A Heart for the Town, A Knife in My Back

Hall! The townsfolk ar

today's "Support Our Farmers" Livestream

ded her the phone. "Start the livestream in twenty minutes

very pair of eyes glaring at me was filled with resentment and host

ou! Every family in this town chipped in – some gave fifty dollars, others gave a hundred or more! And now that you've made something of yourself, you claim you're here to repay us,

terday, everything had been fine. How

s, spoke up, her voice cutting. "Jill, you've let us all down.

g. "Caroline, if anyone here knows me, it

ve me a pit

etimes tens of thousands! Our apples, after accounting for packaging and shipping, sell for only $4 a pound. In two days, we sold

e, a car, and now she's planning to renovate her family's home. Of course, it's all with our hard-earned money! Jill, how could you be so hea

er arms crossed smugly over her chest. It was clear to me now

area. Even now, many older folks believed e

education. "A girl needs to be educated if she wants to break fr

ty, the townspeople still dismissed my education as u

s to use my success to challenge those outdated belief

ecame a target of jealousy

iddle school, Caroline married someone from our town and was given a position as an accountant a

haring everything as best friends. When I retu

ivestreaming really that lucrative? Show m

'd always remembered that kindness. Without much thought, I shared nearly ev

ich happened to be on the same day as a scheduled

in for just three days, she could push me

d heartbreak, while her furrowed brows

ink the money I used to buy my house and car

? If it weren't for everyone here supporting your educa

"Jill, we may be friends, but when it com

but calm, "What exac

nded. "And don't forget the slot fees either! If you don't r

and took off my cap, to

firmly. "The slot fees? I charge those to outsiders, not to you. Do y

turn the dirt roads around this town into asphalt so you could ship your apples faster

m fell

er. "Caroline, why didn't you tell us any of this? You told us the

art into sharing feedback with her, pointing out what cou

good I'd done had been conveniently c