Summer's Promise

by Irene Brand

Summer arrived in Asheville in late evening, two days ahead of schedule. She registered at a motel, mindful of her limited income, but also fearful of climbing the mountain after dark. After dinner at a restaurant adjacent to the motel, she returned to her room and telephoned her parents to let them know she’d arrived safely in North Carolina.

  To her surprise, David answered the phone.

  “David! I didn’t expect to get you.”

  “Are you having trouble?” he asked quickly.

  “Oh, no. I wanted Mother and Daddy to know I’d arrived safely in Asheville.”

  “They took Timmy and Nicole to Woodbeck Farm to say goodbye to Autumn and Nathan. We’re leaving early in the morning. You’re earlier than you expected, aren’t you?”

  “Yes. Since I’d never driven so far by myself, I allowed more time than I needed. It wasn’t bad at all.”

  “I’m planning two days for the trip with Timmy and Nicole. If I traveled alone, I’d make it easily in one day, but I have a suspicion that traveling with two kids will slow me down considerably. Look for us sometime day after tomorrow.”

  “How are you getting along with the children?”

  “I’ve been here three days making friends with them so they won’t feel as if they’re starting out with a stranger. We went to the zoo one day, and your dad has taken us on wagon rides with the Belgians.”

  “I’ll go to The Crossroads tomorrow morning and try to get settled in, so I’ll be ready for you. Tell Mother and Daddy I called.”

  “You okay, Summer?” he asked anxiously.

  “I think so. I’ve gotten over my anger, and I’m accepting the situation. I still dread what’s ahead of us for I don’t know how I’ll measure up.”

  “You’ll be great. Remember you’re a Weaver!” he joked, and then more seriously, he cautioned, “Be careful on the mountain tomorrow morning. There could be some fog.”

  Was David becoming the brother she’d never had? Summer wondered as she settled down in a large armchair. Summer was sure that kiss they’d shared wasn’t filial. Was a brotherly relationship what she wanted from him? Summer’s fear of losing her independence kept her from answering the question.

  A Bible lay open on the table by her elbow, and Summer picked it up. Someone, perhaps a former occupant, had underlined a verse in the book of Hebrews. “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”

  She needed help now more than she’d ever needed it. Was help available in this book? Every member of her family, except herself, had apparently found an answer to their greatest needs in the Bible. Summer slowly turned the pages, reading many passages that spoke of God as the Creator.

  She laid the Bible on the table and thought about what she’d read. If God had created all mankind, then that meant Summer Weaver was His creation. And if God had created her, didn’t it follow that He would be concerned for her and provide her needs? It was a truth too great for Summer to completely comprehend, but it gave her a degree of security as she prepared for bed and turned out the light. If God kept track of His creations, then He knew she was alone in Asheville, North Carolina. But was she alone? According to the Bible, God was not far away from anyone if that person looked to Him, and tonight, Summer’s heart was reaching for Him.

  By the time Summer ate a light breakfast, the sun had chased the fog away, and she started fearfully toward The Crossroads. Sweaty hands gripping the steering wheel, she negotiated the hairpin curves at a crawl, holding her breath until she’d safely rounded each turn. She had calmed considerably when she reached Mountain Glen, and she felt as if she’d been given new strength. She’d heard that praying could chase away fear, and since she hadn’t prayed for herself, was someone else praying for her safety on this torturous road? Autumn and Nathan or her parents?

  School was in session when she arrived at The Crossroads, but Summer found Edna in her office. She gave Summer a key to the cabin.

  “Go ahead and start settling in, but leave any heavy luggage until after school is over and the bigger boys can help you. I’m waiting for a telephone call, and I’ll come along as soon as possible to give you any assistance you need. Do you remember the way to the cabin?”

  “I’m sure I can find it,” Summer answered.

  Carrying two bags of groceries she’d purchased in Asheville, Summer located the path to the cabin. Determined to make the best of this situation, she hummed the tune of a popular song as she walked briskly toward her new home. Could she find contentment at The Crossroads as Bert and Spring had done?

