Boyd's Swamp Colony

The stranger’s name was Boyd. He was fifty years old with a wiry physique and a personality that overflowed with charisma. He led his new group of prisoners deeper into the woods for quite a distance to a small area where the trees had been chopped down and three small cabins had been built. There were torches burning around the site, and an assortment of men, women, and children were walking out from the cabins towards the visitors as they approached. The men wore layers of old tattered clothing and makeshift shirts made from bandannas and unbleached brown linen. Most of the women they saw wore dresses made out of a rough material that reminded Kyla of potato sacks. A couple of the women had blue and white dresses made from better linen, but even that material looked old and worn out.

Kyla noticed a tilled garden area on the other side of the cabins. All of the vegetables had been harvested for the winter, but several rows of cut corn stalks and drooping tomato vines could still be seen lying dormant for the winter.

A few chickens and some mangy dogs were roaming around the campsite. Zammie could count the ribs on one of the dogs that walked up to him. He felt bad for it. It must have been hungry. The dog sniffed Zammie’s feet, looked up at him with shiny black eyes then walked away.

          Boyd led them to a fallen tree that was behind the cabins and had them sit down on the trunk. There was a small bonfire burning in front of the tree bench, and everyone in Harriet’s group appreciated the warmth.

Two wooden poles had been stuck in the ground about six feet apart from each other. A leather strap connected the two poles and hung tight in the air, and a series of fresh animal skins had been hung over the strap to dry out near the fire.

          “Fresh meat,” Henry said to himself when he saw the skins. “Bad luck.”

          “Ellen,” said Boyd.

“What?” An older woman looked up from a wash basin where she was scrubbing a young boy with lye and water. She was probably also in her fifties.

“Bring our guests some of that meat we had earlier.”

“Lucy!” Ellen yelled.

A younger woman who was trying to get a good look at the strangers from a nearby cabin said, “Yes, mama.”

“Go do what yur father ask,” said Ellen.

“Yes, mama,” said Lucy, and she disappeared inside one of the cabins.

          “You’re going to feed us?” asked Robert.

          “Our door is always open to runaways,” said Boyd. He touched his swollen lip and smiled. “Specially those that can fight.”

          “Who said we was runaways?” asked Harriet.

          “I know my own kind,” said Boyd. “I can spot a runaway negro from a hunnerd paces. And you’s all is runaways. You wanna deny it?”

          Harriet didn’t say anything.

          Boyd noticed Kyla and Zammie. “But these two are different. You two ain’t colored children, are ya? You injun?”

          “They’re Californians,” said Harriet.

          “Californians?” said Boyd. “I ain’t never seen no Californians.”

          Kyla and Zammie looked at Boyd. Kyla gave a weak smile, but Zammie’s expressionless face didn’t change.

          “I hear they got gold out in California,” said Boyd. “You see any a’that gold out there?”

          “No, sir,” said the cousins.

          “Ah. That’s too bad.”

-- Boyd's Swamp Colony

from Time Trip #2 (Chapter 17)

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 4

KILLING FOR COUNTRY  

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 1

THE JOURNEY TO ANCIENT GREECE 

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 2

A RIDE ON THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 3

WITNESS TO THE FIRST THANKSGIVING 

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Harriet Meets Elias

“Let us rest for a minute, sister,” said Robert. “We’re exhausted.”

Harriet was tired as well, but she knew those slave-catchers could still be looking for them. She stepped out just beyond the trees again to investigate the land around them. The sun was rising quickly, and in the distance through the early morning mist she could see a white wood frame house with a large barn behind it. The farmhouse was probably a half mile off. Harriet was thinking up the next move for her group when she heard Robert calling her.

“Harriet?”

“What?”

“Step back here, please.”

Harriet walked back into the trees to see what her brother wanted. She wasn’t expecting this. A young white boy was standing in the trees about ten yards from the group. He looked to be about seven years old and he was wearing brown pants, a thick dark blue coat, and a wool hat. He stared at everyone matter-of-factly with bright blue eyes and no apparent fear. Zammie liked the boy’s coat. It reminded him of a Navy officer’s pea coat. If it were a little larger he wouldn’t mind wearing a similar style coat to school in the winter.

“Who’s that?” asked Harriet.

“I dunno. He just walked over from that field,” said Robert.

“Hello, young sir,” Harriet said to the boy. “What’s your name?”

“Elias,” said the boy.

