by Karen Rispin
Chapter Eight
When I got back to the house, Dr. Bishop wasn't out front anymore. Inside I could hear adults' voices. I went in and found Mom and Mrs. Barnes sitting at the table, talking. I could hear Dr. Bishop and Daddy talking in the other room.
I went over and hugged Mom, and she hugged me back hard.
"Dr. Bishop said that Daddy is OK? " I said it like it was a question.
Mom nodded. "God is so good to have put Dr. Bishop at the coast right when we needed him," she said. Then she looked at Mrs. Barnes and added, "I can't tell you how much that man has meant to us and to many others. He is literally a godsend."
I thought about what Dr. Bishop had said about getting things back when you give something up and wondered if he knew what people thought of him. It would be good to have people think of me that way sometime, no matter what it cost. I think I'd like to be a doctor someday, Ithought. Then I remembered what I had to say to Mom and Dad.
"Mom, I need to talk to you and Daddy together as soon as I can, OK?" I asked.
She nodded and smiled at me, then said, "Goand sis if soar yeeter is awake."
I laughed right out loud, "Seems like you haven't done that for ages, Mom. Sure, I'll go see if my yeeter is awake. Do you want me to wake her up if she isn't? Where are Traci and Lisa? I haven't seen them anywhere?"
"Mr. Barnes took them and David and Alex on a long walk down the beach this morning so we could sleep," she looked back at Mrs. Barnes. "Both you and Joey have been very good to us. I appreciate it so much."
Mrs. Barnes smiled and started to answer, but I didn't hear much of it because I was halfway into the bedroom before she got started.
Sandy was sitting up, looking really sleepy.
"Hi!" I said, "Dr. Bishop says that Daddy's OK for now."
"Good. I don't even remember getting back. I must have gone to sleep in the car or something, and Uncle Joey carried me in."
"Uncle Joey?!" I asked. "Since when is Mr. Barnes Uncle Joey?"
"He's nice to me, and I like him," Sandy said, sounding a little defensive. "Besides, he practically saved Daddy's life last night by getting Dr. Bishop."
"I suppose…," I said real slow. "Anyway, Dr. Bishop said something to me I wanted to tell you before we see Mom and Daddy. He said that Daddy needs to go to the States, and he doesn't want us worrying them by fussing about it anymore."
"Oh," Sandy answered and was quiet for a minute thinking about it. "That was mostly you anyway."
At first I wanted to get mad at her, but she was right. It was mostly me.
"Well anyway," I said, "Daddy's awake now, too. I could hear him talking to Dr. Bishop when I came in. I've got to tell him and Mom that I'm not going to try to make us stay in Kenya anymore."
"Doyou know if we're going home today?" Sandy asked when I was halfway out the door.
"No, tomorrow—if we do what Dr. Bishop wants, anyway." I answered.
"Hey, wait," she called, but I wanted to talk to Mom and Daddy and get it over with. Especially because I was still so sad whenever I thought about leaving Kenya. I didn't want to change my mind. Nobody was out in the big room, so I went and knocked on Mom and Daddy's door.
When Mom called, "Come in," I stopped for a second and thought frantically, Maybe I can ask them if I can stay in Kenya with Stewarts. Maybe they'd let me. Then I remembered what Dr. Bishop had said about not making things hard for Daddy. I sighed and went in.
Daddy did look sick. I mean, hepatitis makes you look yellowish, but now he was pale under his tan, so it looked even worse. I ran and hugged him, and right that minute what I had to say didn't seem so hard anymore.
I let go and sat up on the bed and looked at them both.
"Mom, Daddy, I'm sorry for making things so hard for you about going back to the States. I'm ready to go now. I guess I thought I could tell God what was best for me instead of listening to what he wanted."
I looked down.
Daddy reached out and took my hand, "Anika, I'm proud of you. This isn't easy for you, but God's will is always best even if we don't understand it."
"Weknow that all that happens to us is working for our good if we love God and are fitting into his plans," Mom quoted. I knew that verse; it was Romans 8:28. Mom smiled and went on, "That verse has really meant a lot to me since your father got sick. It's so hard for me to see the good in this."
