager to hear the news.

The news was that Susan had invited Florence to visit her at her ranch, near Waskesiu, on the last weekend before the end of school. She sent Florence a map showing exactly where to find it. Even better yet, Fred would be there too, with his family. Susan had spoken to Fred, and evidently he had a change of heart about meeting his mother again.

"That's great news, dad," XL said to Max. "It's wonderful that all our efforts have paid off, and they will be together again at last."

"Well, it's not quite a done deal yet," replied his dad. "She isn't sick any more, but she is still in a wheelchair. She can get a wheelchair accessible taxi to take her from her home into the city here, but there is no wheelchair accessible bus to Susan's ranch. Actually, there is no bus at all to go there. Her wheelchair won't fit on an airplane either."

"Why don't they visit her at her own home?" asked XL.

"She has a small house and that would be a lot of people to accommodate," answered Max, "so it isn't practical. Also, the following weekend school is out, and Fred's family is departing right away for a trip to Europe. There are some potential customers of his marine equipment that he will be visiting there, and they are taking that opportunity to do some touring too. They will be away most of the summer."

"I know what to do!" Beeba exclaimed. "Take her to the ranch in Saucer1!" He turned to Max. "Is Saucer1 available on the reunion weekend?"

"Yes," answered Max. "The movie company wants to rent it later for some more publicity events, but on that weekend it's still available to us. So we can take it wherever we want."

"That's great," said XL, "except that I have so much to do in all of June. Beeba, wasn't that the weekend that your dad promised to take us in your family's boat, on a nearby lake?"

"It is," said Beeba, "but we'll have all summer available to us soon, and I'm sure we can find another time for boating."

XL wasn't sure if he wanted to travel to the ranch or not. He liked riding in Saucer1, but he had done a lot of it, and it wasn't quite the same novelty as when his family first got it. Also, he and his family had already spent a lot of time to find Fred and Susan. It didn't seem fair that he should have to do more.

"It's your choice," said Max to XL. "I am available to come this time. I'll bet your mom and sister would like to come too. We could all go if you want."

"Maybe you could just take Florence by yourself," XL said to his dad.

"Perhaps, but it's nicer to be together. Florence knows you better than me, and she would be more encouraged to come with you. Also, I have never met Susan. It really would work better if you come."

Reader, what would you advise for XL to do:

Choice A	Tell his dad to please inform Florence that he is very busy now, and she should arrange her visit some other time, when summer is over.
Choice B	Tell his dad that he'll be glad to help, and ask if it is O.K. for Beeba to come too.

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