Roller Coaster 10

Continued from 6/19 post…

Wendy opened the bathroom door and brushed past her mother. She found a granola bar in the kitchen and stuffed it in her purse. She even found an old Gideon New Testament she had been given in elementary school. She gave her mom a light kiss on the cheek and headed outside.

The air was hot and muggy, even this early in the morning. She decided to walk. She hadn’t been in a church building since Christmas. She was starting to second-guess her brilliant plan to win God’s favor so He would grant her wish. Yet, her sandaled feel kept moving forward down the sidewalk, and the steeple seemed to grow taller and taller. It sure was pretty in the morning light.

Suddenly she turned. She could have sworn she heard someone calling her name. It was coming from the parking lot of the church. Someone was waving at her. “Wendy!” he called again, as he began to run toward her.

She finally recognized her greeter. It was Jason from the hospital, looking quite handsome in a peach polo shirt and khaki cargo pants. “What are you doing here?” they both asked at the same time.

Wendy laughed, hoping he would answer first, since she didn’t have a good response. “I’ve been coming here just about every Sunday morning for the last 19 years,” he said jovially. “It’s nice to see a new face once in awhile.” He seemed to sense she wasn’t going to come out and explain her presence, so he led the way to the front entrance of the church.

Jason opened the door for her, and she found herself blushing at his kindness. “I am such a mess!” she thought.

“Would you like to sit with me and my family?” he asked. “We kinda have our own pew,” he explained, a little sheepishly.

“Thank you,” she breathed, relieved not to have to choose a spot. He led her down the center aisle and stopped at the third row from the front. Already seated were a well-dressed couple in their 50s, a white-haired lady, and three teenagers- two girls and a boy. “This is your family?” she whispered in disbelief.

“For better or worse,” he said lightly, delivering a hip check to the red-headed young lady seated closest to the aisle. Her look of annoyance changed to one of surprise and then curiosity. “Jason, who’s your friend?” she asked teasingly.

Continued on Fiction Fridays