No Great Mischief

Alex thinks about the fruit pickers to the south of Toronto. Many are immigrants or people working hard in the fields. Some are families, enjoying the work as a bonding experience. Alex thinks about the fruit pickers after their days’ work, when they sit around and drink and think about the money they are making and hope to make. He doesn’t know what to buy for Calum, or what to do for the people in the fields.

By the time Alex and his twin sister are teenagers, their older brothers have experienced a great deal. He remembers the excitement of going to visit their farmstead in the country, and he gradually remembers that his sister accompanied him less and less. He feels that his brothers were embarrassed by the masculine nature of their lives, in contrast to her gradual realization of her own femininity.

Alex remembers one day, after spending an unsatisfying morning out on the water with his brothers in their boat, that Calum suffered from a terrible tooth ache. On realizing that Alexander had made a mistake, Calum becomes frustrated. With a pair of pliers, he tries to tear the swollen molar from his mouth. When it doesn’t work, he fastens a line between his tooth and his horse.