Wanda E. Brunstetter - The Healing

2011 by Wanda E. Brunstetter

Print ISBN 978-1-60260-683-8

eBook Editions:
Adobe Digital Edition (.epub) 978-1-60742-540-3
Kindle and MobiPocket Edition (.prc) 978-1-60742-541-0

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted for commercial purposes, except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without written permission of the publisher.

All scripture quotations are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.

All German-Dutch words are taken from the Revised Pennsylvania German Dictionary found in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the authors imagination or used fictitiously. Any similarity to actual people, organizations, and/or events is purely coincidental.

For more information about Wanda E. Brunstetter, please access the authors website at the following Internet address: www.wandabrunstetter.com

Cover design: Faceout Studio, www.faceoutstudio.com
Cover photography: Steve Gardner, Pixelworks Studios

Published by Barbour Publishing, Inc., P.O. Box 719, Uhrichsville, OH 44683, www.barbourbooks.com

Our mission is to publish and distribute inspirational products offering exceptional value and biblical encouragement to the masses .

Printed in the United States of America.

Table of Contents

D EDICATION /A CKNOWLEDGMENT

To Irene Miller, one of my very special Amish friends.

[God] healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds. P SALM 147:3

C HAPTER

Paradise, Pennsylvania

A lles is fix un faddich. Bishop Jacob Weaver clasped Samuel Fishers shoulder and gave it a squeeze.

Samuel, who stood on his front porch with a few others from his community, gripped the railing so tightly his fingers ached. The last few days, and even now, hed felt as if he were walking through a thick fog, barely able to hear what anyone had said to him. Yet the truth of the bishops wordsthat all was completely doneslammed into Samuel with the force of a tornado. Overcome with emotion, he could barely manage a nod. They had just returned from the cemetery where theyd buried Elsie, his wife of ten years. He wasnt sure how hed made it through the last couple of days, much less the funeral and graveside service, but frankly, he was too tired and too numb to care. Somehow, he was now expected to carry on without her, and that thought was overwhelming.

Samuels mind hadnt rested since that awful day when hed found his wife at the foot of the stairs. Over and over he kept asking himself, How do I go on? How can I survive without my Elsie? With his feelings so raw, he couldnt imagine where to begin. Constant thoughts and plaguing questions drained every bit of his energy.

Samuel realized he wasnt the first person to go through something like this, but even knowing that, all he felt was despair. The misery was more than he could bear. Well, he couldnt do it! The thought of caring for his and Elsies four children and going to work every day was too much to think about. But if he didnt work, who would buy food and pay their bills?

And if he stayed home from work and wallowed in self-pity, hed only be reminded of Elsie. Everywhere he looked, he would see her face: in the kitchen, where shed prepared their meals; in the yard, where shed worked among the flowers; in their bedroom, where she would take down her hair at night and allow him to brush her long, silky tresses as they discussed the days events and all their plans for the futurea future that would no longer include his beloved Elsie.

Ill let you visit with your family now, but please remember, you can call on me or any of the ministers in our church if you need anything. Oh, and no matter how sad you feel, take the time to read Gods Word and pray, because being alone with God is the only way you will find the strength to press on. The elderly bishop, whod been a friend of the family for a good many years, gave Samuels shoulder another firm squeeze and walked away, leaving Samuel to his disturbing thoughts.

Was it only last week that he and Elsie had discussed the approach of Thanksgiving and the huge meal they planned to have? Theyd smiled and laughed as theyd reminisced about last years holiday with their children and several of Samuels family members sitting around the table. Elsie had commented on how she loved to watch the childrens eyes grow big as saucers when the mouth-watering turkey, almost overflowing the platter, had been set in the middle of the table. All the laughter and chatter while theyd enjoyed the holiday feast was a special time for them as a family. Abruptly, those holidays and everything else Samuel and Elsie had shared had come to a halt. How quickly things could change.

In an attempt to force his thoughts aside, Samuel stared into the yard. A cold wind had scattered the fallen leaves all about. The trees were bare and emptyjust like Samuels heart. He knew that some men whod been widowed married within the first year of their wifes death, but Samuel was certain he would never marry again, for how could anyone fill the horrible void left by Elsies untimely death?

He caught sight of his children playing in the yard with some other children as though nothing had happened. Of course, the little ones didnt understand that Elsie was never coming back, but he was sure eight-year-old Marla and six-year-old Leon did. So how could they frolic about as if they hadnt just witnessed their mothers coffin being lowered into the ground? Surely, they must miss her as much as Samuel did. Maybe the only way they could deal with it was to run and play, trying to block it all out. Samuel wished he could find a way to block out the pain.

He looked away and sank into a nearby chair with a groan. Nothing will ever be the same. Ill never be able to laugh with the children again. No more catching flies for their entertainment. No more walks in the woods, holding Elsies hand. No more anything that used to be fun .

Samuel closed his eyes, and a vision of Elsies twisted body lying at the bottom of the stairs came uninvited into his head. Would he ever be able to get that image out of his mind? Would he ever know peace again?

Marla and Leon had seen their mother fall that day, and when Samuel rushed into the house after hearing their screams, hed found them close to her body, sobbing and pleading with her to open her eyes. The two youngest childrenfour-year-old Penny and two-year-old Jaredhed discovered in the kitchen, hiding behind the stove. Even before the paramedics arrived, Samuel had known Elsie was dead. Hed found no pulse, and she wasnt breathing. Later, Samuel learned that Elsie had suffered a broken neck from the fall, as well as severe internal injuries. Their unborn baby, still underdeveloped in his mothers womb, had also perished.

Samuel, you shouldnt be sitting out here in the cold by yourself.

Samuels eyes snapped open. When he looked up and saw his older sister, Naomi, looking down at him with concern, he mumbled, Didnt realize I was alone, and Im too numb to feel the cold.

Naomi seated herself in the chair beside him. I feel your pain, Samuel. I truly do.

Samuel stared straight ahead. How can you feel my pain? Your husbands still alive, and youve never lost a childnot even one who wasnt fully formed.

I realize that, but I hurt with you, and I want to help ease your pain.