Build+Me+Up+by+Morgan+Faulk

= Build Me Up = The rain is stinging my arm. It’s attacking the three-inch gash on my left forearm that curves in a snake-like pattern around my elbow. The unrelenting rain has been beating the hard-packed ground for over an hour and there was no sign that it was slowing. I mumble at the sky and shoulder my pack full of tools and stale bread. My clothes are soaked through. Of course. The men around me have long fled, lounging in the taverns like Old Casso’s, retreating to their own houses, or scraping up some entertainment. The town, which I guess was like any other town, didn’t ever offer me much. There were mainly businesses on the main streets, and I didn’t have any need to go.

The walk home was uneventful, other than the mud from the roads caked all the way to my knees. My knees! It’s not like I have too many pairs of work pants or anyone to really wash them for me. You see, Val and William, my parents, live in Virginia with my sister Olivia because she took ill and hasn’t been able to care for herself. And, my father doesn’t make enough money to look after me too. So that leaves me here, age nineteen, to fend for myself. I secured work after much negotiating and am now working on carpentry. That’s where that gash is from. It’ll probably scar if the rain doesn’t make my whole arm fall off. I was working on a house with my boss, John J. Briggs, when the saw I was using was taken away to be sharpened. I didn’t know when they brought it back and I rested my arm against the work bench without paying attention. Well, they had most definitely brought the saw back and it was sharp once again. Unfortunately for me.

I’ve been here about a year already. All the //big// //to-do// people live here I think, or at least that’s what I am told. A lot of money has been poured in here and you can see it taking the form of stone and brick buildings up and down the center of the city. Briggs and I have been working on some large houses lately and there is a project we are starting next week that should give us work for about seven years. I was hoping I wouldn’t be a carpenter that long but, it will keep me fed. The previous State Capitol building went down in flames before I got here so we will be rebuilding it from the ground up. Briggs is recruiting more help so maybe there will be some new faces to look at other than Briggs’ crinkled and sun-burnt face.

Now that I’m finally at my house, I set into my typical routine: dinner, clothes washing, bathing, reading, and then bed. Boring, I know. And lonely too. But, I’m too old to live like an orphan and too young to get married- at least that’s what I tell myself. I did have my eye on Anna Maythan for quite a while and we seemed to have a friendly relationship but she doesn’t much like me now. And I can’t say why. And the look her father always gave me was enough to kill something. I stay clear of them and their money since I haven’t done anything to earn my way into their life.

Work has finally begun on this new project. There are some new, mostly young faces around me but they do look like they’ve eaten something bitter. I hope their conversation skills make up the difference. I guess it’s only the first day though.

“Silas!”

I turn, reluctant to be pulled from my musings. It’s Briggs and he looks excited. Some of the crinkles have been smoothed out and I can see his eyes dance a bit. Steady work means full stomachs and a happy wife for him.

“Yea Briggs?” I answer, half-expecting to see him scowl.

“We got a lot to do here and a lot that neither you or I are prepared to do. This is all new stuff- Greek something. I hope I can count on ya to stick with it.”

“Ah, Briggs. Ya know me. I wished you’d a found some more helpers though. Ones that smile at least.” I answered, eager to take the seriousness away.

“Silas, you just keep up and we’ll see if we can get em to smile. Maybe all they worried about is gettin’ somethin’ to eat. By the way, Elizabeth said she was expectin’ you for dinner tonight.” And with that, Briggs walked away.

That was his way. He would check in on me every now and then and we each would go back to work. He trusted me enough to do my share but I think he liked looking after me. He was almost old enough to be my grandfather and his wife, Ms. Elizabeth, treated me like family. After all, she would cook for me occasionally and fix my torn work pants.

The project moved on well, though I soon realized how little I knew about the Greek architecture stuff that Briggs had mentioned earlier. This building was very different from the houses I was used to. Progress was slow sometimes but at least the weather was cool enough. James, one of Briggs’ new helpers, actually turned out to be a friendly fellow and he wasn’t too much older than me. Either he was a good looking chap or his family owned a gold mine, I don’t know, but I do know that he was courting Anna Maythan. I admit I was a bit heated at first but he redeemed himself.

