The Divine Intervention
A few weeks later on a late Tuesday afternoon, Nick was having a snack in the kitchen when the phone rang.
“Hello,” he said.
“Hi, this is Joan Landers. Is this Nick?”
“Yes.”
“Nick, I’m thrilled to report that they’ve broken ground on the new home sites and facilities this morning and they’ve completed the roads. The general contractor tells me that everything should be ready by December 15th, God willing. I’m so excited Nick! I’m now in the process of filling the vacancies with the kids who have the greatest needs in the county. Fifty kids. We’ll be sure to keep siblings together to make the transitions easier. This is amazing. We’ll certainly need to plan a celebration come December. It will be a Merry Christmas indeed!”
“That’s excellent news, Joan. We’re thrilled too. I’ll let my mom know when she gets back from her doctor’s appointment. There’s nothing better than giving kids the lives they deserve.”
“Nothing better, Nick. Nothing better. And many thanks to you and your mom. You’ve made a difference in the lives of so many children.”
“Thank you Joan.”
***
Just over an hour later, Catherine and nurse Fey arrived home from her appointment with the doctor. She was going to be given an update on the success of her first round of chemo based on the x rays and scans she’d just taken. Nick watched her closely as she slowly entered the kitchen and walked into the family room, followed by nurse Fey. He wanted to gauge her mood to figure out how he should respond.
“Nick, I have news.”
“Yeah?” He looked at her but couldn’t determine whether she was in a good mood or a bad mood. Maybe she was concealing something. That wasn’t good. He watched her as she sauntered a little closer to him in the family room and stopped just in front of him. He got up from the couch and gave her a gentle hug. Nurse Fey remained in the kitchen, watching the two.
“What’d you find out Mom?”
“Well,” she said solemnly, and then paused for Nick’s reaction. Nick felt as if she were about to drop the death bomb. She continued, “I met with the doctor, who went over my x-rays and scans. Nick,” she said in a slightly upbeat tone, “the cancer’s still there, but it’s receded by fifty percent. The good news is that I’m done with chemo treatments for six weeks and within a week or so, I should feel well enough to return to work, part-time. And this time, the doctor said there’s a chance that I could beat this thing.”
Nick took a huge breath and sighed, “That’s good news, right Mom?”
“Yeah. A little good news never hurts. But keep praying for me.”
“You know I will.” He hugged her tightly and looked upward, saying a prayer in his thoughts for her recovery.
“Nick, I hate to say this but my ribs are still a little sore.”
“Oh, sorry about that.” He released her and backed up about a foot.
Nurse Fey said, “I’m praying for you too, Catherine.”
“Well I have good news for you and Fey too. They broke ground on the first five home sites today. The roads are complete and they anticipate that everything will be done by December 15th.”
“Excellent. That’s just after your graduation. We’ll have to plan two parties!”
“No Mom, I disagree. How about one celebration of the home sites with all of your friends and all of my friends, new and old, and of course you, Nurse Fey? Graduations happen every semester, but how often do you hear about a family who helped fifty kids at Christmas time by providing them all homes? We should throw a huge celebration with all of the staff and the kids in the foster home. I can already see the lights and the tables and the crowd and the Christmas tree and a gigantic Nativity scene, which would dwarf the Christmas tree. We’ll place it smack dab in the center of the lawn in the middle of the home sites in the big play area. We can light it up with all sorts of bright colors: red, green, yellow, blue, purple, and more. And we’ll play traditional Christmas songs and contemporary Christian music all night long. “Silent night,” “Joy to the World,” “Away in a Manger,” and all of the good contemporary songs. Happy birthday Jesus!”
“Love it, Nick. And why not have the party double as a fundraiser for the children and more homes? I’ve been able to secure some funding already, but a fundraiser always helps to secure more. I’ll call some of my connections with deep pockets.”
“Great plan!”
“Agreed,” Nurse Fey added.
“We’re going to have a blessed life Nick, a life of giving.”
“Amen to that,” Nick said as he smiled at his mom and Nurse Fey.
“Yes, amen,” Nurse Fey added.