Daddy reached for Mom with his other hand and said, "You know what verse has meant a lot to me? Psalm 27:13 where it says, 'I am expecting the Lord to rescue me again, so that once again I will see his goodness to me here in the land of the living.' See, already something good has come from it."
He smiled at me, and I felt warm—I knew he meant me and what I'd learned.
"Mom, Daddy, can I come in?" It was Sandy. Mom told her yes, and she came to sit on Daddy's bed.
"Now that we're all here, let's just put our future in God's hands," Daddy said. So we did. We held hands around the bed and took turns praying.
I felt so happy and clean inside. I didn't feel like anything in the whole world could wreck that peace. I was sure that if I felt that good with God, nothing could really go wrong. I felt happy—and suddenly I was hungry, too. None of us had eaten anything yet that day.
"Can I make lunch?" I asked. "Is anybody else hungry?"
"I'm starved," Sandy said. "Come on, I'll help you."
It turned out we didn't have to make anything, though. Mrs. Barnes had done it already.
"Idon't know exactly whether I should call this here meal lunch or supper," she said. "It's so late that maybe it's lupper. Whatever, I want y'all to eat up. It'll make y'all feel better if your innards aren't so bare."
The idea of bare innards made me want to giggle—especially the way she said it, "bayer innurds"—but the soup and grilled cheese sandwiches looked great.
"I've made up a special bowl of clear soup here for Kevin," she said. "Dr. Bishop said that's the right thing for him, so if one of y'all could take it in to him I'd be much obliged."
Just then Mr. Barnes came back with all the other kids and said, "Hey, isn't it a bit early for supper? Ha, ha, ha. It's only three-thirty."
Sandy ignored how loud and stupid he sounded and ran up to him. "Uncle Joey, Uncle Joey, Daddy's OK…but we're going back to the States."
"IsKevin really going to be fine?" he asked, looking at Dr. Bishop, who had also come in.
"It seems so, but I would feel much more comfortable if he had further tests done in North America. He's had amebiasis as well, and I'm afraid the liver involvement may not be simple infectious hepatitis."
"Amebi-what's-it, eh? Well, whatever that means, I'm sure you know what you're talking about, ha, ha," Mr. Barnes boomed. "I tell you, man, was I ever glad to find you last—"
Suddenly Lisa interrupted. What she'd heard had finally sunk in. "You mean these people get to go back to America while we're stuck here? Anika Scott gets to go back, and I can't?!"
Her voice was really high and angry.
"Lisa, settle down," Mr. Barnes said. "You know Anika doesn't want to go."
"It's just not fair!" she yelled.
"Hush, child!" It was her mother. "Are you trying to teach God his business?"
For a second I thought Lisa was going to run away and cry again, but Mr. Barnes was glaring at her, so she sat down instead.
"Well, well, well," said Dr. Bishop, looking hard at Lisa, then at her parents. "I think I'll prescribe an afternoon swim. It'll be high tide before long, and there's still three hours till dark. I think everyone could use the relaxation."
Alex and David both yelled and jumped around, and Traci was smiling.
"Oh,Traci and David, I've got good news for you," said Dr. Bishop. "I'd forgotten in all the confusion, but I'd intended to drive up here later in the week. We had a phone call from your folks, and your grandmother is unexpectedly recovering. Your folks will be back by the end of the week."
Now Traci really did smile, and David kept asking Dr. B
ishop questions he couldn't answer about Aunt Bea and Uncle Paul. I guess he'd missed them more than I thought.
Anyway, everybody started getting ready for swimming, and I felt happier than I had for ages. It was great not to be fighting inside myself about going to the States anymore. Lisa didn't bother me anymore, either. If God could help me feel OK about going to the States, he could sure help me be nice to her.
I guess I still bothered her though, because when I asked if she wanted to use my tube in the waves, she wouldn't even look at me.
We were going to the big beach again, so we tied the inner tubes on top of the Barneses' car, and we all crammed in. Mom and Dr. Bishop had decided to stay with Daddy, so we all fit—sort of. Sandy's elbow was right in my ribs, and I ended up with David's bony little behind perched on my knees. It hurt when he kept hopping up and down to talk across Sandy to Alex.