“Silas, um you know that Anna Maythan? She and I are going down to eat dinner later this week in town and we were wondering… well, I was wondering… if you would go with us… with Lily Taylor… you know, the pretty girl from Marshalls’ Grocery on Fayetteville Street? She’s awfully nice.”

James knows that I don’t talk about women much since I am still bitter about Anna. So I guess he was nervous about saying anything. But, to be honest, I didn’t know who Lily was. Like I said earlier, I don’t go into town except for the things I really need and Marshalls' Grocery on Fayetteville Street was not the closest store to me.

“Well now. I’ve never heard of nor seen this Lily. How does she know who I am?” I was genuinely curious about this lady I had never seen before.

“Well, she doesn’t know about you but Anna does. Anna thought it would be a good match and so she told Lily and so Lily was in’trested. I think it would be good for you, Silas. You seem kinda lonely.”

“Uh, I’ll let you know,” was my only reply. In all honesty, I was excited about meeting her, but I was too scared to admit it. And maybe too proud to admit that I was lonely to someone else. -- I didn’t and wouldn’t have given an answer until James brought it back up two days later. We were working side by side framing when he braved up and brought the subject back again. “Silas, have you decided to go with us? I need to tell Anna so she can talk to Lily.” I could tell he wasn’t comfortable with asking me again.

“Uh, well. I … ”. I wanted to say no, to make up excuses about being busy. There was my routine and all I had to keep up with. Instead, Briggs came in.

“Boys, how’s the work coming along?” Maybe he could feel that I was wobbling in my mind. Maybe he would invite me to dinner to give me an excuse. Why I thought he knew what was going on, I’ve no clue. Maybe it was better he didn’t know. He would worry.

James gave him a quick “it’s going well,” and then resumed his work. The pounding of the hammer kept pace with my heartbeat and I started to relax. I could feel Briggs eyes on me then so I turned around. In his usual grandfatherly way, he smiled and I knew the reassuring words were to follow.

“Silas, ya //are// taking James’ offer up aren’t ya?”

He knew. How I don’t know, but he did. And I am sure he knew what my answer would be. I was predictable and I liked to keep things comfortable.

“I haven’t decided yet,” I answered.

“Well, I’m decidin’ for ya. Ya work too hard and’ve been here too long to not make friends.”

“Why do I have the feelin’ that you have something to do with this?,” I quizzed. I was missing something.

“Let’s just say that I know Lily. And I know you. And that’s all ya need to know. Come see us afta’ you go to town with James, Anna, and Lily. Elizabeth will want to hear all ‘bout it.” As usual, he smiled and turned without giving me the satisfaction of a rebuttal.

I sighed and looked in James direction.

“I work with a bunch a schemers. And I don’t like it.” He just laughed and replied, “I’ll see you tomorrow night.”

It is officially tomorrow night. In all my nineteen years, I’ve never been this nervous. Sure, moving here by myself was scary, but it was something I had to do. One of those survival things. This was more like tracking a bear at night, in the winter, without food, clothes, and any weapons. Seemingly impossible. I took comfort that James would be there.

I walked toward Fayetteville Street. It was mid-May and the weather had started to heat up. People were strolling about, children played, and well-dressed men poured from the businesses. I spotted James and Anna sitting on a small bench near the bank. There was no sign of this Lily. I half-thought that Briggs would be here to wish me well, but was glad he didn’t. James waved me over so I weaved between the well-to-do men toward their bench. James was the first to speak.

“Are you ready to go pick up Lily? We’ll pick her up on the way to dinner, if that’s alright. She should be leaving work now.”

Rather than respond immediately, I looked at Anna. She was her usual self, full of life. You could see it was hard for her to sit still on the bench. Her brown hair was curled and sat lightly on her shoulders. Her blue eyes matched mine in many ways, but there was something strange with them. I had never been able to figure out what it was that was different. Maybe James had. Maybe that’s why she chose him.

“That would be fine. I guess we can head over there now.” I resigned myself to the bear tracking.

We wondered toward Marshalls’ Grocery. The sun was streaming sideways and it was difficult to stare straight ahead. The sun was blinding; it hit every glass window with perfect aim. Coming out of Marshalls was a slim blonde girl wearing a green printed dress. Maybe eighteen. Her hair was straight and moved with the slight breeze. She waved at Anna in a shy, tired way. Anna did not have to work because her father was one of those well-to-do men streaming from the businesses. This meant that Lily, this blonde Lily, did not have money. She had to work to support herself, her family. I immediately was sorry that I had dreaded this meeting. Perhaps she needed a friend as much as I did.

