Dana looked for Brandon and spied him to her left and slightly behind doing somersaults through the air. “Whooo-hoooooooo! Try this, Dana!”
She did and her body raced with adrenaline. After seven rotations she stopped. Laughter burst out of her and she grinned at him. His eyes lit up like they did back in the days when they were engaged. Whoops. She needed to dial it back. Be careful. No mixed signals, even in here.
To her right, Marcus flew spread-eagled, the wind whipping around his clothes and through his thinning brown hair like a hurricane, his face a cascade of joy, laughter pouring out of his mouth in a torrent. Even Doug had joined the celebration, doing cartwheels through the air and yelling like a crazed U-Dub football fan.
The whole thing was so natural and so absurd, both at the same time. All fear of the future, all worry about what would happen with Perry and where Brandon fit in her life, the always-present strain of her job slipped away. And whatever scenario the Warriors would face with the Wolf melted away and joy unspeakable buried her.
As they cavorted through the sky, the river of air grew stronger and they picked up speed. After what seemed like hours, Dana squinted toward the horizon again. The sun had sunk lower in the sky and now she saw a thin smear of colors. As they streaked toward it the smear turned into a wall and grew larger till it towered above them, a mile at least, probably more.
The four of them were traveling so fast she doubted they would survive the same velocity on earth. The greens and blues below her blurred. She should be frightened but she couldn’t touch even a hint of that emotion. Only an overwhelming sense of love and joy she was sure would explode out of her in seconds. And still they moved faster.
Then the wall of colors was before them, looming too far above to see the top and too far to the sides to take in its vastness. Only seconds now and they would slam into the crimson, emerald, turquoise, gold, and aqua wall and certainly be destroyed, but Dana didn’t care. She stretched forward with her fingers and pulled at the air as if swimming, as if she could draw herself into the wall with more speed. And she was laughing and crying and shouting and coming closer to exploding every second.
Then in a flash she reached the wall and smashed into it and she slammed her eyes shut and waited for death to come but it didn’t. As she burst through the wall, the sense of love she’d felt earlier was a drop in the Pacific Ocean compared to what she felt now. The colors wrapped themselves around her and pushed into her and through her and each color was a hand of God that held her in infinite tenderness and strength.
Their speed slowed and they flew lower and soon a landscape took form in front of them. She glanced at the others, their faces basking in the splendor of the moment, then back to the world appearing in front of her. Mountains and valleys and deserts and forests and seas grew and vanished as they flew over the splendor.
None of them tried to make conversation. What would they say? Words would crash to the ground in epic failure trying to describe what they’d experienced, what they were feeling, what they’d seen, what they were still seeing.
Finally the birthing of worlds around them slowed, and they stood on a plain that reminded Dana of the Australian outback but this one was more vibrant and the air tingled with . . . she didn’t know how to describe it. Life was the only word that made sense.
“Where are we?” Marcus’s voice sounded strange.
Doug opened his arms and turned 360 degrees before answering. “‘The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God.’ ‘Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away . . .’”
“What?” Dana made her own turn. “Are you saying this is the new heaven and the new earth?”
Doug laughed. “No, no. That is yet to come. Our eyes will not see that till the age we live in ends and all the sons and daughters become the audience as the Great Artist once again creates what was to have been in the beginning and what will be again for ages to come.” He made a sweeping gesture. “This is only a foretaste of what that world will be, and not nearly as glorious as what we will see then.”
“This is a foretaste?” Brandon widened his eyes. “It’ll be better than this?”
“Oh yes.” Doug’s eyes were white fire. “My educated guess and hope is what you just experienced is the smallest appetizer of what we shall experience at the wedding feast between Christ and his bride.
“C. S. Lewis had it right when he said, ‘If we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desire not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, we are like ignorant children who want to continue making mud pies in a slum because we cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a vacation at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.’”
The four of them went silent again, soaking in the world Doug had led them to. Then one by one they stood and walked in four opposite directions.
