Jamie

Jan 29 1647 Jacques pommetien It was another cruel winter day where we had to fight to stay alive in the cold. Winter is coming to an end I can feel the days getting warmer and longer. Not by much but it is slightly significant. I can’t bear to do this I know if I beat this winter after the summer there will just be another long gloomy cold winter. The fire is barely enough heat to keep us alive. Living as a habitant isn’t as good as I thought it would be. It’s very dreary with barely enough food and nothing but hard work all the time. Louis the XIV sent us here, saying it would be better... It’s not. Why are we here we eat mainly bread and too much of it we have to give to the seigneur and the priest if he is ever here. He comes once a year and some years he never makes it. The priests are outnumbered by villages, and many are now losing faith in our god my children are starting to question why we go to church. Even I am starting to wonder what god would bring us to such an awful place. I can only hope things will get better. The savages are really helpful but some disagree with our ways how they survive none of us can tell, they live in tepees with no technology. I don’t understand it’s like they have another scent they can hunt so well and all the things we need to survive they can do easily. I went to the town today to look for a chicken that I could trade some corn for and I got a nice plump hen that is one of my good fortunes and I’m glad to say that the woman said she would be willing to trade any time other than that it was just another cold hungry day. March 2nd 1647 The cold winter is ending spring has come and summer is coming, the crops are just starting to be planted. Today we had a hard day of ploughing the fields we will plant them in a couple days the hardest part about planning is over. Remember that woman who I met, Adalyne Miette well I have been back to visit her many times and have two more plump hens out of it. We go for walks and sometimes we do each other’s daily chores together I would like to ask her hand in marriage sometime so I can raise a family and we may have many helpers for our crops to be plentiful we could keep her business in the village for the children when they go old. I will ask her one of these days I know she has thought of it because she has asked if I want children and has said what I think are hints. I just can’t stop thinking about her as the weather gets warmer life gets better I just hope I have someone to spend the next cold winter with. I am to seed the field before and the next night I shall ask her to marry. She has no father, because she was sent out here as a fille de rois she came from an orphanage in France. Other then this wonderfulness, other things have been getting better as well. I have had a new baby cow and have a large some of chickens and four roosters sometimes if I get lots of eggs I sell them at adalyne’s store. I can feel life getting better and I am very anxious for the night after the seeding so I must get some sleep. Good night