“Elias? Well, that’s a fine name,” said Harriet. “You live ‘roun here, Elias?”

“Yes—“

“Elias!” A man in the field nearby interrupted the boy before he could finish his statement.

Harriet ducked down behind a tree when she heard the voice.

“Elias! Where’d you wander off to?”

Elias ran towards the field where the man’s voice was coming from.

“Papa!” he said. “There’s runaways over here!”

A million thoughts shot through Harriet’s mind, the primary thought being how would she be able to hide her shattered group within the next fifteen seconds. But it was too late. Before she could blink a tall, lanky white man with a short, brown beard dashed in from the field.

“Well, I’ll be,” he said.

“Please don’t be cross, sir,” said Henry. “We jus passin’ through.”

“See, papa!” said Elias.

“Yes, Elias. More than usual.”

“A whole bunch of ‘em,” said Elias.

“Go tell your mom we’re gonna have company.”

“Yes, papa.” Elias took off running back towards the field and down to the house.

-- Harriet meets Elias

from Time Trip #2 (Chapter 19)

 

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 4

KILLING FOR COUNTRY  

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 1

THE JOURNEY TO ANCIENT GREECE 

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 2

A RIDE ON THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 3

WITNESS TO THE FIRST THANKSGIVING 

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Theophilis Searches the Barn

Mr. Cowgill opened the barn door and allowed Theophilis and his henchmen inside.

          From the dark cellar, Kyla, Zammie, Harriet, and the rest held their breaths close as the four slave-catchers walked over them, passing just inches from their heads. Dust from the creaking boards fell down on Kyla, and she quickly covered her mouth to keep from sneezing like she did in the wagon.

Harriet’s heart was pounding in her chest. She could hear her pulse in her ears. She began praying that Baby Claire would continue to stay quiet. Jane and Ben were making the same prayer. They heard the thump-thump of the mens’ heavy boots crossing the wooden floor from one side of the barn to the other.

Theophilis’ henchmen grabbed pitchforks and began stabbing into the bales of hay.

“Is that really necessary?” asked Mr. Cowgill. “I don’t think they would have crawled inside those spins of straw.”

“That’s enough,” Theophilis said to his men. “They ain’t here.”

-- Theophilis Searches the Barn

from Time Trip #2 (Chapter 20)

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 4

KILLING FOR COUNTRY  

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 1

THE JOURNEY TO ANCIENT GREECE 

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 2

A RIDE ON THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 3

WITNESS TO THE FIRST THANKSGIVING 

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Attack on the Colony

“What’s goin’ on?” asked Robert.

“I dunno, but Imma bout to find out,” said Harriet. In a flash she was fully dressed and peering out the front door. She saw several white men standing around the next cabin. One of the men by the cabin was Theophilis Knight. He had thrown a torch into the first cabin and the dry, brittle wood was quickly being consumed by flames. There were still people inside the cabin, including Boyd and his family, and they began firing their own rifles back at the slave-catchers. When she saw the slave-catchers firing into the cabin Harriet turned to her group.

“Get ready cause we’re leavin’ now!”

Bethany and the other three men were frantically moving about, putting on clothes, loading guns, and looking out the windows.

“How many of ‘em?” asked Duke.

“Can’t tell,” said Purvis. He was trying to survey their surroundings from one of the windows. “Ten. Maybe twelve. They scattered about.”

Kyla and Zammie put their clothes on quickly, and Baby Claire began crying due to the commotion.

“Are they lookin’ for us?” asked Henry.

Before Harriet could answer, a burning torch flew through one of the windows and landed on the straw mat on which Kyla was sitting. She screamed and Zammie pulled her up and away from the flame. Duke quickly picked up the torch and threw it back out the front door, but the mat was already burning.

“They approachin’ this cabin now! Robert, get them kids back here!” said Harriet.

Robert pulled Zammie and Kyla away from the front of the cabin while Duke ran out the front door with his rifle primed.

“No, wait!” yelled Harriet, but it was too late. Duke was shot down as soon as he stepped outside. Zammie watched his body fall back and slump in the doorway. 

“Duke!” yelled Bethany. She ran over and dragged Duke back inside the cabin. Duke’s body convulsed and blood dribbled out of his mouth. A moment later his gasping stopped. Bethany’s face filled with anguish when she realized he was dead.