I was really glad to get out of that car. All of us made a wild run for the water. Everybody except Lisa and Mr. and Mrs. Barnes, anyway. I left my tube for Lisa, in case she wanted it. The Barneses must have wanted to let Mom and Dad rest, because we stayed for ages. I rode waves till they started getting smaller. The sun was low, too. Must be almost time to go home, I thought.
I stood up all dizzy and sandy from riding a wave in, when Alex and David came swooshing in on another wave and hit me in the shins. They were both in tubes, trying to keep locked together and giggling like mad.
I grabbed one tube and said, "Hold on," and tried to pull them out through the waves. We kept getting knocked over. It was great. The tube felt sticky and sandy under my arm. My mouth was full of the ocean's salty taste. My ears were full of the waves' crash and hiss and little boys' giggles. David had this really silly high giggle that made me laugh, too.
I didn't pull them very far out, because Mida Creek is right there. I just pulled them to where the last big waves were breaking. Even so, we could feel the pull of Mida Creek. It was easy to end up farther down the beach than where you started if you didn't watch it.
A wave almost dumped us. I saw Sandy and Traci dive under it and wait for the next one, which they caught. That one grabbed the inner tubes and took the boys in with it, too, but I let go and jumped back over the top.
When I was at the top of the wave, I saw Lisa. She was on my inner tube, and she was already out farther than she should have been. And she was still heading out, right for Mida Creek.
"Hey, Lisa! Leeeeesaaa!" I yelled. "Leeeesaaa!"
She never even turned around. Either the waves were too noisy or she was still mad at me. I looked back at the beach. Everybody was in the water; no one had seen Lisa.
"Mr.Barnes! Mrs. Barnes! Look at Lisa!" I yelled, but Mr. Barnes was trying to catch a wave with Sandy, and Mrs. Barnes was playing with the boys. Neither of them looked up. The waves were too noisy for them to hear me.
I looked out at Lisa again. She was already getting swept along, but she hadn't noticed because she was still heading out. If you're in a current in the water, you just go along with it. Unless you look up, you can't tell how fast you're going. I can't just let her go! I thought desperately. Without really thinking, I headed for her as fast as I could swim.
After a second I raised my head up and yelled at her again. I was already a lot closer, but now I was getting swept along, too.
"Lisa! Lisa Barnes!" I yelled. This time she looked up. "Come back! You're in Mida Creek."
"What?" she yelled. Then she looked around. Her face went white, and her eyes got really big. Then she started paddling like mad, splashing and kicking.
I looked back at the beach, too, and felt sick. We were already way out. For a second, I panicked and swam as hard as I could back toward land. I picked up my head to look, but I was even further out. I stopped and clamped my jaw to keep from screaming.
Think, Anika! I said to myself. Daddy says that panic kills people. Think, even if you usually don't.
I took a deep, sobbing breath and prayed, "Please help me, God! Please, in Jesus' name."
I turned around and looked for Lisa. She was still splashing like mad, further out than me. We'd be better off together, especially since she had an inner tube. I couldn't swim forever. I headed for her, aiming a little ahead and taking my time.
"Don't swim against a tide rip." It was almost like someone talked in my head. It was what Daddy had taught Sandy and me when we first started coming here. "Swim across a tide rip. Get out of the current."
OK, I thought. As soon as I catch Lisa, we swim across. I lifted my head for a look—almost there. I took a breath and kept swimming. Stroke, stroke, breath. Once I turned my head the wrong way and got slapped in the face by a wave just as I tried to breathe, but I kept on. Stroke, stroke, breath. Keep kicking.
Finally my hands touched the black rubber of the tube…and Lisa hit me over the head. I went down then bobbed up again, coughing and treading water.
"Get off! Get off!" she screamed. "You'll make it sink."
"What'd you do that for?" I demanded, but she was still screaming, not even listening to me.
I reached for the tube again, and she hit me again. I was really tired. Boy, did I want to hang on and just let the tube hold me up. I could just dump Lisa in the water, I thought, and I almost fought with her. Then, Think, Anika! came into my head, almost like words.
I lay on my back and floated. We were out real far now, too far probably for the others to see where we were. Well, if Lisa won't let me near the tube, I'll have to swim back to shore.
