Katie's Journey to Love

by Jerry S. Eicher

  “Dream on, sister,” Nancy said, and they all laughed.

  “Philly airport coming up!” Nelly called out soon afterward, beginning to follow the airport exit signs. “Any last thing anyone needs before we get to the airport?”

  “I had lunch,” Nancy said. “How about everybody else?”

  “I did too,” Margaret spoke up. Sharon and Katie nodded they had too.

  Nelly took the last exit for the airport. Minutes later they were at the front entrance of US Airways and pulling their suitcases out of the van. The buzz and racket filled Katie’s ears. Katie shivered, looking around her.

  Where was Ben going to meet them? Inside somewhere, he’d said. Well, hopefully he knew his way around here, because she hadn’t the slightest idea where she was going. If he didn’t show up soon, she would have no way of finding him. This place was huge!

  “Goodbye, Mom!” Margaret was giving her mom a last hug and wiping away a quick tear.

  “Now, are you sure you know how to get where you’re going inside?” Nelly asked.

  “Sure. Once we check in at the ticket counter and check our baggage, we just go to the gate they tell us to and wait until boarding,” Nancy said. “Remember, I’ve done this before.”

  “Okay, then,” Nelly said, still a bit dubious. “The Lord bless all of you.” She then gave each girl a hug, ending with Katie.

  The noise of the jets roaring overhead seemed to get worse by the minute. Looking toward an extra loud sound, Katie saw a huge plane pass over the terminal building and climb into the sky.

  “We’ll be on something like that soon,” Sharon spoke into Katie’s ear. “I can hardly wait!”

  Watching the plane rise into the air, Katie gathered her courage. If something like that could stay in the air once, then it could again even with her on it. She would just have to pray really hard for Da Hah to quiet her pounding heart. He’d been blessing this trip so far, and He would surely continue to do so.

  “Let’s go!” Nancy hollered, leading the way inside.

  Katie hung on to her baggage, using the wheels like Mamm had demonstrated on the living room floor. It worked better than she’d imagined. It was certainly easier than carrying the heavy suitcase. Katie wondered how Mamm knew about pulling suitcases on wheels. Mamm couldn’t have traveled much, at least not after she was born. Well, Mamm was simply full of surprises—that much was for sure.

  “Katie!” a man’s voice called out.

  Katie looked up and smiled. “Ben, you did come!” She stopped in her tracks.

  “I told you I would.”

  “Well, if it isn’t Mr. Charming himself,” Margaret said with a grin.

  “It’s so good that you could come,” Sharon said. “Katie told us you might be here.”

  “I wouldn’t have missed it for the world,” Ben said. “Seeing Katie off on her great adventure. I might have to do this myself someday. Katie, I’m afraid I can’t stay to see you board and fly through the air,” Ben said. “I have to get back to the job site. But I wanted to say goodbye one more time.”

  Katie’s face fell. “You have to leave already?” Then she smiled. “Of course I don’t want to keep you.” She wanted to hug and kiss him right then and there, but that wouldn’t have been decent. Kissing him when they were alone was questionable enough. And they clearly weren’t going to be alone in this crowded airport.

  “Maybe I can walk you to the security checkpoint,” Ben said.

  “That would be nice,” Katie said. She followed the lead of the other three girls as they stood in line and then approached the ticket counter where they were given their boarding passes and their bags were checked. When the agent asked to see Katie’s passport she winced as she handed it over. The flight agent stared at her photo, and Katie was relieved when the lady handed it back to her.

  Ben was still waiting when they finished, and they all followed Nancy as she led the way deeper into the airport terminal. Ben took Katie’s hand, and they lagged behind the others. Katie felt sure everyone was staring at them holding hands in public. It was so embarrassing, but no one seemed to be paying attention.

  Moments later Katie knew her face must be flaming red when Margaret turned around with a mischievous smile. “If the two of you want to sneak around the corner for a quick kiss, we’ll understand.”