Harriet turned to her group. “All the way back!” she said. She herded them towards the back wall of the cabin. Purvis and Shadrach continued firing off their rifles through the front windows while Bethany fired off her pistol through a side window. It was a slow process for the men. Their rifled muskets only held one shot so they repeatedly had to take time to reload their guns with powder and ball before they could fire again.

Smoke began to fill the cabin as the flames from the burning mat quickly licked up the walls towards the ceiling. The limited furnishings, a couple wooden chairs, one storage chest, and two homemade beds with straw mattresses, were like kindling for the fire. They couldn’t have been burning faster if gasoline had been poured on them. The flames were quickly sucking up all the oxygen inside the structure. Everyone had to cover their faces with their sleeves or shirt to keep from breathing in the burning ash, and the heat was becoming unbearable.

--Theophilis Attacks the Colony  

from Time Trip #2 (Chapter 18)

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 4

KILLING FOR COUNTRY  

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 1

THE JOURNEY TO ANCIENT GREECE 

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 2

A RIDE ON THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 3

WITNESS TO THE FIRST THANKSGIVING 

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The Journey to Ancient Greece - Chapter 11

. . . continued from Chapter 10

(or start at the beginning)

Greek Port by  *suburbanbeatnik

The small town of Patras consisted of a fishing port surrounded by a market area and several civic center buildings. These buildings in turn were surrounded by small houses with farmland. One of these farms was owned by a wealthy family headed by a man named Kaiaphas.  In addition to owning several hectares of farmland, Kaiaphas’ family also raised herds of sheep which they sheared seasonally for wool. 

Once the wool was sheared it had to then be cleaned, carded, spun, woven and dyed in preparation for making garments or felt for the entire household with extra to be sold at the market. To complete the labor of shearing and spinning the wool, many slaves had to be bought and forced to work. One of these slaves was Argo’s sister Kisandra. Like many young girls in Greece, Kisandra already knew how to spin and weave wool. She received her first spindle from her parents when she was just eight years old.

Shearing sheep

          She was sitting before piles of lamb’s wool just as she had done every day for the past few weeks since she had been led to Kaiaphas’ farm. The wool had been sheared and then teased or picked clean by other slaves before it was brought to her. Her job was to take this cleaned wool and to spin it into sheets used for bedding or clothing.

The warp-weighted loom she used stood upright on a rickety wooden frame in a large workshop building. The stuffy, cramped workshop was filled with several dozen other girls who were all weaving fabric as well. The frame of Kisandra’s loom was leaning against the back wall of the workshop. Bundles of threads were tied to a series of dangling loom weights which kept the thread pulled tight. The lengthwise yarns were called the warp, and the yarn that she inserted over-and-under the warp threads were called the weft. Kisandra enjoyed doing this type of work at home because the labor was exercised for the sake of her family. Being forced to do this by a stranger made the labor nearly unbearable.

Image of a standing loom by saamiblog.

 Kisandra refused to work for this family the first couple of days. She demanded that she be taken home. She missed her family and wanted desperately to leave, but Kaiaphas paid no attention to her complaints.

          “You belong to me fair and square,” he would tell her.

"Greek Slave" by Hiram Powers

          She eventually began working when they threatened to beat her and threatened to cut her already meager food supply in half. For some reason she felt she would be saved.  She wasn’t sure why. Some of the other slave girls had been working on this farm for years with no chance for escape, but Kisandra new that her family would not allow her to be taken and kept so easily. She held out hope that they would find her here and rescue her, but until that time came she would do her work and stay out of trouble. She had begun to make friends with some of the other girls. There was Soussana from Sparta who also did weaving, and Timo, the older lady from Persia who would sing songs in the kitchen when she cooked.

          Kisandra had also been trying to figure out how she could escape herself, but there was a large guard by the name of Isaak who always kept close watch on all the girls in Kisandra’s group of weavers. Isaak was a muscular man with red hair and big arms.  He would laugh and make jokes whenever Kaiaphas was around, but when it came to keeping an eye on the slaves he was all business.

          On her second day at the farm, Kisandra witnessed firsthand how tough Isaak could be. One of the field hands who normally helped with the planting of seeds turned up missing. The overseer of the garden workers told Isaak, and Isaak began questioning the other slaves about the missing man’s location. They refused to speak until Isaak threatened them with lashes from the whip. That was all the intimidation it took for the other slaves to begin singing like birds. They told Isaak that the runaway had snuck underneath a vegetable cart that had left the farm and was travelling to a nearby port city. Once there, the man hoped to find passage aboard a merchant ship out of the area.

