On The Gull's Road

"On the Gulls' Road" is a touching short story by Willa Cather, first published in McClure's in December 1908. A fellow painter visits the narrator, and is mesmerised by his painting of Alexandra Ebbling, a married woman, whom the narrator met on a ship from Genoa to New York City. On the ship, he and Mrs. Ebbling enjoyed many conversations about life, love, and personal experiences. The courtship goes on for the entire trip and grows stronger each day. The man is smitten by Mrs. Ebbling and cannot wait until the next time they meet. The man paints a picture of Mrs. Ebbling while they talk and enjoy the sunshine and the sea so he can always remember the woman. They tell each other things about their hopes and dreams. All the while Mrs. Ebbling knows that nothing can come of the affair. She is married and close to death. The man has high hopes for her to run away with him but she has to tell him that it can never happen. Mrs. Ebbling gives the man a gift that he is not to open until she tells him to. In the following winter, he is informed that she had died. Inside the gift she had given him, there is a letter from her thanking him for all the memories he gave her of a love that almost happened, along with a lock of her golden hair, a withered magnolia flower, and two pink sea shells. In the end, theirs was a love that stood the test of time, separation, and even death.

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