Until Forever (Women of Prayer) (8 page)

Chapter 8

Jessi crossed the Missouri border into Oklahoma just before lunch the next day. She and Olivia took their time heading out on the road. They started their day with breakfast at the hotel, and then they went for another swim before getting ready to continue on their trip. If Jessi knew her daughter as well as she thought she did, Olivia would be sleeping right after lunch, especially with all the swim time this morning.

Upon seeing the first Sonic, Jessi exited the highway and stopped for a late lunch. This too was their special treat. There were very few Sonics in Wisconsin. Therefore, there were no cherry limeades. This could be a mortal sin on the part of Wisconsin, according to Olivia. Sure enough, after eating the last bite of her cheeseburger, Olivia couldn’t help but yawn. This triggered a yawn in Jessi. “Hey, quit that, young lady. I can’t go to sleep like
some
people I know. I have to drive the rest of the way to Aunt Merry’s house.”

Olivia giggled at the prospect of her mommy curled up in the backseat of the car, sleeping. “Oh, Mommy, you’re being silly. Only little girls can sleep in backseats. Mommies have to sleep in beds. Their legs won’t fit in backseats. You’d be all scrunched up!”

Jessi had to agree with the child’s logic. She wouldn’t be able to walk straight if she fell asleep in the positions she saw Olivia sleep in. Aunt Merry’s guest bed would be a welcome sight tonight, after a long two days of travel. It was also the one time of the year when Olivia wasn’t entirely her responsibility. Aunt Merry gladly took Olivia with her shopping, playing at the park, and to church. Anywhere Aunt Merry went, you were sure to see little Olivia as well. This gave Jessi a much-needed break in the day-to-day care of her child. Even though Olivia was a very well-behaved child, she was still able to get into mischief on occasion. The brief reprieve was a welcome benefit of making the journey each year.

Jessi did some basic stretches before getting behind the wheel for the last leg of the trip. Olivia buckled up in her seat, which was slightly reclined, and almost instantly fell asleep. It would be quiet the rest of the trip. They had made it to Tulsa before stopping for lunch, so they only had a couple of hours to go. Olivia would sleep until they pulled in Aunt Merry’s driveway. It was a good thing too. She would be wired for the rest of the night. There was always a special present for Olivia to open. Last year it was a magical music box with Cinderella in a coach with the white horses. Olivia loved to shake it and watch the snow. Jessi had wound it up for her and showed her how the sound changed when she placed it on a solid surface. Olivia smiled when she heard the difference. It was a much fuller, richer sound. The child listened to it over and over. It was what she went to sleep to. Jessi couldn’t wait to see her face this year. She had it on good authority that this year’s gift was an extra special gift. Of course, they were each year.

At three thirty Jessi pulled into Aunt Merry’s driveway. Olivia sat up and stretched. “Are we there yet?”

Obviously, she hadn’t quite opened her eyes yet.

“Yep, we’re there!”

With those words Olivia’s eyes flew open. Almost in unison Aunt Merry came bounding out of the house, running toward the car. The very sight of her warmed Jessi’s heart. She was home.

Olivia was the first to reach Aunt Merry. Aunt Merry bent down and gave Olivia the biggest bear hug ever. “Oh, Aunt Merry, I’ve missed you so much.”

Aunt Merry wasn’t sure if she would ever let go of the child. Finally, she rose up and turned to Jessi. “My dear Jessi, oh how I’ve missed you, child.”

She let two tears escape her closed eyes as she breathed in the scent of the woman she’d practically raised as her own. Jessi returned Merry’s hug with clinging desperation. This precious woman was her grounding, her sense of well being, and the sole source from which she felt loved. Each year it was the same. Her soul cried out in protest against the separation that was destined to come. Reluctantly, each woman loosened her grip, and they walked arm in arm to the house. It was at this time that Aunt Merry noticed how small Jessi had become. “Oh, honey, don’t they eat in Wisconsin? You’re nothing but skin and bones.”

