“Saying good-bye is much harder than you think, and I have said good-bye to a lot of people.” Cody was gazing out at the lake. “What if Jennifer likes Mexico so much that she doesn’t come home? I went to Kansas and I missed everyone, so I decided to come back. But Jennifer told me she loves Jesus more than anyone or anything, and she is planning to tell people about Him no matter what. I think I’m the what that is no matter.”
“Aw, now, that’s not true,” Charlie said, hoping to cheer Cody up. “Jennifer likes you a lot. I’ve heard her say that myself. Besides, she won’t live in the jungle all the time. Missionaries return to the States to be with their families every few years or so. She’ll take a break from the jungle, and you can see her then.”
“Here’s a metaphor for that idea. It stinks.” Cody gripped the rail that held up the golf cart’s roof. “That’s not really a metaphor, but it’s how I feel about only seeing Jennifer now and then. What if she dies in the jungle, Mr. Moore? I nearly died when I lived in the forest. I nearly died two or three times or even more. If Jennifer dies, I won’t be able to think about anything but going to heaven to be with her.”
“Now, hold on just a minute. You wouldn’t want to do that, Cody.”
“Yes, I would. Heaven is a much better place than earth. I can hardly wait to go there.”
“You don’t mean … kill yourself, do you, Cody? Surely you wouldn’t feel that bad.”
“No. I would never want to suicide myself, because think how sad everyone would be if I died that way. Everyone loves me a lot. A whole lot. People say I’m handsome and funny and artistic and also autistic. They’d really cry a lot if I died. But let me tell you for sure that I’m looking forward to heaven. It’s my favorite place, and I wish I was there right now.”
As the golf cart meandered up the hill toward the road to Tranquility, Charlie considered the young man’s words. He had never given heaven a lot of thought. Life had always been so full of work, children, hobbies, books, television, and all the things that had occupied his mind and hands through the years.
When he did ponder the afterlife, Charlie quickly snuffed out the image. He had given his life to Christ as a child, and he knew he was destined to spend eternity with God. Though he didn’t have to fear the fiery lakes and endless torment of hell, he hadn’t ever been too crazy about the idea of heaven either. The Bible called it a place without pain or suffering. No one cried there. People worshipped God all the time. But truth to tell, it sounded fairly boring to Charlie—especially in light of the almost incomprehensible idea of eternity.
“Heaven will be a happy place, I know,” Charlie told Cody, “but you don’t want to be in any hurry about getting there. Even if Jennifer or someone else you love dies, you wouldn’t want to be in heaven rather than here on earth, where the autumn leaves fall, and the snowflakes drift down, and summer brings fresh vegetables. Earth is a beautiful place.”
“Maybe so. But heaven is better.”
“Now why would you say that?”
“‘For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain,’” Cody quoted, “‘For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better.’ That’s from Philippians 1. My daddy used to talk about heaven a lot because he thought it was going to be wonderful to live there. Me too. You know Hebrews 11, don’t you? That’s the chapter in the Bible where all the people of faith are listed. In verses 13 and 14, it says, ‘These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country.’ We’re strangers here on earth, Mr. Moore, because our real home is afar off in heaven. Heaven is a country, and God has built a big city for us there.”
Charlie drove in silence. He had probably heard those verses before, but they hadn’t meant much to him. No doubt while some minister was reading them, Charlie and Esther had been trying to control their restless children with glares or occupy them with cereal and crayons.
“‘They desire a better country,’” Cody said, “‘that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city.’ See, Mr. Moore, heaven is better than earth because God will be walking around with us there. ‘God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.’ That’s Second Corinthians 6 :16 . If God is in heaven and so are my daddy and my mother, then that’s where I want to be.”
“Well, that does sound nice,” Charlie admitted. “It’s just that I do love this good ol’ earth.”
“Just you wait and see, Mr. Moore. God is the King of heaven, and He has a new heaven and a new earth all ready for us. On this old earth, we see through a glass darkly. My daddy and I had a glass darkly in our old trailer. It was in my bedroom. I used to try to look out of it, but I couldn’t see anything except blobs of color. If I opened the window, I realized that the blobs were trees and rocks and a river and the big house of the grouchy man who didn’t know we lived in a trailer on his property.”