“Well, I suppose you must be Silas. It is very wonderful to finally meet you. Anna has spoken such good things about you. I am Lily.” A quick smile followed her introduction.

“Lily, it is nice to meet you. I’ve a heard good things about you as well. Mostly from James though… I hope you are hungry.” I tried to laugh off the nervousness and crack in my voice, but I don’t think it was believable.

“Absolutely. It’s been a long day here.”

Onward we went. James and I hung back and let the girls lead. I was hoping this was a way to avoid conversation but James was full of ideas and plans for his future. He plotted marriage to Anna Maythan if things went well over the next few weeks. As he poured out his love, I watched Lily. She walked with confidence and, like Anna, had a bounce in her step. She laughed very freely at whatever Anna had to say and seemed to listen more than she talked. Abruptly, they stopped and wandered over to a small tavern not far from Marshalls. Not expecting this, I bumped into James. He smiled and led us into Casso’s tavern.

We were quickly seated and entered into casual conversation. Lily was very engaging and supportive of the conversation. After she had eaten, her mood and spirit picked up and her energy was contagious. Everything seemed to go well. It was nice to have company, I’ll admit. I was familiar with going home from work and doing the same things every night. It had never been too boring, but after this night with friends, I knew I would have a hard time being alone at home.

We left Casso’s tavern and began the trek back to our own homes. Anna to her fathers, James to his home, me to mine, and Lily to her family’s small house on the outside of town. I had been right about her being poor. Maybe it was out of fear of being alone or maybe it was from the heart, but I was starting to enjoy the company of Lily. Maybe Briggs’ meddling was a good thing.

“Lily, I’ve, uh, really enjoyed meeting you.”

“Oh, Silas, it was great to meet you. Casso’s is always a great choice.”

“I agree. Say, would you… uh… maybe like to … go together some other time?”

Lily laughed. I could see James behind her smiling, his teeth shining in the fading sun.

“Of course, Silas. Whenever you’re free."

The bear tracking was over and I was exhausted. Things had gone well. In fact, things went well for the next few weeks. I often would meet Lily for walks, meals, or just to explore the city. Much to my surprise, I wanted to spend more time with this witty, energetic, blonde Lily, than I ever did with Anna. The truth is, the more I was around her, the more I liked her. We had fun together, laughed together, and explored together. I couldn’t imagine life any differently. I guess the logical next step was marriage.

I’ll remember this day forever. June 18, 1833. The overwhelming feelings, the tears, the possibility.

I was going to stop by Marshalls’ Grocery after work to meet Lily. We planned to go on a walk around the city and stop by some of the new construction. She had wanted to take a look at the Capitol building to see what progress we had made.

When I rounded the corner onto Fayetteville, there was a distinct difference in the air. In the people’s faces. In the sounds. Buildings looked foggy and thick, faces were panicked, and I could hear quicker footsteps and shouting. Immediately I knew why. Flames, crimson and orange, were licking the side of the buildings on my right side. Casso’s old Tavern was already completely overtaken by the fire. It streamed like hungry fingers from the upper story down the brick walls. Men were beginning to gather and surround the buildings. It was too late to save Casso’s and the fire was spreading too quickly to contain.

My mind blanked. I was coming to meet Lily. Lily who worked at Marshalls’ Grocery. Marshalls’ Grocery on Fayetteville Street. Panicked, I left the men working to keep the fire away from the already engulfed book establishment beside Casso’s. Lily was close by- only a few buildings away. Surely she would know a fire was on its way?

I weaved through the people watching, waiting. The flames were coming too quick. I burst through Marshalls and began a frantic search. It was empty. Of course it was empty, right? Lily was not here. There was no one here.