Jessi smiled in response. She knew this was coming. When she had unpacked her summer things and nothing fit anymore, she figured she’d hear it and hear it good from Aunt Merry. Upon walking in the house, she knew the situation would be rectified in no time. Something smelling awfully good was cooking in the kitchen. “Aunt Merry, if I came fitting into my clothes I would have to buy bigger ones when I leave. This way, they start out a little big, and I fit right back into them when I go back home. It’s cheaper this way.”

She gave herself a quick pat on the back and had to admit it was quick thinking, but it worked and that’s all that counted. She laid it on even a little thicker when she walked into the kitchen and looked into the oven. “Aunt Merry, is this what I think it is? Olivia, I think we had better unload the car and get cleaned up for supper. It looks as though we are having Aunt Merry’s famous pot roast with mashed potatoes and gravy for supper. Mmm…homemade biscuits too? Now this is heaven!” Jessi walked over and gave her aunt another hug. “Thank you. You always make me feel like I’m at home when I’m with you.”

Jessi followed Olivia out the door to the car, and they started carrying suitcases into the spare bedrooms. Aunt Merry had a big two-story house that she had lived in since forever, at least it seemed that way to Jessi. There were four big bedrooms on the top floor, with a shared bathroom, and then another bedroom on the first floor, although Aunt Merry refused to move her things to the first-floor bedroom. She insisted the stairs did her no harm each day, and until she couldn’t possibly climb them, she wasn’t moving. Besides, she liked to eat as much as she liked to cook, and the exercise did her good.

Both Jessi and Olivia were set up for their visit on the second floor. Olivia’s room would be in Jessi’s old room, which was still done in her childhood choice of pink satin and ruffles, canopy still intact. And Jessi was in the guest room, which Aunt Merry had recently redecorated in a Victorian theme to please Jessi.

Jessi walked to the window and looked out at Aunt Merry’s garden. There were flowers everywhere and a small pond with a waterfall. Even her little playhouse from childhood had been redone in pretty pinks and greens for Olivia to enjoy. There were new window boxes on the windows with real flowers in them. She remembered having tea parties with her dolls and stuffed animals in that playhouse. Aunt Merry always made little cookies for her to serve to her “guests,” as she liked to call them. Saturday afternoons were perfect for her tea parties, as Aunt Merry could move dinner back a little to give Jessi time to grow hungry again.

Olivia would never want to leave. This part of her childhood reminded her of a time when she was still good and God still loved her. She hadn’t been so wretched back then, so unlovable. This world would be Olivia’s now, a small part of her childhood that she could share with her daughter. It was looking to be a wonderful, magical summer.

As she began putting her things away, she noticed small leather-bound books tied with ribbons in each dresser drawer. She picked up the first one just as Aunt Merry called her down to supper. She assumed the books were her aunt’s journals but was quite positive they were left by mistake. Her aunt must have forgotten to remove them when she cleaned the dresser out for her to use. She would ask Aunt Merry about them at the supper table.

There was barely enough room on the table for all the food. Roast beef with carrots were on the large center platter. A big bowl of mashed potatoes with real butter melting on top and a dish of homemade gravy sat on one of the corners. There were hot biscuits piled high in a basket and bowls of homemade applesauce, freshly pickled beets, and cottage cheese. And anytime mashed potatoes and gravy were on the table you had to have her creamed corn that she put up in the freezer each year. Olivia couldn’t believe her eyes. Jessi had to good-naturedly reprimand her daughter. “Olivia, please close your mouth and sit down at the table.”

Olivia sat down in her designated spot at the table. “Is it Thanksgiving?” she asked, eyes still wide with wonder.

Jessi stifled a laugh while Aunt Merry answered her question. “I suppose it’s a little like Thanksgiving. I’m very thankful that you and your mom are here with me, and I wanted to make a special supper to celebrate your being here. Do you think you can find something to be thankful for?” she asked, turning the question back to the child and into a prayer as well.

Olivia pondered the question for a moment. “Yes, I can. I’m thankful for you and Mommy, the two people I love most in the world, being here with me. I’m also thankful for all this yummy food you made for us,” she replied as she eyed the food, sending the two adults at the table a very obvious message. She wanted to eat.

