Betty Jo grew up in the shadow of the big white house across the road.  As a little girl, she would imagine herself living in the tall, spacious house sitting high on the hill with seven gables facing every direction.  Each of the gables held a hand carved eagle with its wings spread as if ready to fly away.  They seemed to look down upon her, protecting her and she felt safe.

This was a childhood dream, a dream carried with her even into her adult life.  It was her secret, keeping it to herself, for she believed it to be only a fantasy.  It was no longer a fantasy, it was real.  This is her house.  It was where she belonged.

Today is Christmas, and this house and all her memories cannot be pushed out of her mind as she recalled the stories that had been passed down through the generations.

In 1874, a young stranger wandered into town carrying an old battered suitcase.  In it was everything he owned, but no one could see the vision he carried with him.  This man was Alexander Brewer, Betty Jo's great grandfather. 

Alexander was a man who believed if a man was to be successful in life, he must see his goal clearly and aim for it steadfastly, following his own ideals and direction.  Nothing could distract him from his goal, not even the young woman, Amanda Burke, who soon would become his wife.  Amanda  was a great granddaughter of Adam Spach and the courage, strength and determination that was so evident in the generations that preceded her were just as evident in Amanda.  Amanda shared Alexander's dream.

Their dream was to build a family mansion, spacious, built of the timber from their land, and would endure for many generations.  Alexander was not a man to be turned aside from his well designed plan.  He would be among the first to introduce a new architectural design to the South.  Endowed with ideas and courage, held together with purpose and a dream, he dared to be different.

When their new house was completed, the old house was torn down, but Alexander left the kitchen and dining room standing as a reminder that from a meager beginning, with determination and a willingness to toil from sun-up to sun-down, great things can be accomplished and dreams can become a reality.

Alexander and Amanda, along with their children, stood back and looked at the fruit of their labor.  The majestic house sitting on the top of the hill with its three hugh chimneys rising high above the roof fit into the landscape as if it had always been there.  Alexander looked at the seven gables with the eagles perched in the center of each one and he named their new home, "Eagle Gables."

After the death of Alexander and Amanda, their son, and later, their granddaughter lived in the house, but now Eagle Gables stood on the threshold of being sold.  A hundred years of memories could be gone, erased like they had never existed.  All her life, Betty Jo had been living a dream and she never thought it would ever end.

She could not bear to think of strangers living there for they would fail to see its charm or feel its warmth.  To them, it would only be a house, but to Betty Jo, it was a dream and a legend.  This house was a part of her, a heritage that had been passed down from generation to generation.  Somehow, she would find a way to save it.

Her unmarried Aunt was the last to live there, but her health had failed and she could no longer maintain such a large house.  It had to be sold.  Betty Jo and her husband, Michael, immediately approached her and before the day ended, Betty Jo owned "Eagle Gables."  Her dream had come true.