  She found no contentment in the cabin. The combination living room and kitchen was topsy-turvy. Boxes that had been on the table and sink counter when she’d been here before were scattered all over the floor. The upholstery and chairs were full of holes and tufts of padding littered the rooms. Summer advanced into the room slowly, wondering what vandals had been at work.

  As she surveyed the room, a small head appeared in a hole in the couch and beady eyes peered at her. She started to run until she recognized the intruder as a squirrel. The animal scampered off the couch, ran to the fireplace and disappeared up the chimney.

  Wondering how one small animal could have caused so much destruction, Summer was still standing thunderstruck in the middle of the room when Edna walked into the cabin.

  “What’s happened?” she asked, alarmed.

  “I scared a squirrel away from the couch and he ran up the chimney.”

  “What a mess! I should have been checking the house, but we’ve been so shorthanded, I didn’t think about it. The little critters must have chewed a hole in the screen over the chimney. This time of year they’re looking everywhere for food.” She dipped her hand into one of the holes on the couch and pulled out a handful of acorns. “Apparently they intended to use the house for their storage bin. What about the rest of the house?”

  “The door into the bedrooms is closed,” Summer said as she opened the door to the hallway and glanced into the bedrooms. “Seems okay in here.” She looked helplessly at the damaged furniture. “David will be here with Timmy and Nicole tomorrow.”

  Edna shook her head. “You do have a problem. A neighbor, Stonewall Blackburn, does handiwork for us, and I’ll ask him to cover the chimney for you.”

  She went to a closet near the front entrance and set out a broom, sweeper, mop and a bucket. “This is probably all you’ll need to tidy up the place. I’ll send one of the older girls to help you this afternoon.” Edna looked over the damaged upholstery. “If you stuff this padding back in the holes, you can cover the furniture with blankets and get by all right.”

  Summer had never been in a situation before when she had to get by. If something like this had happened in the Weaver household, they would have refurbished the whole place with new furniture. But you’re not in the Weaver household anymore, she reminded herself. You’re at a mission school.

  Summer put the groceries in the cabinets and refrigerator, wondering if her bank account would stretch to buy a living room suite. If she let her parents know, they’d buy new furniture for the house, but she wouldn’t impose on them more than she had to. She’d accepted this obligation, and she’d have to make out on her own.

  She picked up the mop and looked at it with distaste. At home, they’d employed a housekeeper, and in New York, she’d used a cleaning service. She hardly knew where to begin. What had she gotten into?

  Chapter Seven

  Summer wanted to sit down and cry as she looked at the disordered cabin that was going to be her home for at least a year, but she wouldn’t let the situation get her down. Besides, there wasn’t a chair she’d sit on until she’d cleaned the place, and secondly, she’d made up her mind before she left New York that she was through with tears. She’d cried more in the last six weeks than she’d cried in her whole life. Clara had discouraged crying in her daughters, and she’d set an example for them. So no more crying!

  Swearing
and slang words were also forbidden to the Weaver daughters, so if she couldn’t cry and she couldn’t swear, what outlet did she have for her frustrations? There was nothing she could do but grin and bear it!

  Summer walked back to her car to get a suitcase containing jeans and sweatshirts, noticing many squirrels scurrying around in the oak trees. It was useless to clean until the little creatures were barred from the cabin, but she returned to her new home to learn that Edna had moved quickly to alleviate that problem.

  A lanky, black-bearded man, dressed in overalls and boots with a black hat pulled down over his long gray hair, sat on the steps. He appraised Summer with piercing, black eyes.

  “Howdy! I’m Stonewall Blackburn. Miss Stollard said you had a fireplace problem, and she wants me to fix it.”

  “Thanks for coming right away, Mr. Blackburn. The squirrels have nearly ruined the living room. Can you find how they got into the house?”

  Lazily, Stonewall unlimbered his long body and looked speculatively at the roof. “Won’t be much of a job,” he assured her. “I see where the varmints have pushed up the screen. Probably one of the chimney bricks fell and made a hole for the squirrels to get in. I’ll have it fixed nice and tight in an hour or so.”

