Peace
Page 16
She was better by Christmas Eve, but only marginally so. My husband, son, and I went to church on Christmas Eve but came home directly afterward since my daughter was still in too much pain for us to leave her alone at the house for long.
On Christmas morning we opened the presents that I had bought months before, wrapped, and put under the tree. Then my son left for his girlfriend’s house—her family was hosting a lovely dinner. Tom and I? We ate soup and sandwiches and continued to hope and pray that our daughter would feel better soon. And then . . . right around New Year’s Day, she did. Just in time to go back to college.
After she left, I put away the decorations and reflected on the holiday. For a moment, I was even tempted to call it the Christmas That Wasn’t! And then I remembered that Christmas isn’t about parties and being around lots of people. Or about perfect decorations or lovely meals. It really is all about remembering a baby being born in a lowly manger . . . and everyone celebrating the miracle of His birth.
I have a feeling we might always remember the Christmas of 2012 with a bit of fondness and maybe a grimace, too. I know I never want to open a can of Campbell’s chicken noodle soup again! But I bet years from now Tom and I will probably smile when we remember that that Christmas reminded us that the holiday is really all about love and faith and hope. Last Christmas we certainly had those in abundance! If those things are present, not much else is needed.
I sincerely hope you enjoyed Peace. I loved writing about two couples experiencing a somewhat difficult Christmas Day, and becoming happier and stronger because of it.
Wherever you are, I hope you will have a Merry Christmas! And if it doesn’t happen to be quite so “merry,” I hope you will find comfort in celebrating the joy of His birth!
With my thanks to you,
Shelley Shepard Gray
Questions for Discussion
1. At the beginning of the novel, Chris reveals that he came to the Yellow Bird Inn because he had nowhere else to go. Do you think this is correct? Should he have gone somewhere else? Or, do you think he came to the Yellow Bird Inn for a far different reason?
2. At first glance, Beth Byler seems to be an extremely sheltered young Amish lady. But what experiences has she faced that might have prepared her for a relationship with a DEA agent?
3. How did you feel about Jacob’s refusal to read his father’s letters? Why do you think forgiving his father was so hard for him?
4. The visit to the prison was a life-changing event for everyone involved, certainly for both Jacob and Aaron. How do you imagine their relationship evolving? Have you ever had a rift in your family that you had to struggle to reconcile?
5. Beth’s decision to contact Chris’s family could have been a huge mistake. Chris’s family could have been angry; it might even have brought more danger to their lives if their arrival put Chris is jeopardy. So, was it a mistake . . . or the right decision?
6. The two Christmases portrayed in the novel were definitely not the usual Christmas settings. Have you ever had an unusual Christmas? How did taking you out of your familiar setting allow you to see the gifts of the season in new ways?
7. Obviously, characters finding “peace” was a recurring theme throughout the novel. For each of the main characters, finding peace was not simple or easy, because they each had to overcome many emotional hurdles. Can you recall a time when you, too, had a hurdle to overcome?
8. Discuss how “Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the Lord upholdeth him with His hand” (Psalms 37:24) relates to the characters in this book.
Read on
A Sneak Peek of Hopeful
The First Book in Shelley Shepard Gray’s New Series, The Return to Sugarcreek
SHE WAS LATE.
Holding her canvas tote bag in one hand and a box of oatmeal raisin cookies in the other, Miriam Zehr exited her house, darted down her street, turned left on Main Street, and almost ran down old Mr. Sommers.
Holding her canvas tote bag in one hand and a box of oatmeal raisin cookies in the other, Miriam Zehr exited her house, darted down her street, turned left on Main Street, and almost ran down old Mr. Sommers.
With a grunt, he stepped to the side, his garden hose spraying a good bit of water onto her skirts before settling back onto his daffodils.
She skidded to a stop. “I’m sorry, Eli.”
He merely raised one eyebrow. “Late again, Miriam?”
“Jah.” As discreetly as possible, she shook her blue apron and dress a bit. A few drops flew from the fabric, glinting in the morning sun.
He shook his head in exasperation. “One day you’re going to injure someone with your haste.”
She winced. “I know. And I am sorry, Eli.”
Looking at the box in her hand, his voice turned wheedling. “Those cookies?”
“They’re oatmeal raisin.” When his eyes brightened, she set down her tote and carefully opened the box. “Care for one?”
After setting the hose down, he reached in and pulled out two plump cookies. “Girl who cooks as gut as you should be married by now.”
She’d heard the same refrain almost as often as she’d run late to work. “I’ve often thought the same thing,” she said as she picked up her tote again. “But for now, I must be on my way.”
“Have a care, now.” He shook one arthritic finger at her. “Not everyone’s as spry as me, you know.”
“I’ll be careful,” she promised before continuing on her way to work.
Once at the Sugarcreek Inn, she would put on a crisp white apron, then divide her time between baking pies and serving the restaurant guests. The whole time, she’d do her best to smile brightly. Chat with customers and her coworkers. And pretend she didn’t yearn for a different life.
