Eyes on the Unseen Prize
S.J. Thomason
Copyright © 2016 S.J. Thomason
Amazon CreateSpace ISBN-13: 978-1535343336
ISBN-10: 1535343338
Title: Eyes on the Unseen Prize
First Edition
Print Publisher and Distributor: Amazon CreateSpace
Scripture quotations taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version ® NIV ®
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica Inc.
Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
* Version 1 License Notes
Thank you for purchasing this book. This book remains the copyrighted property of the author, and may not be redistributed to others by any means for commercial or non-commercial purposes without permission of the author. If you enjoyed this book, please encourage your friends to download their own copy from their favorite authorized retailer. Thank you for your support.
Names, characters and events depicted in this book are products of the author’s imagination and are only fiction. Any resemblance to actual events, locations, organizations, or persons, alive or deceased, is entirely coincidental and beyond the intent of the author or publisher.
DEDICATION
This book is dedicated to my husband, sons, and extended family.
“The path of the righteous is like the morning sun, shining ever brighter till the full light of day” Proverbs 4:18 (NIV).
“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see”
Hebrews 11:1 (NIV).
“And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith”
Hebrews 12: 1-2.
“So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary”
2 Corinthians 4:18
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I thank my Reedsy editor, whose editing, outlines, and extensive knowledge helped me to take this book to another level. I also thank my cover designer, Melody Simmons. Finally, I thank the pastors of the Fishhawk Fellowship Church who inspired me to renew my faith in Christianity.
CONTENTS
Chapter 1: So Bobnoxious
Chapter 2: The Love Warriors
Chapter 3: Walk of Shame
Chapter 4: Good Fiction
Chapter 5: Choosing a Soulmate
Chapter 6: The Companion
Chapter 7: He’s Like Flypaper on Steroids
Chapter 8: The Frog on the Rock
Chapter 9: St. Patrick’s Day
Chapter 10: A Snake in the Garden
Chapter 11: Paved with Good Intentions
Chapter 12: Time for the Truth
Chapter 13: Oren, Sir Oren
Chapter 14: Grandfathers and Cuckoos
Chapter 15: All Babies Go to Heaven
Chapter 16: Reflections at the Pond
Chapter 17: Can I Tell You Something?
Chapter 18: The Unexpected Dad
Chapter 19: Christmas
Chapter 20: It’s Never Too Late
Chapter 21: Why Me?
Chapter 22: Radiance in the White Sky
Eyes on the Unseen Prize
Chapter 1
So Bobnoxious
From the top of the mountain Piper surveyed the ski slope before her. A bitter chill stirred within her, which caused her to question her abilities in mastering the run. Black diamond expert slopes always caused some angst. Moguls? She hoped not, but something told her they were there. Black diamonds almost always had moguls. Her body shivered and her teeth chattered.
“Looks really steep, Nick. I didn’t know Ruthie’s Run was a black diamond. I was thinking we were going to start on an intermediate run instead, to warm up. Could be some moguls under that powder.”
“Warm up? Piper, you crack me up. As if you won’t shred it up like you always do.”
Piper looked at Nick and smiled. His reassurance was comforting and his handsome features breathtaking. Tall and muscular with a dazzling smile that contrasted his dark hair and sun-kissed skin, he was perfect.
“Well, maybe,” she said, “as long as we can steer clear of any moguls.”
“We’ll do that. C’mon. Follow me. How hard can it be?” Nick lunged forward with his poles to tackle the formidable run.
“How hard can it be?” Piper chuckled as she dug her poles into the ground and pushed herself forward to follow him, beginning their first of many ski runs that day. The slope was steep, but its thick powder covering helped her to maintain control, despite her accelerating speed. A rush of adrenaline pumped through her veins and reminded her of why she loved skiing so much. And watching Nick ski in perfect form ahead of her reminded her of why she loved Nick so much. It had been more than three years since they had started to date and she was as blissful as she had ever been. She followed his path down the middle of the slope, which was lined on both sides by what seemed like hundreds of snow-covered pine trees. The only sounds she could hear were the sounds of her skis cutting through the snow and the gentle whistles of the wind as it danced around the mountain.