"Goacross the current," I yelled at her. "Swim across the current to the edge. This way!" Then, still lying on my back, I started kicking across the current, away from Lisa. She may look older than me and have sophisticated clothes, but she sure wasn't acting older now.
"Anika! Anika!" she screamed. "Don't go away. Help! Help!"
I sighed, lifted my head, and began treading water. "You have to share the tube then, OK?"
"OK!OK! Don't go away," she called.
"Promise you won't hit me again?"
"I promise! I promise!" she said. Then, when I was just finally reaching for the tube, she said, "Just be careful. Don't dump me. I'm scared."
"Me, too," I said, catching hold of the tube. For a second, I just hung there. It felt so good not to have to swim and get hit in the face with waves.
"Look! We're almost out to sea," Lisa said and started kicking and splashing like mad again, which didn't get us any closer to shore.
It did, however, turn us over.
I grabbed the tube right away. Lisa just bobbed up and down splashing and yelling, so I kicked over to where she could grab the tube, too. She grabbed on and started crying really loud.
"Oh,I'm scared, I'm scared!" She howled, "I want to go home! I'm scared!"
"Lisa! Lisa! Stop it!" I said. She just kept right on, and finally I yelled at her at the top of my lungs, "Shut up!"
She did. Then in the quiet, I realized it was almost completely dark. The evening star was already out. It gets dark quickly near the equator. I started kicking across the current toward what I hoped was the nearest edge.
"Come on, Lisa, help me! We have to get out of Mida Creek," I said.
"What creek? This is the ocean, with sharks, too," she said and started moaning, "I'm scared, I'm scared!" again.
"This current is Mida Creek, you dummy," I yelled so she'd hear me. "We've got to get to the edge, so we can go back to shore. Kick!"
She kept on crying, but she started to kick. My legs ached already, and the rubber of the inner tube pinched the skin under my arms where I was holding on. I was still kind of on the edge of the tube, so it was hard to make it go straight. Lisa was sitting in the tube.
It seemed like we kicked—and Lisa cried—for ages. In rhythm with my kicks, I kept praying over and over, "Jesus, help us. Jesus, help us." I was too tired and scared to think any more prayer.
Gradually Lisa stopped crying. For a little while all I could hear was the noise we made kicking. I couldn't keep kic
king all the time anymore. I guess Lisa couldn't either, so the sound of our kicking kind of stopped and started again. In between and under it, I could hear the low roar that the ocean always makes. I couldn't tell which way we were going.
"Anika?" Lisa's voice sounded shaky in the dark.
"What?" My voice didn't sound any better. I stopped kicking to hear better and because I was so tired. Lisa stopped, too. We were shivering now. The water wasn't really very cold, but even in warm water you shiver after a while.
"You got caught in the current when you came after me, right?" Lisa asked through chattering teeth.
"Yes," I answered. It came out kind of jerky, like everything else we said.
"I'm sorry," she said.
I said, "That's OK. I guess I need to say I'm sorry, too, for trying to scare you and stuff."
We were quiet for a little while. The water was calm now. There were just stars and water, dark open space with no edges. I felt like I was floating in peaceful outer space. Everything seemed far away and odd.
After a while Lisa asked, "Why? I mean, why did you do all that stuff to me?"
I wanted to tell her that it wasn't all my fault and that I didn't mean to scare her at first. I wanted to ask her why she cried and whined all the time, but I didn't. It seemed like excuses all of a sudden.
Finally I said, "I guess I did it because I was scared about Daddy, and maybe because you're from the States and I didn't want to go there. But all I care about now is Daddy getting better. And doing what God wants, no matter what."
"Even if you have to go where you really don't want to be?" she asked.
"Yes, I guess," I answered. "Daddy said it's worth it even to die for Jesus. I guess it's silly for me to make such a big fuss about moving." Like a shock, I remembered where we were and added, "Especially now. We might not even be alive tomorrow."
Hearing myself say that scared me, and I started kicking again. So did Lisa. She was still sitting in the tube, so she couldn't kick very well. I started praying again.
After a minute, I said, "Can we pray together and ask God to help us get back safe? I've been praying, but I'm still scared."
