More than a poignant story of the homefront during World War II, Dona Schmit's life saga is bracketed by her childhood in the years of the Great Depression and her challenges during the crisis in America's km economy in the l980s. Though her journey has ended in the rural community, Dona's path to that end involves dramatic upheavals in her personal existence as well as significant changes in her homeland. Beginning with her strong-willed father, Dona is influenced by the men in her life. Two men eventually own her heart, one the father of her three daughters, around whom she fashions her own existence. Independent and determined, she feels she has found her life partner, but finds disappointment instead. She yearns to escape from rural hardships and finds, when thrust into life in the city, that she loves the excitement and pace of that experience. Torn between her desire to live in the city and her wish to provide a stable home for her children, Dona thinks she can forget the pleasures and conveniences of her stay in the fascinating metropolis. Further crises in her personal life cause her to cling to the small community she has adopted and that has adopted her. Many ties bind her to the place and time she inhabits, and she is ultimately filled with deep affection for the simple existence she acquires. Both blessings and tragedies flavor her life, many related to the tenure of the railroad as it passes through its own short tenure in America's heartland.