Isaak quickly chose three of his fellow guards and they rode their horses towards the port city in hopes of catching the vegetable cart before it arrived. Soon Isaak and his henchmen returned to the farm with the runaway in tow. Isaak tied him up to a post and gave him fifty lashes with a whip. That was a typical punishment for attempted escape. Because of that, Kisandra was hesitant to try any sort of escape herself, especially when Isaak seemed to be nearby at all times.

Kisandra was busy laboring with the distaff and spindle when her weaving routine was interrupted by the arrival of Kaiaphas’ eldest daughter, Rhachel.

          “Kisandra, I have wonderful news for you!” said Rhachel. She was eighteen years old and had golden blonde hair that fell gently all the way down her back.

          “What news?” asked Kisandra. Her heart leapt in her throat. Was her father here to pick her up? Would Rhachel’s father allow her to leave?

          “You have been chosen! Oh, this is so exciting!” Rhachel continued to gush and prance around Kisandra.

          “Chosen for what?” Why wouldn’t she just say it, thought Kisandra. The anticipation was driving her crazy.

          Rhachel took a deep breath and stepped close to Kisandra. “You have been chosen… to be Markos’ bride!”

          Kisandra’s head spun for a moment. Markos’ bride? Markos was the youngest son of Kaiaphas. He had met Kisandra on the day she arrived and had instantly been smitten by her. This obviously was not the news Kisandra had been hoping for.

          “Now the wedding won’t be anytime soon because you are still too young,” Rhachel continued, “but after a couple years my father thinks you’ll be ready to become a wonderful wife for Markos. And bare him many sons.”

          “A couple of years?” Kisandra asked. “Many sons?”

They were already planning on keeping her here for years?

          “It will be so nice to have you as a sister, Kisandra. Aren’t you excited?”

          Kisandra felt the warmth of tears beginning to swell in her eyes.

          “I can’t marry Markos,” said Kisandra. “I barely know him.”

          “Oh, you’ll get to know him,” said Rhachel. “You two will get along fine. And then you and I will be like best friends. And we will be able to raise our children together. You are so lucky to have been chosen, Kisandra. Once you are married you will no longer have to be a slave. Isn’t that wonderful?”

          “I…excuse me.” Kisandra ran past Rhachel out of the workshop and out to the nearby well where she splashed cold water on her face. This was not good news. This wasn’t how things were supposed to work out for her. Where was her family? Where was her father?

Where was Argo?

To be continued in Chapter 12 . . . 

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 4

KILLING FOR COUNTRY  

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 1

THE JOURNEY TO ANCIENT GREECE 

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 2

A RIDE ON THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 3

WITNESS TO THE FIRST THANKSGIVING 

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Old Synagogues of Germany

Built in 1899, Roonstrasse Synagogue, located in Cologne, Germany, is one of the five pre-Nazi synagogues of the locality, which was destroyed on November 9, 1938 during nation-wide attacks on Jewish-owned property (Kristallnacht) when Germany was under Nazi rule. The synagogue was subsequently rebuilt during the 1950s. It is currently a center of Jewish community of Cologne, and consists of a community center, a small display of items associated with Cologne Jewry, and a kosher restaurant. The interior of the reconstructed synagogue has a vast blue dome.

The Erfurt Synagogue in Erfurt, Germany, was built around 1100AD. It is thought to be the oldest synagogue building still standing in Europe. It is currently used as a museum and permanently houses the Erfurt Treasure.

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 4

KILLING FOR COUNTRY  

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 1

THE JOURNEY TO ANCIENT GREECE 

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 2

A RIDE ON THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 3

WITNESS TO THE FIRST THANKSGIVING 

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Arjuna in Action

Out in the hallway, Kyla had her ear pressed close to the door handle trying to listen. She could hear the grinding gears of the doll which meant that Zammie had let it unwind. She remembered the first time they did this that it only took a few seconds before they woke up outside on that hill in Greece. She continued to wait when she noticed a bright, white glow coming from underneath the door. She took a step back and watched the light grow stronger before it quickly flickered out.

          At that moment Kyla realized how quiet the house was. The only noise she heard was the subtle ticking of the large antique clock Zammie’s parents kept in the living room. The light from inside Zammie’s room had gone out so she decided to open the door. She cracked it open a couple inches and peered inside but every light in the room had gone out and she couldn’t see anything. The light switch had somehow been flipped down so she switched it back on and saw Zammie passed out on the bed. His feet were dangling towards the floor.

