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Show -275- and its stemsseemed ready to collapse. On the patio, the fuchsias appeared alive but most of their blossoms had dropped, and he knew they would have no more blossoms until spring. c The suculents below the dining room window were brittle with frost and would need to be replaced, just as they had been a little over two years ago, when the renters children had tromped them into the ground. Sometimes these plants bloomed all winter long. He felt physically better as he entered the house, but he was saddened by the loss of his blossoms to the freakish weather. The smell of roasted meat emanating from the kitchen revived his spirits, and he sat down expectantly at his place at the dining room table as his wife dished him out a plate of ham, eggs, and fried potatoes from the kitchen range. "I saw you looking at the flowers," she said as she placed their plates on the table, "How are they?" "Pretty much gone," he said, "except for the roses." She made her familiar clucking response to this report., "Another bad start for the new year," he said "Oh, well," she replied, "things could be worse." The Professor restrained himself from saying what came into his mind. "I don't know how," he wanted to say. Instead, he cut off a piece of ham and thrust it into his., mouth, savoring the pleasant change from his usual breakfast of raw egg, milk, and fruit. |
