Vow to Cherish by Deborah Raney

Author:Deborah Raney
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin Enterprises
Published: 2006-12-26T16:00:00+00:00

John

Chapter Eighteen

Christmas had become a time of great sadness at the Brighton house. John dreaded it for weeks beforehand and could not bring himself to decorate the house in any way. It seemed sacrilege to adorn the house for celebration when there was more cause for mourning.

When Brant and Kyle came home two days before Christmas, they went to the garage for the ladder and boxes of lights, and without consulting John, they spent the afternoon stringing lights on the house and hanging their stockings on the mantel. They put the tree in its stand in the front hall, but decided to wait until Mark and Jana came to hang the ornaments.

John tried to allow their loving efforts to lift his own spirits, but he felt powerless to escape the depression that engulfed him. The battle to reconcile his present circumstances with God’s goodness had exhausted him. He knew, in a place deep within himself, that God was in this trial somewhere. Or at least God was with him through it.

When he and Ellen had buried baby Catherine, they had known the assurance of blessing even in the sorrow. That blessing had come in the formation of a greater bond of love between husband and wife, and in the fulfilled hope of more children. But Ellen’s disease offered neither the bond nor the hope. He toiled to find even a hint of God’s hand in all this, but he came up empty. Yet somewhere, somehow, that deep river of faith continued to flow in him, keeping him from utter despair.

Jana and Mark arrived on Christmas Eve afternoon. A few hours later, they were putting the final touches on the Christmas tree when Howard and MaryEllen pulled into the driveway. With MaryEllen’s arrival, the kitchen became a haven of homey sounds and spicy aromas.

Jana had grown close to her grandmother since Ellen’s illness, and John knew both women relished this time together. Jana still needed her mother, and sensing this, MaryEllen had become the confidante Ellen could no longer be. They baked cookies and breads, talking as fast as they stirred.

Ellen sat at the kitchen table and watched, but she showed no interest in joining them. Still, it seemed a comfort to her mother and her daughter to have her nearby. From his desk in the den down the hall, John could hear her speak quietly now and then, as if to herself. And though he knew Jana and MaryEllen could make no sense of her words, they responded whenever she spoke and tenderly included her in their conversation.

Around nine o’clock that evening, John went out to the kitchen and led Ellen in to get ready for bed. She fell asleep almost instantly, but he lay awake and listened as grandmother and granddaughter talked late into the night.

The next morning he awoke to plump loaves of bread cooling on the kitchen counter, and the aroma of roasting turkey. MaryEllen was already bustling about the kitchen.

Later, they laid a feast on the oak table in the dining room.

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