scene 35

sc 34

EXT. PONDEROSA PINE FOREST - DAY

Tom, Hunter and Chloe stroll among the pines within view of Jackie, Sess and Claire setting up lunch on a picnic table in a clearing near where the horses are tied to a rudimentary hitching post. 

TOM: Any idea why they're called ponderosa pines?

CHLOE: Pinus ponderosa. From the Latin ponderosus, meaning ponderous, of course, relating to its weightiness and size. But I have a feeling you know that.

TOM: Well, I heard somethin' like that. Had my own feelin' one a y'all might be able to confirm it. Speak any other foreign languages besides Latin?

CHLOE: I don't speak Latin, I just remember a few terms from a junior high flora and fauna assignment. I'll be starting my fourth year of Spanish.

TOM: Well I guess you're pretty fluent by now.

CHLOE: I get by. How about you?

TOM (SPANISH): Enough Spanish to get in and out of trouble.  

CHLOE (SPANISH): Has that ever happened? 

TOM: (SPANISH): Couple times.

CHLOE (SPANISH): Were you in Mexico?

TOM: (SPANISH): Once, in _____. The other time was in Laredo.

CHLOE (SPANISH): Stories you could share?

TOM (SPANISH): I'd hate to be a bore.

CHLOE: Tom's afraid he'd bore us with stories about knowing Spanish getting him into and out of trouble.

HUNTER: Tom, I can guarantee you won't bore us.

TOM: Well, if ya think I wouldn't bore Jackie, Sess and Claire, maybe over lunch. 

HUNTER: That would be great. Would you mind being recorded?

TOM: I wouldn't mind. Do you speak any other language?

HUNTER: Chloe has upped my Spanish significantly. And wehat little I remember from two years of high school French.

TOM: Any particular reason you chose French?

HUNTER: Charlotte Charbonneau, an unrequited crush.

TOM: And maybe the Carole Carolet in the short story called ______.

HUNTER: One and the same.

Jackie stands and RINGS A DINNER BELL.

HUNTER: Our cue.

They walk toward the picnic.

TOM: Speakin' a pinus ponderosa, if y'all are interested Ruth keeps up the family tree on an ancestry website.

CHLOE/HUNTER: Really?

TOM: I could give ya the link if ya like.

CHLOE/HUNTER: Yes.

TOM: Plenty a pictures, some goin' way back.  

CHLOE: My aunt Kate does that. My grampa's sister. She lives in Wilson, Wyoming.

TOM: That so.

CHLOE: You've been there.

TOM: Driven through several times to see a friend used to live in Victor, Idaho. You been?

CHLOE: Every Christmas since I was eight. 

TOM: Pretty good chance they were all white Christmases.

Chloe nods.

CHLOE: And through Victor several times on the way to Grand Targhee.

TOM: For skiin'.

CHLOE: Snowboarding.

TOM: Makes sense. Bein' a surfer. You ski or snowboard, Hunter?

HUNTER: Ski. It's been awhile. You?

TOM: Water skiin' but it's been twenty-somethin' years.

EXT. PICNIC TABLE

We see the dinner bell hanging from the table. Jackie, Sess and Claire watch Tom, Hunter and Chloe near.

SESS: So what can you tell us about the cowboy?

JACKIE: I can tell you now because Hunter told me I can that Tom is his father.

CLAIRE: Ding ding ding.

SESS:  Shared wild guess confirmed.

CLAIRE: I would say intuition. 

JACKIE: They met for the first time yesterday.

SESS: So this is kinda big.

JACKIE: This is very big. More later.

Hunter, Tom and Chloe arrive.

SESS: Apache stew is served, without per Claire's and Chloe's veganism, the venison this would otherwise include.

CLAIRE: It's delicious, Chloe.

CHLOE: It smells delicious.

JACKIE: So sit down and dig in.

All sit. Everyone notices Tom bow his head, close his eyes and bring his hands together in his lap for a moment before opening his eyes to the meal in front of him.

CHLOE: Did you just pray?

TOM: Givin' thanks. And thank y'all for such a wonderful and unforgettable day.

Hunter raises his bottled water to toast.

HUNTER: To a truly wonderful and unforgettable day.

All raise their waters and add their respective agreement, then dig in.

CHLOE: Wow.

CLAIRE: Told ya.

CHLOE: What's the semi-sweet nuttiness.

JACKIE: To the mighty acorn. 

SESS/CLAIRE: Go acorns.

SESS/CLAIRE: Jinx.

A shadow quicly crosses the table. All look to the soaring bald eagle streaking across the sky.

CHLOE:Haliaeetus leucocephalus.

SESS: A rare sighting this time of year.

HUNTER: It's a rare day.

The eagle flies out of view. All resume eating. 

CHLOE: So Tom, how about that storty of Spanish getting you into and out of trouble.

TOM: I had a feeling you might not forget.

CHLOE: Not a chance.

TOM: So there I was, on a dark and stormy night.

All chuckle.

[CUT TO 36.:]

silly I Ching interlude re having not givern up on this screenplay and related Writerly Trait

 

Hilary Barrett:

"This is the pure creative spirit that flows through people and events: it drives towards manifestation, an inspiration that wants to be realized.

It begins with an opening to the source of the creative impulse – not plans or intentions, but the vital energy that powers them. Then you create success by sustaining a continuous, two-way flow between source and action. You step into the heart of a process of creation, welcome its momentum and find ways to join and work with it.

Through constancy, this brings out intrinsic potential and yields a harvest of positive results. To be constant is to be true to your intent, faithfully aligning all your choices with your original vision, and carrying your understanding through in practice and over time."

The Image

Legge: Heaven, in its motion, gives the idea of strength. The superior man, in accordance with this, nerves himself to ceaseless activity.

Wilhelm/Baynes: The movement of heaven is full of power. Thus the superior man makes himself strong and untiring.

Blofeld: This hexagram symbolizes the power of the celestial forces in motion, wherewith the Superior Man labors unceasingly to strengthen his own character.

Liu: Heaven moves powerfully; the superior man strengthens himself unceasingly.

Ritsema/Karcher: Heaven moves persistingly. A Chun tzu uses originating strength not to pause.

Cleary(1): The activity of heaven is powerful; superior people thereby strengthen themselves ceaselessly.

Wu: Heaven moves in full strength. Thus the jun zi strives ceaselessly to be self-reliant.

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