Libbie & the Letter

The launch for the Elizabeth Custer book is next week. It has arrived rather quickly and my sincere prayer is that those who attend the event will feel like it was worth the trip. I think just getting a chance to see some of Elizabeth Custer’s personal artifacts would be worth it all. She was one of the most inspiring women I have had the pleasure of writing about. About 135 years ago today, Elizabeth was enjoying life at Fort Lincoln, Nebraska. George and the other members of the 7^th Cavalry were camping some distance down the valley from the fort. Elizabeth and George sent letters back and forth to one another via a courier. In one of her letters she writes “The servants are doing very well…we are raising chickens. We have forty-three. So many cats about the garrison keep the rats away. The weather is very hot, but the nights are cool. The lights about the valleys are exquisite.” Rats and the weather, just what you’d expect to find in a letter from home. I’m sure if either one of them had any idea that George would not be around by July the contents of the letter might not have been so mundane. I suppose you’re never really prepared for life as you know it to end so abruptly. Who says goodbye to a friend or loved one after a visit as though you might never see them again? That would be a little odd. In retrospect I wish I had, however odd it might have been. If I had known I’d never see my grandmother on this side again when I left her at the retirement home, I would have taken her back to McDonalds for another cheeseburger and apple pie. We would have sat in the car, had our lunch, and talked about the world as we saw it one last time. If I had known I would have assured my brother that he was respected and loved no matter what lies were said. I would have… But who knew?