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"Just look at this," she said, opening the door to the little-used for room with its old-fashioned furniture "He never dusts" And she picked up her cleaning rags

"And, Kirsti," she added, "the God of Thunder made a very small rain shower in the corner of the kitchen floor Keep an eye on hirinned when he saw the newly cleaned and polished house, the double doors to the living roos aired, and the ashed

"Henrik, you need a wife," Mahed and joined Mama on the steps near the kitchen door "Why do I need a wife, when I have a sister?" he asked in his boo "And you need to stay home more often to take care of the house This step is broken, and there is a leaking faucet in the kitchen And--"

Henrik was grinning at her, shaking his head in mock dismay "And there aremoth hole in the sleeve, and if I don't wash the s soon--"

They laughed together

"Anyway," Mama said, "I have opened every , Henrik, to let the air in, and the sunlight Thank goodness it is such a beautiful day"

"To," Henrik said, his snized the odd phrase Papa had said soood for fishing, Henrik?" Papa had asked But what did itevery day, rain or shine Denmark's fishermen didn't wait for sunny days to take their boats out and throw their nets into the sea Anne with Ellen under the apple tree, watched her uncle

Maht?" she asked

Henrik nodded and looked at the sky He sht after supper We will leave very early in the ht"

Anneht To lie at anchor, hearing the sea slap against the sides To see the stars fro room?" Uncle Henrik asked suddenly

Mama nodded "It is cleaned, and I moved the furniture a bit to make rooht of it, but the girls picked dried flowers fro room for what?" Annemarie asked "Why did you move the furniture?"

Mama looked at Uncle Henrik He had reached down for the kitten, scaainst his chest and scratched its chin gently It arched its sirls," he said, "it is a sad event, but not too sad, really, because she was very, very old There has been a death, and tonight your Great-aunt Birte will be resting in the living room, in her casket, before she is buried tomorrow It is the old custom, you know, for the dead to rest at home, and their loved ones to be with the with a fascinated look "Right here?" she asked "A dead person right here?"

Anne She was confused This was the first she had heard of a death in the faen to say that there had been a death No one had see of all--she had never heard the name before Great-aunt Birte Surely she would have known if she had a relative by that naht not; Kirsti was little and didn't pay attention to such things

But Annemarie did She had always been fascinated by her mother's stories of her own childhood She rereat-aunts, and -uncles: who had been a tease, who had been a grouch, who had been such a scold that her husband had finally h they continued to have dinner together every night Such wonderful, interesting stories, filled with the colorful personalities of her mother's fah she said nothing There was no Great-aunt Birte She didn't exist

9 Why Are You Lying?

Anneh the open kitchenshe could hear Ma as they washed the dishes, Kirsti, she kneas busy on the floor, playing with the old dolls she had found upstairs, the dolls that had been Mao, The kitten had fled when she tried to dress it, and disappeared

She wandered to the barn, where Uncle Henrik wason the strawcovered floor beside the cow, his shoulder pressed against her heavy side, his strong tanned hands rhyth her milk into the spotless bucket The God of Thunder sat alertly poised nearby, watching

Blosso brown eyes, andfalse teeth

Anneainst the ancient splintery wood of the barn wall and listened to the sharp rattling sound of the strealanced over at her and s He didn't say anything

Through the barn s, the pinkish light of sunset fell in irregular shapes upon the stacked hay Flecks of dust and straw floated there, in the light

"Uncle Henrik," Anne tohands continued, deftly pressing like a pulse against the cow The steady streaain, his deep blue eyes kind and questioning "You are angry," he said

"Yes Mama has never lied to me before Never But I know there is no Great-aunt Birte Never once, in all the stories I've heard, in all the old pictures I've seen, has there been a Great-aunt Birte"

Uncle Henrik sighed Blossom looked back at him, as if to say "Almost done," and, indeed, the streaently but fir down the last of the milk The bucket was half full, frothy on the top Finally he set it aside and washed the cow's udder with a clean damp cloth Then he lifted the bucket to a shelf and covered it He rubbed the cow's neck affectionately At last he turned to Annemarie as he wiped his own hands with the cloth