“Where was that?” Charlie asked.
“I don’t know, but one time my daddy was outside the trailer and he knocked on the glass darkly to get my attention. I got really scared. I couldn’t see him too well, so I thought it was the grouchy man from the big house. But then I stood on my bed and opened the glass darkly, and there he was. My daddy. I saw him face-to-face, just like God.”
Charlie pulled the golf cart to a stop in front of Patsy Pringle’s beauty salon. It bothered him that Cody understood a lot more about the Bible than he did—and he’d been reading it practically his whole life. When Cody had come to Deepwater Cove, he couldn’t even read. He and his father had memorized reams of Scripture, though, and Cody could rattle off verses at the drop of a hat. Even more impressive, he understood what the words meant.
“Here we are,” Cody announced. “Time to wash windows in the salon. Nobody likes to look through a glass darkly, Mr. Moore. That’s why heaven will be so much better. Okay?”
“Okay, Cody.” Charlie nodded as the young man loped toward the salon’s front door. What an odd kid. It seemed as though God had forgotten to put a filter between Cody’s brain and his mouth. One thing for sure, no one could ever accuse him of lying. He said exactly what he was thinking, no more and no less.
Pondering heaven and Cody’s surprising eagerness to go there, Charlie drove over to the Pop-In. He couldn’t imagine being in heaven without Esther. Or living on earth without her either. No matter how often they got on each other’s nerves, no matter that she had distressed her husband by keeping a sketch drawn by another man, no matter that she seemed to be getting foggier by the week. In fact, no matter what, Charlie loved his wife.
He loved her with a passion that went beyond all reason. That passion went down deep into the very center of who he was as a human being. If anything happened to her, he knew he would feel bereft—as though part of himself had died too.
“Hey there, Charlie Moore! I didn’t expect to see you here for lunch. Come on in!”
Bitty Sondheim’s cheery voice dispelled Charlie’s gloom the moment he stepped into her little restaurant. Although he and the other men from the Wednesday morning Bible study had planned to build Bitty some tables, Charlie had gotten caught up in the construction of the Haneses’ room addition. Nevertheless, he noted that she had set up a little wrought iron bistro on the sidewalk, and someone had put several tables and chairs inside near the large front window.
The place was bustling with lunchtime customers, and Charlie realized he would have to wait in line. Not an easy task. The aroma inside the place always made his mouth water. Cheese, onions, garlic, fresh tomatoes, basil, thyme, and all sorts of other herbs, vegetables, and meats melded into a fragrant blend that filled the room and caused his stomach to growl.
“I’ve got my fajita wrap on special today,
Charlie,” Bitty called out as she handed a heavy sack to a customer. “If that’s not enough for you, well, I have the meat-loaf-and-dinner-roll special going too. You look like you’ve been working hard. You’ve got sawdust on your cap.”
Charlie removed the offending cap and shook it over the large waste bin in one corner. As he tucked it under his arm, he spotted Jennifer Hansen headed toward the door with her hands full. He tipped his head in greeting. “So you’re off to Mexico. Cody tells me that you and some of the other missionaries will be building a church down there.”
The lovely young blonde awarded him a broad smile. “I cannot wait, Mr. Moore! This will be my second trip outside the country. We’re going to a remote part of Mexico near Oaxaca, and I’ll get to practice my Spanish while we work.”
“Sounds like fun.”
“It’ll be great!” She was fairly bouncing up and down on tiptoes as she spoke. “Most of our team will be doing construction, but I get to work with children. I’ve planned all the Bible story lessons I’ll be teaching. My mom is helping me sew puppets today, so I thought I’d run over here and get us a quick lunch. The team leaves tomorrow morning.”
“I guess you know we’re all going to miss you, young lady. Especially a certain curly-haired fellow who thinks you hung the moon.”
Her cheeks flushed a pretty pink. “I’ll be back, Mr. Moore. Cody is taking this way too seriously. He’s acting like he’ll never see me again.”