  Katie gasped, but Sharon and Nancy laughed as if it were the most normal thing in the world. Ben pulled back on her hand. He was taking Margaret seriously. Was he really going to kiss her right in front of all these people passing by?

  At the next corner, with Margaret laughing over her shoulder, Ben held Katie back. He pulled her closer to him. “I won’t see you for awhile, you know. I have to kiss you one more time.”

  Katie gave in, even with all the people walking past.

  “Have a good trip now,” Ben said, letting her go.

  Katie reached up and gave him one last, quick kiss before turning around and running after the other girls, her carry-on banging against her side.

  “Look who just got kissed!” Margaret teased when Katie caught up.

  Katie looked away as her friends laughed good-naturedly. The kiss was well worth the teasing, Katie decided. Kissing Ben was fast becoming something she couldn’t resist.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Hours later Katie awoke with a start, gasping as she opened her eyes. In the window seat beside her on the plane, Margaret smiled at Katie’s startled look. She reached over to squeeze Katie’s arm. “I’m glad you finally got some sleep. I declare, I haven’t slept more than an hour yet.”

  “Are we still over the ocean?” Katie glanced around, trying to slow the pounding of her heart. Sharon and Nancy were in seats across the aisle, both of them with their eyes closed and heads leaning against the seat backs.

  “I don’t know.” Margaret lifted the window shade a few inches and peered out into the darkness. “I can’t tell.”

  “What time is it?”

  Margaret glanced at her watch. “Around midnight—our time at home, anyway.”

  Katie calculated the time difference in her head. “If we’re to land at eight in Zurich, that will be in two hours. I do feel wide-awake. That’s strange.”

  Margaret leaned back in her seat with a smile. “I only know I can’t see straight or sleep with the bouncing of this plane.”

  Katie fell silent, feeling the vibrations of the great plane more intensely now. She trembled to think they were miles above the ocean, flying like the birds, only they were inside the belly of this metal thing, whereas birds got to fly with their heads in the open air. Perhaps it was better this way. Seeing down that far to the waters below wouldn’t be gut. She might throw up or die of fright. Da Hah must not have made mankind to fly or He would have given them wings. And yet she was doing it.

  Beside her Margaret had closed her eyes, seeming to drift off—at least for a few moments. The truth was Katie needed the sleep herself. They had a full day scheduled ahead of them once they arrived at Zurich. When the plane landed, they would leap forward in time six hours. How could six hours of the day just vanish? Katie wondered. And yet she was about to see it happen right before her eyes. The plane had lifted off around six o’clock in the evening back in Philadelphia, and they would be in the air only eight hours. That left six hours lost somewhere. It was a very strange feeling indeed.

  Katie’s mind flashed back to the takeoff in Philadelphia. She’d clutched the sides of her seat, hardly daring to breathe. She had survived as they took off with a mighty roar of the engines and an awful rush along the ground. She’d watched out of Margaret’s little window, even though Margaret had advised against it. The truth was Margaret had been a little disturbed herself since this was her first flight too.

  With a last bump from below, the plane left the ground and rose ever higher, until the automobiles and houses on the ground had grown smaller than Joel’s little play animals—the ones he stored in the basement now that he was too old to play with them. Katie
stared out of the window for a long time, watching the objects on the ground. It must be something to be Da Hah, she figured, and look down on all these things He had made. From up here it would be easy to reach down and push things around. Only Da Hah didn’t push things around. He worked gut things in the lives of the people He loved.

  A flight attendant in her fancy uniform came down the aisle. “May I get you something, dear? A pillow maybe?” she asked.

  “Yah.” Katie nodded. “That would be gut.”

  “I’ll be right back,” the woman said.

  Moments later she returned, and Katie tucked the pillow under her head. It did feel better, she had to admit. Drowsiness swept over her, and she must have drifted off to sleep. When she awoke, Margaret was tugging on her arm and pointing out the window. “Wake up, Katie! You have to see this.”