“Loving it!” Nick hollered out.
“Definitely!”
Piper marveled at the way the sun shone against the snow on the ski slope in front of her in a parade of shimmering lights. She was in God’s country, where the shadowy spirits had no place. The spirits hid from the morning sun’s light, but they didn’t hide from her. She could see them when they came out.
A few minutes passed before Nick slowed down and Piper caught up with him. They skied next to each other in parallel and flawless form. Faster and faster they traveled along before they came upon a part of the slope covered in moguls. Piper shuddered as they both skidded to a stop. The last time she skied over moguls, she broke her arm and ruined a vacation.
“Oh, man. How are we going to get through this? I hate moguls.”
“Let’s take it slowly, Piper. We’ll crisscross the slope. Follow me.”
Piper drew in a deep breath before following Nick across the slope in an almost horizontal direction. She was careful not to let her skis get caught between the bumps, but every so often they did. Her legs felt like spaghetti as they hopped over the bumps as if she had no muscles at all. Time dragged on and on.
“Whew,” she sighed. “Glad that’s over.”
“Me too. I know how much you hate moguls. The lift is over there,” he said as he pointed to the bottom of a short slope in front of them.”
“Perfect.” Standing in line would give her sore legs a little bit of relief.
When they reached the chairlift line, Piper hugged Nick. “If not for the moguls, that run would have been perfect. Totally exhilarating,” she said, still catching her breath. Only a few people were ahead of them in the lift line, which formed at the bottom of three different ski runs. It wouldn’t be long before they were back atop the mountain ready to tackle another run.
“Let’s do a blue this time, Nick.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
Nick put his arm around her waist and pulled her close to kiss her. “Sorry if that surprised you. I just can’t resist those gorgeous cherry-reds. Love you.”
“Love you too, Nick. You’re the best.”
She relished the time she was spending alone with Nick, yet knew that they would be joined by the others at some point in the day, hopefully much later. Quite a few friends were also on the mountain for the same reason they were there, which was the wedding of Chase and Cherie.
A familiar voice lit up the slopes, yet not the voice she wanted to hear at that particular moment. “Yippee-i-yay! Living the dream, baby!”
She looked upwards an
d spotted a slender-looking man on a snowboard heading down the ski run next to Ruthie’s Run. Though teetering in and out of control, he laughed like mad as he headed towards the lift line. Piper wondered whether he was drunk.
“No way. Bob’s up,” Nick said with a laugh.
“Great.” Piper muttered. She was surprised he had risen so early, given his condition the night before when they had kicked him out of the bar. Feeling a little disappointed that her time with Nick was about to be infringed upon, she turned away from Bob and towards the chairlift. Maybe he would go his own way that day. Maybe he would bypass the lift and head to the bottom of the mountain. Maybe he didn’t see them. Maybe he would realize she and Nick wanted time alone with each other.
“Want some hooch?” Bob asked as he slid next to them in the lift line and yanked a flask from a pocket in his puffy ski jacket. His cowboy hat was tattered and his jeans were covered in snow, suggesting he had been in a yard sale on the slopes a short while before.
“Nope. Too early for me,” Nick said, “7:30 a.m., Florida time.”
Piper glared at Bob.
“None for you pretty lady?”
“C’mon Bob, you know I’m not into drinking.”
Bob swigged down some hooch and tucked the flask back into his pocket. “My first run this morning was epic. Love shredding freshies.”
“Oh yeah, we loved it too. Took Ruthie’s Run. Steep and sweet. Where’s Flypaper?” Nick asked as he scanned the slopes.
“Don’t know. He met a lovely lady in the bar last night. That’s all I can say. Vintage Flypaper.”
“Well, I’m sure we’ll see him tonight at the Rowdy Rooster.”
“Yeah,” Bob said as he pulled out a can of chewing tobacco, pinched a dip, and tucked it into his upper lip. Now he had the appearance of a Simpson cartoon character. Nice.
“Can I ride up the triple with you guys?”
“Of course,” Nick said as he nudged and winked at Piper.
Moments later the three ascended up the mountain on the triple chairlift. Piper was surprised to find Bob sitting between her and her man. So Bobnoxious.
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