A Cousin's Challenge by Wanda E. Brunstetter

Author:Wanda E. Brunstetter [Brunstetter, Wanda E.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Romance
ISBN: 9781602600621
Goodreads: 6605747
Publisher: Barbour Publishing
Published: 2010-03-01T00:00:00+00:00

For the last several days Ella had kept so busy doing chores and trying to help Mama cope that she hadn’t had time to continue looking for a job. She’d gone to the bank the other day and now knew that it wouldn’t be long until they were out of money. They might have to start selling off things like she’d seen some other people do because of a job loss.

Ella removed the tea kettle from the stove and took a seat between Mama and Charlene at the table. As much as she dreaded it, they needed to discuss a few things.

“I need to tell you something, Mama,” Ella said as she handed her mother a cup of tea.

Mama looked at Ella with a pained expression. “Not more bad news, I hope.”

Ella swallowed around the lump in her throat. She wished she didn’t have to tell Mama the truth about their financial situation. “I’m afraid it is bad news. After looking through Papa’s books the other day, I discovered that several wind chime orders had been canceled. Since then, I’ve been to the bank and discovered that we have very little money left in our account.” Ella blinked hard to keep her tears from flowing. “Between that and the fact that Charlene and I can’t run the shop by ourselves, I’ve come to the conclusion that after we send out the few orders we have, we’ll need to close the shop.”

Mama sat staring at her cup. Ella wondered if she’d even heard.

Charlene’s face turned crimson, and she slammed her hand on the table so hard that it jiggled their cups. “It’s not fair that we lost Papa so unexpectedly! Do we have to lose his business, too?”

“Lots of things in life aren’t fair, but...” Mama paused and blew her nose on her napkin. “Mer muss ausbeharre bis ans end.”

“Why must we bear it until the end, Mama?” Charlene’s eyes flashed angrily, no longer the calm young woman she’d been the other evening. “Why doesn’t God bring only good things to the people who follow Him?”

Lines of strain etched Mama’s face as she reached over and touched Charlene’s arm. “God didn’t promise that His people would never suffer. Tribulations are part of living in this sinful world.”

Ella marveled at her mother’s wise remark. Despite the grief Mama had been dealing with, she was ministering to her hurting daughter. Mama truly was a remarkable woman, and that made Ella even more determined to take care of her and the rest of the family. Until she found a job, Ella would find it difficult to be hopeful, but she knew for her family’s sake that she must remain positive.

She pushed away from the table. “I think I ought to get the dishes done. We can talk about our financial situation some other time.”

“I believe you’re right. If we all think about this for a while, maybe one of us will come up with a plan.” Mama stood. “It’s a chilly evening. I think I’ll take my tea and go to the living room so I can sit by the fire.

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