“We never know when the Lord may call us home, and I’m sure you’re aware of Cody’s feelings for you.”
Jennifer’s expression grew serious. “Mr. Moore … can I …?”
Before he could respond, she leaned against him, cupped her hand at his ear, and began to whisper. “Mr. Moore, please pray for me. I know what God wants me to do with my life … but … but I’m really confused about a few things … about Cody.”
Charlie held his breath as she gripped his arm.
“Will you pray for me?” Her eyes filling with sudden tears, she backed away from him.
Charlie nodded. “Sure I will. You have my word on it.”
Dazed, he watched her hurry out the door. He hadn’t quite processed Jennifer’s request when Bitty called him to the counter. He ordered the fajita wrap, and it wasn’t but a moment before he was holding a lunch sack in his hand.
“Where’s Esther?” Bitty asked. “I hope she’s feeling all right.”
“She’s at home,” Charlie mumbled. “I was working. The Haneses’ addition. You know.”
“Oh, sure. I drove by there the other day. It’s looking so much better. I was beginning to wonder if Brad had given up on it. He was just in here for lunch, as usual, and he looked positively cheerful. I’m sure that’s your doing, Charlie.”
She smiled, and for the first time, Charlie noticed the freckles scattered across her cheeks.
“Do you suppose Esther would mind if you and I sat outside together?” she asked. “Looks like the lunch crowd is thinning out, and I could use a break. Pedro can take over for a few minutes.”
“That’ll be fine. Please join me.”
“Hey, Pedro,” Bitty called over her shoulder. “Cover the front for me, would you?”
Charlie noted Bitty’s new employee moving from the kitchen area toward the counter. Pedro Baca didn’t speak English too well yet, but he and his family were settling comfortably into the lake community.
“It’s a perfect autumn day, isn’t it?” Charlie tugged his cap onto his head again as he and Bitty left the Pop-In and sat in the bistro chairs outside. He excused himself, bowed his head, and offered up a silent prayer of gratitude for the meal. Then he spoke aloud again. “Blue sky, the last few leaves on the trees, and a breeze blowing in from the lake. My kind of weather.”
Bitty chuckled as she stirred a cup of steaming coffee. “This will be my first winter ever. Southern California doesn’t have much to offer when it comes to seasonal changes. I’m enjoying the lake, and even the cooler weather is nice. Winter will be a big adventure, though. I guess you’re used to it. Esther told me you’ve lived in Missouri all your life.”
Charlie studied the woman across from him as he chewed his first bite of lunch. He had never given Bitty Sondheim much heed except to marvel at the crazy outfits she wore. Today, her straw-colored hair was pulled back into its usual braid. As they left the warmth of the restaurant, she had tugged on a bright turquoise sweater with big black buttons. Underneath, she wore some sort of loose, wrinkled red dress that Esther wouldn’t be caught dead in. Charlie thought he had noted black-and-white checkered socks and a pair of leather sandals on her feet, but they were tucked under the table now.
Despite her clownish getup, Bitty was pretty. It had taken Charlie a while to see it. Now that he did, he was almost astonished. Not only did the woman have the cutest sprinkling of freckles he’d ever seen, but her green eyes twinkled with happiness and her full lips parted over perfect white teeth.
“Bitty, have you ever been married?” Charlie asked.
Realizing immediately that he’d been as blunt as Cody, he cleared his throat. “I’m sorry. That’s your personal business. It’s just that the topic has been on my mind lately. Not you. Marriage. Marriage in general is what I mean.”
He was digging a deeper hole the more he talked, so he decided the best option was to take another bite of his wrap. “Very tasty,” he mouthed as he chewed.
Bitty tipped back her head and laughed. She had a big, hearty chuckle that couldn’t help but lift a person’s spirits. Pulling up the hem of her long skirt, she stretched out her legs and set her feet on the chair across from Charlie. Then she tucked a loose sprig of blonde hair behind one ear.
“Not legally,” she said. “Married.”
“Oh.” Charlie took another quick bite.
