That bizarre first week of winter was one I doubt any of us will ever forget. It was like seven straight of mayhem in Maycomb County. On Monday, the news of Mrs. Radley’s death pervaded throughout the town. The sheriff told us that the death was caused by a heart attack and that no one would face charges. This was a big disappointment for Jem and I, we had been hoping that Boo Radley had conspired to kill his mother for keeping him locked up all those years. Jem had meticulously thought up a plan to sneak into the courthouse had Boo been arraigned. When Atticus returned from the Radleys place we were bursting with questions, but we tried to remain calm. Jem said that Atticus wouldn’t answer him if he asked about Boo, so was the one forced to interrogate him myself; our efforts went without prevail.
The days were colder than usual for that time of year. We burnt through many mounds of firewood that winter—each leaving a fire smoldering in our rooms all night long. When I awoke at the break of dawn I was bewildered by the sight before my eyes. I lay in bed for a few confusing moments, trying to apprehend the white mystery substance blanketing our yard. More than a century had elapsed since the last time Maycomb saw a white winter. Even Atticus said he had never seen snow in his lifetime. Jem and I headed outside to explore the foreign substance that painted everything white. Jem said he knew how to build a snowman, but I didn’t believe him. We had to retrace our tracks so that we wouldn’t ruin whatever bit of snow that had stuck said Jem. Combining the snow from Ms. Moudie's and our yards we created our very own snowman of Mr. Avery. Atticus was impressed with our work until he noticed Mr. Avery’s public parts, which he made us cover up. Ms. Moudie wasn’t nearly as impressed with our work as Atticus was. The snow was loads of fun, but by the end of the day I was yearning for the sweltering summer heat.
Night approached sending the temperature plummeting to far below freezing. With multiple fires burning in each household, a disaster was imminent. Calamity struck in the early hours of the morning. Atticus awoke me dressing me in a jacket and sending me hurrying to the walkway in front of the Radley’s place. Outside there was complete anarchy as men women and children dashed to and fro. When Jem and I arrived at the fence in front of the Radley’s place, we quickly assimilated into the crowd of onlookers watching helplessly as Ms. Maudie’s place burnt to ashes. Part of me wanted to rush in there and help the men remove the furniture from the house, but I knew that Atticus’s rare over-protective demeanor kept me shackled to the far side of the road. The house eventually burnt to the ground, luckily without a single casualty. Everyone was a bit shaken up by the whole thing; and we all pitied the poor soul who would have to break the news to Ms. Maudie in the morning.
When Atticus returned to where we had been staying he asked Jem how I had acquired the blanket that had been draped over my shoulders. Jem and I had a short dissension over how it had gotten there until we finally came to the impossible conclusion. Boo Radley. The name nearly made me puke, he had been standing right behind me but I had failed to see him. Ms. Maudie returned the next day to find her house in shambles. I expected her to be horrified or at least sad, instead she was unusually content. She lionized the men who had risked their lives rescuing what ever furniture they could from her house, but said that she had wanted to burn that house down for years. Ms. Maudie said now she can plant a bigger garden in her yard—I guess some things happen for a reason.
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