The Resurrection of Mary Mabel McTavish
Page 29
In her heart, she grew to know and accept that she wasn’t Mary Mabel McTavish anymore, and never would be again. Mary Mabel was a saint whose memory gave hope to believers. She was a town librarian who offered comfort through books. The Miracle Maid had died and she had been reborn in her passing.
One night she wrote a letter to Doyle to let him know that she was well. Mr. McRay dropped by a few weeks later to say: “A friend of yours is in town. He’s staying at the Lodge.”
Doyle waited till closing time to put in an appearance. They didn’t say a word. Just beamed at one another. Then they laughed till the tears came. “Give me a hug” — the words came from their lips at the same time.
He took her to Mr. Woo’s for supper: wonton soup and a hamburger. They had banana splits for dessert and he proposed.
She got very serious. “K.O., you’re a true friend,” she said, “but you’re talking fairy tales.”
“I’m talking destiny.”
“Here’s destiny: your life is a continent away.”
He looked down. She held his hand. He shook her off and paid the bill.
They took a long walk beside the river. Doyle stopped to skip stones across the current. “You’re right,” he said at last. “This is a whole other world. But what if I came up for summer getaways? I’d like to get to know you. Here.”
She smiled. “I’d like to get to know you, too.”
Doyle shuffled. “I know you can’t make promises, but …”
She held up her hand. “With a little luck and imagination, anything’s possible.”
“I hope,” he said, and gave her a peck on the cheek.
They sat on the riverbank and talked till dawn. What would happen would happen, if it happened. Now was enough for now. It was a wonderful night. She felt no need to call on her mama for guidance. Nor did she ever feel the need again. In Cedar Bend, her mama was simply in the air she breathed. Her mama was at home, at peace.
And so was she.
About the Author
allan Stratton is the internationally acclaimed author of Chanda’s Secrets, which was made into the Cannes Film Festival hit Life, Above All. His books are published in over twenty countries. Before turning to fiction, Allan wrote Nurse Jane Goes to Hawaii, one of the most produced plays in Canadian theatre history. His citations include the Canadian Authors Association Award, the ALA Michael L. Printz Honor Book, the CLA Best Book for Young Adults Award, the Children’s Africana Award, the Dora Mavor Moore Award, two Junior Library Guild selections (USA), three ALA Best Book nods, a Times of London Book of the Week; and nominations for the Governor General’s Award (for both children’s literature and drama), the Forest of Reading Award, and the Stephen Leacock Medal for Humour. He lives in Toronto with his partner and four cats. You can visit him online at www.allanstratton.com.
Copyright © Allan Stratton, 2014
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All characters in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
Editor: Shannon Whibbs
Design: Jennifer Scott
Epub Design: Carmen Giraudy
Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication
Stratton, Allan, author
The resurrection of Mary Mabel McTavish / Allan Stratton.
Issued in print and electronic formats.
ISBN 978-1-4597-0849-5 (pbk.).-- ISBN 978-1-4597-0850-1 (pdf).-- ISBN 978-1-4597-0851-8 (epub)
I. Title.
PS8587.T723R47 2014 C813’.54 C2013-906070-7 C2013-906071-5
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