“Back in California, I lived with one guy for about four years. He turned out to have a mental illness, but he wouldn’t take his medicine. So that didn’t work out too great. Then another guy and I were together for … let’s see … oh, I guess ten years off and on. That one didn’t work out either. After that, I decided I wasn’t any good at being with men. About that time, an old friend of mine announced he wanted to marry me, but I told him no and ran away. So now I’m here—happy as a lark and determined never to set one toe into a relationship again.”
At this, she lifted her foot and waggled it around, checkered stocking and all. Charlie joined in her laughter in spite of himself. Bitty was a little crazy, but then who wasn’t these days? Esther sure had her moments. Cody did too. And what on earth was going on in Jennifer Hansen’s pretty head? It felt to Charlie like he was riding on a Tilt-A-Whirl.
Seated on the porch, Esther was studying a case of Ashley Hanes’s homemade beads when Charlie pulled up to the house in his golf cart. Boofer bounded across the yard to greet him, but Esther couldn’t muster the energy to stand. She was so tired, and it felt as if she’d been looking at beads for hours. The way Ashley had organized them made no sense at all. No matter how hard Esther tried, she couldn’t figure out how to straighten the mess.
“Insulation’s done,” Charlie announced as he strode up the steps and onto the porch. “Brad and I will start hanging drywall next week.”
He paused and cocked his head. “Esther? Are you feeling okay?”
She shook her head. “I’ve been dizzy all day.”
“Dizzy?” He sat down beside her and turned the bead box in his direction. “That’s odd. I’m feeling a little off-kilter myself.”
“Maybe it was something we ate.”
“I think I’ve got too much on my mind. What have you done to the beads, honey? You’ve mixed them all up.”
“Really? Did I do that?” She took a sip of lemonade and studied the bead box with her husband. The ice in her glass had melted long ago, but the drink was still cool.
“No, I think the problem is Ashley’s directions,” Esther told as she pointed to the array of objects on the table. “This afternoon, she br
ought over all these bags of beads and asked me to sort them, but I can’t follow this nonsense she wrote. Can you make heads or tails of it?”
Charlie took the note card with its scribbled instructions. “Honey, this is the grocery shopping list I took to the store last Monday. Look here—eggs, milk, bacon, oatmeal. This is your handwriting, Esther.”
She focused on the words, and all at once they made sense. “Oh, for pete’s sake. If that isn’t the silliest thing. I must have picked up the grocery list when I went inside for lemonade.”
Charlie bent down and tugged at a piece of paper wedged against the leg of the wicker table. “Here’s what Ashley wrote. Same as always. ‘Please organize beads by colors and shapes.’ She’s drawn a little diagram for you.”
“Let me see that.” Esther scanned the instructions. “All right, but look at the container. Why are there red beads in with the blues? And see this gold one in here? Why would Ashley set up the box this way if she expected me to follow what she wrote on that note? That girl can be so loosey-goosey. I have to say, Charlie, sometimes I wonder if she’s taking drugs. You know what a bad influence Brad is with all his drinking.”
Charlie silently rearranged the beads. Then he opened one of the plastic zip bags and began filling the compartments.
Esther didn’t like the look on his face, so she decided it was time to make her big announcement.
“By the way, I’ve decided to get my artery cleaned out.” She tried to make her voice light, but for some reason the words came out in a gush of tears. “I love you so much, Charlie, and I know I’ve been a terrible pain in the neck about this whole thing. Letting that doctor put all those balloons and tubes and mesh pipes in my artery scares me to death, but I’m going to do it anyway because I want you to be happy again. You’ve been such an irritating old goat these past couple of months, and I know it’s mostly my fault.”
“Now, Esther.” He reached out a hand to her.
“No, let me finish.” She took the grocery list and began dabbing her cheeks with it. “Cody said I’ve been mean to you lately. People think I’ve changed since my accident. While I was getting my set-and-style last week, Patsy told me she felt I ought to have the balloon thing done. She said she was worried because at the last TLC meeting I didn’t remember Halloween, and I don’t. Then Brenda paid me a visit this morning, and she said that she and Kim had been talking about me. Imagine that! Gossiping about a person behind her back.”
Falling for You Again Page 18