But first, she had to do her best to get to work on time.
“Going pretty fast today, Miriam,” Josh Graber called out from the front porch of his family’s store. “How late are you?”
“Only five minutes. Hopefully.”
He laughed. “Good luck. Stop by soon, wouldja? Gretta would love to see you.”
“I’ll do my best.”
Now that the restaurant was finally in view, she slowed her pace and tried to catch her breath.
As she got closer, she forced herself to look at the building with a critical eye. There were places where the building needed a bit of touching up. A fresh coat of paint. One of the windowsills needed to be replaced.
The landscaping around the front door was a little shaggy, a little overgrown. It needed some sprucing up, a little tender loving care.
Kind of like herself, she supposed. Now that she was twenty-five, she was tired of biding her time, waiting in vain for something to happen.
Perhaps it really was time to think about doing something different. Going somewhere new. For too long now she’d been everyone’s helper and assistant. She’d watch her best friends get courted, fall in love, and get married. Most were expecting their first babies. Some, like Josh and Gretta, already had two children.
Yes, it seemed like everyone had moved on with their lives except for her.
And the sad thing about that was there was no need to stay in Sugarcreek any longer. She had plenty of money saved and even her parents’ blessing to go find her happiness.
So why hadn’t she done anything yet? Was she afraid . . . or still holding out hope that a certain man would finally notice her and see that she was the perfect girl for him?
That she’d actually been the perfect one for years now?
Pushing aside that disturbing thought, she slipped inside and prepared to offer her excuses to Jana Kent, the proprietor.
Jana was just inside the front door, standing by a pair of bookshelves, unboxing more of the knickknacks she’d recently started selling in an attempt to drum up a bit more business and profit for the restaurant.
Her boss paused when she walked by. “Cutting it close today, Miriam.”
Glancing up at the clock ov
er the door, Miriam winced. It was ten after nine. Jana had long since given up on Miriam getting to work early or even on time. Now she merely hoped Miriam wouldn’t be too late. “I know. I’m sorry.”
“What’s today’s excuse?” Humor lit her eyes, telling Miriam that while Jana might feel exasperated, she wasn’t mad.
Usually, Miriam came with an amusing story or fib. Over the years, earthquakes had erupted, washing machines had overflowed, and ravenous dogs had invaded her yard.
Today, however, her mind drew a complete blank. “Time simply got away from me this morning.”
Jana looked almost disappointed. “That’s it?”
Miriam shrugged weakly. “I’ll come up with a better excuse tomorrow, I’m sure of it.”
“Miriam Zehr. You are one of my best employees and one of my hardest workers. You always offer to help other people, and you never mind staying late. Why is it so hard for you to get here on time?”
There were all kinds of reasons. Miriam wasn’t a morning person. She seemed to always sleep in. But deep down, she feared it was her somewhat irrational way to rebel against the continual routine of her life. Sometimes her frenetic morning’s journey to work was the biggest excitement of her day.
Inching away, she mumbled, “I’ll go put on my apron and get to work.”
“Thank you, Miriam.”
Hurrying toward the back, she scanned the tables. Quite a few were empty.
And then she noticed He was there. Junior Beiler. All six-foot-two inches of brawn and blond hair and perfection.
Junior, the object of too many of her daydreams. The boy she had a crush on. The man she yearned for to finally notice her.
Miriam kept walking, trying not to look his way. Trying not to stare. But she did. And as she did, she noticed that he was staring right back at her. More important, she was sure that something like interest glinted in his blue eyes.
Feeling her cheeks flush, she darted into the kitchen. But the moment the doors closed behind her, she let herself smile.
Maybe today, at long last, something would start to happen in her life.
The moment Junior Beiler saw the kitchen doors swing shut, he grinned at Joe. “You were right, Miriam Zehr works here. I just saw her walk by.”
Joe looked around the restaurant dining room. “Are you sure?”
“I’m positive. She just went into the kitchen.” Drumming his fingers on the table, he murmured, “I hope she comes out again soon.”
Joe chuckled. “And when she does are you actually going to talk to her about what’s been on your mind?”
“Absolutely.” Noticing that his buddy’s expression looked skeptical, he straightened his shoulders a bit. “What’s wrong with that?”
“Junior, you can’t just go asking women about their best friends and expect to get information.”
“Why not?” It made perfect sense to him.
“A woman isn’t going to give you information if she doesn’t know you.”
Junior scoffed. As usual, Joe was making too big a deal over nothing. “I’ve known Miriam for years. We both have, Joe.”
“Jah, we went to school with her, that’s true. And we’re all in the same church district, too. But let me ask you this, when was the last time you actually talked to her?”
“I’m pretty sure I said hello to her at church last Sunday.”
Joe tilted his head slightly. “Did you? Or did you walk right by her like you usually do?”
