Page 57 of Clara Knows Best

“Dad!” Beck raged.

“Comparison is the thief of joy,” the Colonel said mildly.

“What’s all the commotion?” Dr. Wilder asked, coming slowly down the hall with her walker.

Her children all turned to watch her.

“That’s so depressing,” Nash said involuntarily.

“Don’t worry, I’ll get rid of it soon. What did I miss in here?”

“Clara beat JesseandHart at arm wrestling,” Beck said, indignation returning.

“Oh. Good job, Clara.”

“Thanks, Mom.”

“Now she won’t go againstme,” Beck continued.

“Frustrating,” the doctor murmured, taking a seat at the table.

“Yeah, it’s frustrating! And probably completely fake! I’ve seenHart deadlift three fifty!”

“That’s different muscles,” Clara said with great dignity. “Everyone knows that.”

“Perhaps Hart has been slacking lately,” Dr. Wilder suggested.

“This is ludicrous,” Beck pronounced. “You’re allnutsif you think Clara can out-lift anyone in this room. Just take a look at her puny arms.”

“Looks can be deceiving,” Dr. Wilder reminded him.

“I’ll tell you what,” Clara said, taking pity on her brother, “if you can beat Jesse and Hart, too, I’ll wrestle you.”

“Done,” Beck accepted immediately.

“Not quite done,” Hart pointed out, his tone a trifle icy.

“Are you kidding? If you can’t even beat Clara, I’m not going to have any trouble with you,” Beck mocked him.

“But,” Clara continued, “if you can’t beat Jesse and Hart, I get to cut your hair.”

Everyone, including Beck, expressed hearty approval of this arrangement.

“Let’s save the wrestling for after breakfast,” Dr. Wilder requested.

“I was thinking after breakfast we should pull Mom around on the sled,” Nash suggested.

“No,” everyone else said in unison.

“I’m a little sore from the drive up yesterday,” she said, patting his arm fondly. “I was hoping we could play some board games or something a little…quieter.”

“Oh, okay,” he said, perking back up. “Yeah, we can do that.”

Clara was at first concerned that another day cooped up inside would cause her mother’s cabin fever to flare, but she soon realized her mistake; Dr. Wilder was thoroughly enjoying the rare pleasure of having the five of them together. The boys were good-natured about playing any game she wanted, and if play devolved into the occasional argument or brawl, she didn’t seem to mind.

Long after their parents had gone to bed that night, the Wilder siblings remained in the kitchen, laughing uproariously at one another’s antics, powering through all available snacks, and drawing Jesse inexorably into their hilarity.

When Hart said good night and Clara started cutting Beck’s hair, Jesse slipped away. She found him later, dozing in the darkened living room near the dying fire.

---