  “That will be great,” Summer said. “I’ll go ahead with my cleaning.”

  By the time Summer had spent an hour trying to push the stuffing back into the couch and the chair, her fingers were scratched from contact with the sharp springs, and her temper was frayed even more. She was going to buy a new living room suite! She didn’t know much about being a missionary, but she was sure God didn’t expect His servants to live in sub-standard housing if they didn’t have to. Maybe she couldn’t bring up her niece and nephew in the kind of surroundings she’d known as a child, but at least they’d have a couch where the springs didn’t poke them when they sat down.

  Summer brushed the rubbish off the table and cabinets onto the floor, and then wielding the broom vigorously, she swept all the debris into a dustpan to deposit in a waste container. While she worked, she heard hammering on the roof, so she assumed Mr. Blackburn was getting that job taken care of.

  Before she finished washing off the cabinets and the tabletop, she heard a knock at the door, and a youthful voice said, “All right to come in?”

  A girl stood in the doorway. “Miss Stollard said you needed some help. I’m Anita Bailey.”

  “I do need help, Anita. I’m Summer Weaver.”

  “Yeah, I know. I met you when you were here before.”

  Summer took another look at the girl. “Oh, yes, I remember. You were helping in the kitchen.”

  Anita surveyed the room. “Miss Stollard said things were in a mess, but they’re not too bad.”

  “I’ve already swept, but the floor needs to be mopped. I’ll get to that next and then I want to change the sheets and pillowcases. I’ll have to do laundry, but I haven’t seen a washer and dryer.”

  Anita wagged her head. “You’ll have to use the community laundry at the girls’ dorm. I can do the mopping if you want me to.”

  “I’d appreciate it, for if I’m to be ready when Mr. Brown comes with Timmy and Nicole tomorrow, I’ll have to hurry.” Eyeing the couch with distaste, she said, “I’m going to town this afternoon to replace the couch and chair, which I hope will be delivered tomorrow morning.”

  “I can help you patch up the furniture. That’s the way we did at home.”

  “Thanks, but I’ll try to buy something else.”

  Anita picked up the bucket and filled it with hot, sudsy water and began mopping. She had large wistful brown eyes, straight black hair falling below her shoulders, a thin face and a twang to her voice.

  Summer went into the bedrooms, removed the bed linens and put them in a laundry basket. She took fresh covers from the closet in the bathroom, and by the time Anita finished mopping, the bedrooms were habitable. Edna appeared at the door accompanied by two boys carrying Summer’s luggage.

  “This is all except what you have in the trunk. Where do you want to put it?” Edna asked.

  “We’ll stack the cartons in the bedroom, and I’ll unpack when I can. First, I’ll need to do something with their clothes. Do you have any suggestions?”

  “A lot of used clothing is donated to the schools, so if there’s anything you don’t want to keep, we’ll be glad to have them. Anything our students can’t use, we sell at a yard sale once a year.”

  “I’ll try to sort out everything tonight, and perhaps you can store them for me. I don’t feel like giving their possessions away yet.”

  Indicating the boys who were bickering with Anita, Edna said, “Summer, these are two of the residents at The Crossroads.” She indicated the closest boy. “This is Skipper Johnson. He came to us about six months ago.”

  Skipper flashed Summer a wide smile, and his dark eyes gleamed happily. He didn’t seem to have a problem of any kind, and Summer wondered why he was at the school.

  “Hi, Miss Summer. Hope you like it here.”

  The other boy, whom Edna introduced as Mayo Sinclair, was about Skipper’s age, but where Skipper was a short, chunky kid, Mayo was thin and of medium height. His unruly blond hair fell over a high forehead and somber blue eyes concealed his thoughts.

  “I’m glad to meet you,” Summer said, “but I don’t know much about boys. I don’t have any brothers. Growing up, I considered that a blessing.”

  Anita wrung out the mop vigorously and laughed. “It is a blessing,” she piped, eyeing the two boys saucily. “You’ll find that out after you’ve been around these two for a while.”

