Meanwhile Joe was having similar problems. He was thinking a lot about Laura. After he left the farm, he had written to his mom, so she would not worry about him. He made her promise not to tell Jed where he was and what he was doing. He called her regularly to check on her and his dad and to let her know he was doing okay. His dad was retired, due to a stroke. He had to be on a strict diet and was paralyzed on one side. His Mom had a live-in helper to help take care of him. He did not want to add to their worries. If he had stayed on the farm, there would have been more trouble between him and Jed. It would have been stressful for his parents.
When he first arrived in Kansas City, he took a job on a construction site to earn enough money to live on until he could do better. He had saved