          Kyla walked up to him to get a better look. He appeared to be taking a nap.

          “He is just sleeping,” Kyla whispered to herself. “So it really is like a dream.”

          Kyla looked around the room to see if anything else looked out of place. Everything appeared as it had before. Nothing else had changed so Kyla was about to leave the room and let Zammie sleep until she noticed the Arjuna’s eyes were still glowing. Or had they just started glowing? The head of the Arjuna turned towards her. Its mouth curled into a grin.

          “What are you looking at?” Kyla asked the statue.

          She started to walk out of the room when the door slammed closed before she could reach it, trapping her inside. Before she could formulate another thought Kyla felt the room beginning to spin around her and a bright light appeared forcing her to close her eyes. She fell back onto the edge of the bed and lost consciousness with the two small almond-shaped red eyes of the Arjuna still staring straight at her.

-- The Arjuna in Action

from Time Trip #2 (Chapter 2)

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 4

KILLING FOR COUNTRY  

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 1

THE JOURNEY TO ANCIENT GREECE 

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 2

A RIDE ON THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 3

WITNESS TO THE FIRST THANKSGIVING 

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Arjuna the Warrior Prince

          He walked over to where the children were eating and placed a metal figurine of an ancient soldier with six arms on the table. The figure stood about a foot tall, and the arms were jointed and bendable. Two of the arms were holding an elaborate bow and arrow. Zammie noticed that the arms were moveable and were connected to a series of small gears that could be seen on the inside of the figure.

          “How does it work?” he asked.
          Ramesh pressed all six of Arjuna’s arms down to its side then twisted the figure at its waist. When he let go, the gears began to turn causing the arms to move around like tentacles.
          “Cool!” said Zammie. “You’re giving this to me?”
          “Sure. It’s supposed to help children learn about history,” said Ramesh. “It helped me do well in school when I was a boy. Maybe it will help you too.”
          “How does he help?” asked Zammie.
          “You just wind it up and let it run right before you do your homework, and then let Arjuna work his magic.”
          “Magic?” asked Kyla.
          Ramesh gave a small laugh, “Yes, magic. But you have to really concentrate when he’s moving. Look deep into his eyes, and when he’s done waving his arms you’ll be able to write even more wonderful papers about history.”

          “Thanks!” said Zammie. “Can I go try it out now?”
          “Of course, but be sure and share with Kyla too,” said Ramesh. “Maybe it will help her with her schoolwork as well.”
          “Let’s go, Kyla!” Zammie grabbed the little Arjuna and took off to his room. Kyla followed close behind.
          “You wanna do homework now, Zammie?” complained Kyla.

-- The Arjuna Statue

from Time Trip #1 (Chapter 1)

The short film above is a modern day Chitra Katha in animation that celebrates the intricate form of this historic hand printing craft, that was handed down from generation to generation, until it got lost somewhere in the advent of machine printing. Arjuna the Mythological Archer adorns this first ever handmade version of The Great Indian Yellow Pages, in a vivid story that simplifies online yellow pages and encourages online transactions through the life of Arjuna in 2008 AD.

Arjuna is one of the most celebrated human heroes in Hindu scripture. Wholesome, devoted and magnanimous, he bears many noble qualities of human beings. His theological significance is also immense. In his dialouge with Lord Krishna in the Bhagavadgita, wherein the nature of the universe is unraveled for him, Arjuna embodies the qualities of the ideal student. His willingness to accept the word of Krishna, even though it involves raising his weapons against his kinfolk, illustrates his ideal devotion to God. Together, the inseparable friendship between Krishna and Arjuna represent the cosmic inseparability of Brahmanand atman, or the essence of the universe and the soul, one of the fundamental ideas of Hinduism. In a more general sense of comparative myth, Arjuna also stands as the archetypal reluctant hero, who is called to a task of great import and initially shirks his duty, only to reconsider and perform his task with unmatched effectiveness. As such, Arjuna is a hero not only for Hindus but also for the entirety of humanity.

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 4

KILLING FOR COUNTRY  

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 1

THE JOURNEY TO ANCIENT GREECE 

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 2

A RIDE ON THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 3

WITNESS TO THE FIRST THANKSGIVING 

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