“Okay, then, all we have to do is thank Jesus for the food he has provided for us, and then we can eat.” With that, Aunt Merry prayed over their meal. “Dear Lord, I thank you for providing this food for us. We are truly grateful to you. I also thank you for bringing Jessi and Olivia home safe and sound. In Jesus’s name. Amen.”

Olivia waited for the signal from her mom that she could dig in and started filling up her plate. It wasn’t too long before she was stuffed and asked to be excused. She had opened her gift from Aunt Merry earlier, and it was exactly what she had asked for, for Christmas, an American Girl doll and some of the accessories that went with it, including a book. After Aunt Merry told her about the special dessert she had made, she sauntered to the living room to play with her new doll.

Jessi sat back in her chair. “That was an awesome meal, Aunt Merry. Thank you. Olivia and I will clean everything up. You must be exhausted from all the cooking and redecorating you’ve been doing. Speaking of redecoration, I think you missed a few things when you were cleaning out the dresser for me to use. I found a few of your journals in the top drawer.”

Hmmm…so she did find the journals
. With Jessi, Aunt Merry was never sure what she would bring up and what she would file away on a shelf and never even let her know she had found. Curiosity must have gotten the best of the girl, just as she had hoped it would. Good. “Oh, no, dear. I thought you might enjoy reading through them sometime. Just like Olivia loves your old room and playhouse, I thought you might enjoy reading about some of my experiences while I was growing up. Kind of a family history lesson of sorts. And as for cleaning up, don’t be silly. I look forward to your visit so much that I hardly even notice the work. I love having you both. You add so much life to this house.”

Jessi looked at her with suspicion. “All right, I’ll tell you what. What if you and I do the clean up together, and we’ll let Olivia play with her new doll, which, by the way, she dearly loves. Thank you again.”

Both Jessi and Merry rose from the table and began clearing the dishes. Aunt Merry filled her in on her mother and what little she knew of her father. Neither parent was particularly close to Jessi and only made contact with her on her birthday and at Christmas, by way of a Christmas card. She was surprised they even continued that superficial contact. For some time after the accident, her mother had called and had come around more than usual, but it wasn’t long before things got back to normal. They cleaned up the rest of the dishes, making small talk as they went.

They sat in the living room for a while and watched Olivia play with her doll. Olivia started yawning and rubbing her eyes. Still being full from supper, they all decided to forego dessert and head to bed. Jessi tucked Olivia into bed and turned the nightlight on. She was surprised Olivia didn’t protest and want to sleep with her. Instead, she fell asleep with a small grin on her beautiful face, the picture of perfect peace, while clutching her new doll, Samantha. Carefully, Jessi tucked her in and gave her forehead a kiss. She whispered, “I love you, little one. I don’t know that you’ll ever quite know how much.” She quietly left the room and returned to her own.

After getting ready for bed, she sat in the sitting area and sorted through her aunt’s journals. There were three journals. The first one appeared to start when Aunt Merry was sixteen. The first few entries were typical entries for a teenage girl. Which boys in her class were the cutest, who liked who, and what she and her friends did together. The last one she read surprised her, though.

Sunday September 22, 1963

I can’t believe I’m writing this down for the world to see. I will keep this in a safe place and hope that no one dares to invade my privacy and read it. Last night Ella, Dorothy, and I decided to sneak out of the house and go down to the Jarvis Family farm. Lester was having a party, and he invited us, but our parents wouldn’t allow us to attend. We decided there would be no harm in going for a little while, especially if we weren’t gone long and were back in our beds before we were found out. What fun we had! We danced and drank punch, which was spiked—I could tell by the taste. I even danced a slow dance with Lester Jarvis. He is already eighteen years old. Why, he’s a full grown man and so good looking. We stayed too long and had to hurry to get back in our beds. Of course, the alcohol in the punch had nothing to do with it! Ha! We were lucky we didn’t get caught. Oh, how much fun we had, though. I’d do it again in a heartbeat if it meant I would get to dance with Lester again. That’s all for now. Good night diary,