For the first time, Junior felt vaguely uncomfortable. He was one of eight kids, and he was sandwiched between two girls in his family. Because of that, he’d learned a thing or two about the female mind over the years. “I might have only thought about saying hello,” he said grudgingly.
Joe looked triumphant. “See?”
Okay, Joe probably had a point. But his inattentiveness didn’t mean he didn’t like Miriam. He just had never thought about her much.
Until he realized she was best friends with Mary Kate Hershberger. Beautiful Mary Kate Hershberger.
Joe grabbed another hot biscuit from the basket on the table and began slathering it with peanut-butter spread. “I still think you should get your sister Kaylene to introduce you. After all, Mary Kate is Kaylene’s teacher.”
“Nee. Kaylene is having trouble in school.” Lowering her voice, he said, “Actually, I’m not even all that certain Kaylene likes Mary Kate.”
“Don’t see why that matters.”
“It just does.” His youngest sister was eight years old, and the apple of his eye. There was no way he was going to use little Kaylene in order to get a date.
“Why?”
Luckily, the kitchen doors swung open again, and out came Miriam. She had on a white apron now, and was holding a coffeepot in her right hand. Seizing his chance, he turned his coffee cup right side up, waited until she was looking his way, and motioned her over.
Joe raised his brows. “Impressive,” he muttered.
When she got to their table, her cheeks were flushed. “Kaffi?”
“Jah. For both of us, please.”
After she’d filled both their cups, Joe gave him a little kick.
Thinking quickly, Junior asked, “So, Miriam, how have you been?”
She looked a bit startled by the question. “Me? I’ve been just fine. Why do you ask?”
“No reason. It’s just that, well . . . I mean, I haven’t seen you around lately.”
She looked at him curiously. “Where have you been looking?”
“Nowhere. I mean, I guess I haven’t seen you anywhere but at church. And here,” he added, feeling like a fool.
Joe groaned as he took another bit of biscuit.
“Why were you looking? Did you need something?” Miriam asked.
His tongue was starting to feel like it was too big for his mouth. “Actually, ah . . . yes!” Seizing the opportunity, he added, “I’ve been wanting to talk to you about something.”
She set the coffeepot right on the table. “You have?”
“Yes. When do you get off work? Can I stop by?”
“You want to come by my house? Tonight?” Her cheeks pinkened.
“I do. May I come over?”
“You may . . . if you’d like. I’ll be off work at four.”
“Gut. I’ll stop over around six.”
“Do you need my address?”
“No, I know where you live. I’ll see you then.”
Miriam picked up the coffeepot, smiled shyly, then walked on.
When they were alone again, Junior picked up his coffee cup and took a fortifying sip. “That wasn’t so hard.”
“That wasn’t so gut.”
“Really?”
Joe leaned back in his chair and folded his arms across his chest. “You, Junior, are an idiot.”
“What are you talking about? I’m going to go over to Miriam’s house tonight and talk to her about Mary Kate. It’s a might gut plan. Perfect.”
After making sure Miriam wasn’t nearby to overhear, Joe hissed, “Miriam doesna think you’re coming over to ask about Mary Kate. She thinks you’re going courting. This is not good, Junior.”
Warily, Junior glanced in the direction Joe was looking and spied Miriam.
Noticed that she was standing near the hostess station. Her light brown eyes were bright. She was smiling softly.
Meeting her gaze, he felt his neck flush.
He had a sudden feeling that Joe was right. And that was not good. Definitely not good at all.
Also by Shelley Shepard Gray
Sisters of the Heart series
HIDDEN
WANTED
FORGIVEN
GRACE
Seasons of Sugarcreek series
WINTER’S AWAKENING
SPRING’S RENEWAL
AUTUMN’S PROMISE
CHRISTMAS IN SUGARCREEK
Families of Honor
THE CAREGIVER
THE PROTECTOR
THE SURVIVOR
A CHRISTMAS FOR KATIE (NOVELLA)
The Secrets of Crittenden County
MISSING
THE SEARCH
FOUND
The Days of Redemption Series
DAYBREAK
RAY OF LIGHT
EVENTIDE
Credits
Cover design by Mary McAdam Keane
Cover photograph © Andre Jenny / Alamy; border © by Woodhouse / Shutterstock Images
Author photograph by The New Studio
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogue are drawn from the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
P.S.™ is a trademark of HarperCollins Publishers.
Excerpt from Hopeful © 2013 by Shelley Shepard Gray.
PEACE. Copyright © 2013 by Shelley Shepard Gray. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By Payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Gray, Shelley Shepard.
Peace : a Crittenden County Christmas Novel / Shelley Shepard Gray. —first edition.
pages cm
ISBN 978-0-06-220452-3
I. Title.
PS3607.R3966P43 2013
813'.6—dc23 2013016391
EPUB Edition November 2013 ISBN 9780062204530
13 14 15 16 17 OV/RRD 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1