  Rubbing her eyes, Katie sat up to see daylight streaming in through Margaret’s little window. Beyond the glass lay a long ridge of snowy mountains, ragged and beautiful in the distance.

  “Those have to be the Swiss Alps!” Margaret gushed. “Or the French ones perhaps. Aren’t they just awesome?”

  “So we must be in Switzerland?” Katie asked, leaning over for a closer look.

  “I don’t know. But we’re over land at least.” Margaret leaned away from the window so Katie could see better. “Those houses down there. Have you ever seen anything like them?”

  “It must be the land of our forefathers,” Katie said, sitting back in her seat. Excitement was welling up inside her. She must always remember this first sighting!

  Over the loudspeaker came a man’s voice speaking in English. “Ladies and gentleman, we are now approaching the Zurich airport. We’ll be landing in approximately thirty minutes. Please observe the seat belt sign and stay in your seats until we arrive at the terminal, as we may encounter a bit of turbulence on the way down. Your flight attendants will be coming around for a last-minute check, and your cooperation will be much appreciated. Thank you for flying US Airways out of Philadelphia to Zurich, Switzerland. We hope to have the pleasure of serving you again.”

  “It’s actually happening!” Katie whispered to Margaret as the man’s voice went on to repeat the instructions in German. Then Katie stopped to listen, and her mouth fell open. She could understand most of what was being said! Of course, she’d just heard the words in English, so perhaps that helped. Still, this was also an amazing thing. She really was coming back to the land of her forefathers.

  “Hang on!” Margaret said as the plane bounced through some turbulence.

  A flight attendant passed them, glancing at each seat before moving on. They were serious about this seat belt thing, Katie thought. But little gut a seat belt would do if this big thing crashed into the side of one of those mountains. Katie shivered just thinking about it. She pictured a big ball of flame hitting the snow-covered slope as the pilot failed to clear the summit.

  Margaret must have been thinking some of the same thoughts because her face was a little pale. When Katie glanced at her a second time, Margaret managed a crooked smile. “We’ll be on the ground before long—I hope.”

  It couldn’t come too soon! Katie thought. Margaret closed her little window shade, and they hung on as the plane bumped ever lower in altitude.

  Nearly half an hour later, the plane lurched forward and the engines roared in Katie’s ear.

  “On the ground!” Nancy said across the aisle.

  Katie hung on as the plane taxied toward the terminal. She’d made it! By the grace of Da Hah, she was in Switzerland. Chills were running up and down her spine. The flying hours were behind her, and soon her feet would be on the ground again.

  With a loud ping from an overhead bell, the seat belt lights went out as the plane came to a stop. Everyone undid their seat belts, gathered their belongings, and stood up, but Katie took a second to catch her breath after all of the excitement of landing and arriving.

  “I know how you feel,” Margaret said. “But we made it. We’re here now, and the fun begins!”

  “That’s right.” Katie jumped up, her head almost hitting the overhead compartment.

  “Take it easy there,” Margaret said with a laugh. “We have a long day ahead of us.”

  Katie blushed a bit and reached up for her carry-on bag. Finding it, she stepped back so Margaret could do the same.

  They stood there and waited until the line in their aisle moved forward. Katie stayed close behind Nancy. If she became lost in this country, there would be no easy way to find the others. She mustn’t allow that to happen.

  The girls soon were inside the terminal. “We’re heading for baggage claim,” Nancy said over her shoulder. “Then we’ll go through customs.”

  Nancy led the way to a circling carousel. They waited until all four of them had collected their suitcases off the conveyor belt. From there it was off to stand in a long line at customs.

  “Let’s go forward in a group,” Nancy suggested when their time came. “It’ll look better, and we won’t have to answer all the questions four times.”

  That was fine with her, Katie thought, hanging back as the others moved forward. The lady behind the glass booth looked through the four passports Nancy handed her and then began asking questions.

  “What is your business in this country?”

  “Are you traveling together?”

  “How long are you planning to stay?”

  “Will you be seeing other parts of Europe?”