I came back onto the street and saw more people working on the fire. The sound was incredible. Water sloshing, shattering glass, crackling wood beams, hurried feet on the street, screaming and sobbing. I scanned the crowd for blonde hair. It’s strange how your emotions start to act funny in a situation like this. The thought of losing this one blonde Lily was more than my mind could take. I paced the street. Thinking. A group of men were forming to my left. Their plan was to blow up two small houses that stood in the way of the flames as a way to keep the fire from advancing. A good plan, if you didn’t live in the houses. Maybe I should help them. Lily was somewhere, somewhere safe. Right? Maybe I should have gone to blow the houses up, but I couldn’t get my mind straight. I was frantic to find Lily. Marshalls’ Grocery was the fire’s next victim, but it was empty. Most of the buildings had been empty. My vision shifted suddenly as I recalled the door in Marshalls that led to the stock room. Without hesitating, I ran. Ran faster than any moment in my life. The entrance was in my sight and I could feel my heart and throat burn with the thick air from the neighboring buildings, already claimed by the raging fire. If Lily was in that room… I couldn’t bring myself to think about it. A crowd was suffocating the entrance, forbidding me to go in. There were too many people, too many voices.

“Silas!” It was a whisper, barely heard.

I scanned the crowd. Who knew me here? I needed to get in the building, beyond the entrance to the stock room where Lily may be. The faces blurred together and I couldn’t find anyone I knew. “Silas!” This time the soft and earnest voice came from behind me. Suddenly, I felt a hand on my shoulder. Before I could turn around, a face appeared. A face with blonde hair. My Lily with blonde hair and a smoke smudged face. I wanted to cry.

The damage from the fires was extensive and thousands of dollars were lost by many of the business owners on Fayetteville Street, including Marshalls’ Grocery. The fire was eventually stopped by blowing up those two unfortunate houses. Casso’s, that Tavern where Lily and I first met, burned too much to be repaired.

I, three years later, am still working on the Capitol building with Briggs and James. We have made a good deal of progress on the building. After all, Briggs is one of the best finishing carpenters in Raleigh, if not North Carolina. They’ve rebuilt some of the stores and business is picking up- you should see all of the people living here now!

Yes, Lily is fine, for the most part. She’s expecting our first child in a few months and that’s made her not feel so well. Because Briggs has helped me pick up small carpentry work on the side, Lily doesn’t have to work anymore and can stay at home. When the baby comes, the house will be busy and there will be a lot to do. It will be nice to come home to that- my Lily, a baby, and me.

**CLASSROOM APPLICATIONS**
I would perhaps create a mini-unit (maybe eight days) that would focus on the history of Raleigh. Students would look into historical figures, events, and places, to understand more about the city they are living in. Through a series of three main tasks, students will uncover interesting facets of Raleigh, hone their research skills, practice their writing, and work with summarizing. As a starter phrase to get students interested, I would post something like this on the board: “Sense of place is really important to the formation of identity. Some of you come from different counties, states, and even countries. Hopefully now that you are living in Raleigh, you can begin to see it as part of your ‘identity’ or begin to feel that it belongs to you. To get a better feel for Raleigh, we are going to look at things in Raleigh from the past.” We will break into two umbrella groups in the class: 1) Historical figures in Raleigh (Haywood, Lane, etc.) 2) Interesting things that happened in Raleigh or are a part of Raleigh (Oakwood Cemetery, the Capitol ablaze, etc.). I will have a list generated of people, places, and events that students can sign-up for. This way, I can monitor what is being covered and ensure that they are learning the things I want them to know. Students, in pairs, will sign up for a group and then for a person or event (depending on their group). In a two part process, students will research their person or event and write a short, one-page, report that is completely fact based. They have their textbooks, one day of internet use (computer lab), and other articles I can find to complete their research. They should then write a summary of their findings (a paragraph or so) that will be distributed to the class. Note: I will check these for accuracy and content coverage. I will compile the paragraphs and create one packet for each student of the class. //(3 days?).// Either in pairs or individually, students will then turn their findings (or the findings of another classmates- whichever they find more interesting) into a fictional piece. If they have done research on Haywood Hall, they will need to make it the primary setting of their story and include some factual events or characters. They do get to “Hollywood it up” some and let their imaginations prosper. This will need to be relatively short (maybe three-pages). //(4 days).// As an assessment, students will use their packet of paragraphs to create a time line of events that includes all of their classmates’ research. This includes births, deaths, legislation, etc. These must be detailed so that I can ensure they read through their classmates’ paragraphs. They should circle the events or persons they think are the most important. //(1 day)//