  Skipper reached out and pulled vigorously on Anita’s hair and she swung the mop at him.

  “That’s enough,” Edna said in a quiet voice that carried authority. The scuffling ceased. “Summer, do you need help unloading the trunk of your car?”

  “Yes, please. I have a computer in the trunk with most of my clothes piled around it.”

  “Wow! You got your own computer?” Skipper said.

  “Yes. I brought some educational games for Timmy and Nicole.”

  “Teenagers like educational games, too,” Skipper said, a hopeful gleam in his eye.

  “We’ll see. No promises yet,” Summer said, already sensing the many needs of these teens, but hesitant to commit herself until she talked with David. They had to work as a team at The Crossroads.

  After the boys left, Summer said to Edna, “I think my budget will stretch to buy a new sofa and chair. Is there a furniture store in Asheville that would have any bargains?”

  “A few stores are always having sales.”

  “Then I’ll drive into town this afternoon to see if I can find anything to be delivered tomorrow. I’d like to have the house in shape before David comes with the children.”

  “It might upset Nicole and Timmy to have the furniture changed.”

  “I hadn’t considered that. But the sofa and chair are already changed. I’d think it would be more upsetting to find the furniture in shambles.”

  “You may be right,” Edna agreed, “but Timmy and Nicole will have a difficult adjustment to make when they return here without their parents. If you do buy new furniture, we’ll take this to our workshop and see if we can redo it. We have an upholsterer who comes for short periods to teach his craft to our students.”

  Summer turned to Anita. “Will you go to town with me?”

  Anita turned quick, hopeful eyes toward Edna. “Am I allowed?”

  Edna hesitated. “We have a closed campus here,” she explained to Summer, and Anita turned away, “except for the children who live in Mountain Glen. Residents at The Crossroads leave only if they have a special permit to visit their family.”

  “But there’s some of us who don’t have a family,” Anita said.

  Sympathy shone in Edna’s eyes. “Bert often took the boys when he had supplies and equipment to buy, and I think this trip could be considered a similar situation. It’s okay.”

  “T
hanks, Miss Stollard,” Anita said.

  “Let’s leave right away, so we can be back before dark,” Summer said. “I don’t like mountain driving.”

  Before they got to Asheville, Summer decided the trip was beneficial in several ways, for Anita was a well of information. As she talked, Summer felt she couldn’t have gotten a better orientation to the workings of The Crossroads.

  “I was the first student to come to The Crossroads. I helped Bert and Spring finish painting the rooms and move in furniture. Anything you want to know, ask me. I know all about the place.”

  “Came from where and why are you at The Crossroads, Anita?”

  Anita’s expression changed from animation to bleakness. “It’s kinda hard to talk about.”

  “Forget I asked. I don’t want to distress you.”

  “Oh, it’s all right. There wasn’t anybody but me and my mom. We lived in Statesville, and when she died, I didn’t have any place to go and nobody to turn to. I’d gone to Sunday school at a church near our apartment, and the pastor who preached Mom’s funeral took me to stay with his wife until they found a place for me. They knew Miss Stollard, and they contacted her. They weren’t ready for students, but she told them to bring me. Bert and Spring were good to me, but it still isn’t home. I feel like a prisoner sometimes.”

  “Surely you have some relatives.”

  “Probably do, somewhere, but Mom was an only child, and her folks had died young. When I asked her about my father, she said I was better off not to know.” She sighed. “You know, it makes me feel awful hopeless when I realize I’m all alone. I trusted the Browns to take care of me, and they’re gone, too.”

  “You really aren’t alone. Miss Stollard is fond of you, and I’m sure the other residents are, too.”

  “I don’t get along with most of them.”

  To get Anita’s mind off of her background, Summer asked, “What subjects do you like best in school? What would you like to do?”

  “That’s just it!” Anita said. “What hope do I have to make anything of myself? I don’t have a dime of my own. The few things my mother owned were sold to pay her funeral expenses. She’d done domestic work, so she didn’t have any insurance.”