The landscape rolls by, not unlike the ocean but different. It is soft and undulating but it is dry and I wonder how it smells. Is there a smell to dust? I will know soon enough. The train is sure of itself and pulls me toward my next purpose. I am unlike many of the people I meet. So many pull themselves toward a perceived life, taking charge of whatever they can to make things better, easier. I am perhaps not so cunning or so sure of myself, only knowing I must have purpose. There are no sensibilities about life, only calm action, whether it be easy or hard. My musings are cut short as the train comes to a stop. Another town, another crossing, but it is not yet mine.
Jane's practiced sense and uncomplicated nature is laid bare as she methodically lists out her journey. From nursemaid to widow to housekeeper to cook, she finds herself always watching, wondering, and observing, rarely partaking in the action of life around her, surprised when she matters to others. It's a thoughtful and singular journey taken during the newly minted years of the Dakota Territories, when settlers were pouring in and the Native Americans were moved out. Be part of Jane's psyche as she experiences intolerance, acceptance, love and death, and find a bit of your own self in her story.