  “Are you flying home from this airport?”

  Finally satisfied, the woman said, “Have an enjoyable stay in Switzerland!”

  The girls were on their way, rolling their suitcases behind them.

  “Rental car next,” Nancy called over her shoulder. Moments later they arrived at another desk. Nancy gave her name, and while the girl at the desk punched in numbers, Katie walked over to the large windows to look outside. She wanted a first peek at the land of her forefathers, but it looked like just a city here. A section of the runway was visible, and long lines of planes were taking off. In the distance lay more of the city. “Well,” Katie thought, “we’ll see the countryside soon enough.”

  “Ready to go!” Nancy said about fifteen minutes later. Katie turned and joined the others as they left through some glass doors.

  “Number 304,” Nancy sang out. “Help me look.”

  Katie took in the long lines of parked cars with numbers on overhead signs. Her head grew dizzy, but the others seemed to have no such problem. She followed them until Nancy stopped in front of a small sedan. “Looks like this is our buggy for the trip.”

  Katie laughed with the other girls. This wasn’t a buggy by any means. Nancy must be trying to keep their spirits up.

  “No use standing around then,” Margaret said, throwing her suitcase in the trunk Nancy had just opened. Margaret climbed into the backseat and threw her head back. “I think I could sleep for a year. Yet it’s bright daylight, and my watch says three o’clock.”

  “Jet lag,” Nancy said. “We’ll get over it in a night or two. But for now, is anybody hungry?”

  “I don’t think my stomach’s in Switzerland yet,” Margaret grumbled. “It stayed behind a couple hours.”

  “Funny, funny,” Sharon said. “Well, I’m hungry. And anything would be fine.”

  “Then off to the market we go. But first let me hook up my GPS.” Nancy attached a black screen to the dash of the car, plugged it in, and tapped it. “Nothing,” Nancy muttered. “I guess we have to drive outside for a signal.”

  “Do you know your way around if that thing doesn’t work?” Katie asked.

  “Don’t even mention that!” Margaret said. “I don’t want to wander all over Europe holding a map in front of my eyes.”

  “It’ll work,” Nancy said confidently. “My brother checked it all out before I left. And if not, I can find my way around. It just won’t be as easy.”

  Nancy pulled aside after they were away from the overhead roof,
and true to her word, the screen blinked to life. Nancy punched away on the screen. Soon an authoritative man’s voice told them, “Turn right at the next intersection.”

  “It talks!” Margaret shrieked. “We have a man in the car with us.”

  “How indecent,” Sharon said, laughing.

  “I like a man’s voice along,” Margaret declared. “It feels more secure.”

  “Let’s hope he tells us the truth about the roads,” Nancy said, as she took off and made the turn. “Help me watch for stop signs, girls. They’re at different places than they are at home.”

  “Like where?” Sharon asked.

  “Like there!” Margaret shrieked. “Stop!”

  Nancy skidded to a halt. “I told you to help me watch.”

  Sharon looked pale, but Margaret had dissolved into giggles.

  “She’s not going to be of much help, I can see,” Nancy said with a smile before she took off again. “I know we don’t want to run one of these things. They take pictures of violators, and then we’ll have a big bill from the city of Zurich coming our way when we return the car.”

  “How would they know who we are?” Sharon asked. “It’s not our car.”

  “The rental company,” Nancy said, coming to another stop. She pointed. “And there’s a market on the right.”

  The man’s voice from the GPS intoned, “You have arrived at your destination.”

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Less than an hour later Katie sat on a low stone wall, watching the clear water of a river below her rush past. Centuries-old buildings surrounded her here in the town of Zurich. She could almost feel the presence of those faithful men and women of old who had traversed these streets. Margaret was unwrapping the sandwiches they’d purchased at the small market where English was spoken only upon request. Katie had taken a deep breath and tried her High German on the young man running the register. “Es ist ein netter Tag drausen,” she’d ventured.

  He’d smiled but replied in English, “You have a good day, girls. And don’t get lost.”