In the years of World War I and the flu epidemic that followed, American society and its people underwent profound changes. Carrie and her adopted family are not spared these changes and tragedies, yet what can they do but continue on the best way they can? As Carrie comes of age, she is faced with a future very different than the one she hoped for. She gave her heart, only to have it returned back to her and now she must search herself to find a new direction or give in to the temptation to simply give up and let circumstances dictate her life.
Judd has spent his young adult years coping with the aftermath of war injuries and profound family losses. With no time to grieve or recover, he is thrust into the role of family head and pours himself into steering his brothers and Carrie to adulthood while also seeing to the needs of the family farm. Like Carrie, his losses have caused him to grow cold towards God, leaning only on himself to bear the weight of his responsibilities. The pressure has forged a resolute hardness in him and an unwillingness to be close to anyone. The life journeys of both are in need of new direction, if they will choose to take a chance and step toward it.
