In the second decade of the 20th century, major world events resonate even on secluded Stone Mountain where Bessie Elliott lives with her husband Fletcher. There's a great war, one that takes away many young men, including Bessie's kin, some never to return. Bessie's role of healer intensifies as she treats those suffering from the Spanish flu and tries to keep it from spreading further on her mountain. She defends a young woman who's in the middle of a controversy that threatens to tear her community apart. And she finds herself involved in the suffragette movement as the women of North Carolina fight to gain their rights under the constitution. Then when one of her family members makes an appalling decision, one that has the potential to damage a child, Bessie impulsively steps forward to right the wrong.