Dana didn’t see the colors around her, she tasted them, didn’t look on the water of the streams she passed, she was part of it. The air and light were like food and made the most succulent chocolate torte she’d ever tasted seem like dust by comparison.
Too soon Doug’s voice called out from behind her. “It is with great regret I must tell you our time here is finished.”
She turned and strolled back toward Doug, wanting each step to last forever, watching Marcus’s and Brandon’s same slow gait and realizing they felt the same.
When she reached him she stopped and frowned. “Why did you bring us here? I’m not sure the ache of going from this place will ever leave me.”
“This is true, but knowing this ahead of time, would you have chosen not to come?”
Doug reached for their hands. “After we’ve returned we will chat about why I brought you here and the lessons to be learned from voyaging through this realm. Let us go.”
The moment her fingers touched Doug’s hands her surroundings vanished and her spirit slid back into her body in Reece’s cabin. She slipped her hands to her sides and rested them on Reece’s couch as she stared at the others’ faces. They seemed to reflect light and were so alluring she almost gasped.
Doug chuckled. “You see it in the others, don’t you, Dana?”
She shook her head and smiled. “‘But we all, with unveiled faces, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.’ From Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians, chapter 18.”
“Yes, Dana. Yes.” Doug patted her hand. “That is right.”
Marcus tilted his flushed and bright face toward Doug. “You indicated there was a greater intent behind taking us there than simply to experience utter joy.”
“Yes.” Doug paused and a cloud came over his eyes. “I wish the only reason was for you to taste that freedom, that joy to come. But it isn’t. You needed to see that, to experience the heavenly realms so you know what you are fighting for. Because I fear you’ll soon be traveling into other dimensions not so pleasant as the one we just came from. Realms as dark as the one you just experienced are light. Realms where you must take the battle, and where your experience there can inspire and give you strength.”
“The Wolf. Doing battle with him,” Dana said.
Doug nodded.
Brandon leaned forward in his chair. “Do you know when we’ll have to start doing that?”
Doug stood. “Sooner than you or Reece and I would like, I’m afraid.”
“Define sooner.”
A voice came from the top of the stairs. “We think the attack on each of us will increase i
n intensity if it hasn’t already.” Reece clumped down the staircase and eased over to his leather chair. “That’s not a surprise, at least it shouldn’t be. I will admit I’ve been on the ropes for the past two or three weeks. And this afternoon I had a conversation indicative of what kinds of things we can expect from the people around us. Do you remember Tamera?” Reece paused. “She’s not happy with us.”
“Good to see you, Reece.” Dana immediately regretted her phrasing but if Reece took offense it didn’t show in his face or gestures.
“Why’s she putting on the frowny face?” Brandon puckered his lips.
“She wants to be a deeper part of our fellowship than the Spirit wants her to be. I’m not worried about it, but it is an indication of the enemy trying to whack the hornet’s nest. Which means we need to be on alert more than ever.” He clapped his hands on the armrests of his chair. “Enough of that. It’s good for all of us to be together again. I trust you enjoyed what Doug had to show you?”
Dana laughed and the others joined her. “You could say that.”
“I’m glad.” Reece smiled. “Next time I intend to go with you.”
Doug meandered over to where Reece sat and laid a hand on his shoulder. “We welcome that with open hearts and great anticipation.” He released Reece’s shoulder and sat in the chair next to the big man. “Now, let’s talk about next steps.”
Marcus opened his notebook and clicked his mechanical pencil twice. “You’re finally going to tell us about the Wolf?”
Reece turned his head toward Doug as if he could see him, then turned back to the others. “We are very close to that day, yes. Very close. But first we have to take your training up a notch.”
“Do you care to give a clarifying descriptor of ‘up a notch’?” Marcus said.
“We’ll meet again on Friday night, and during that time the three of you will face a rather arduous test. I don’t think it prudent to share anything more than that, but I will encourage you to be in prayer and stay in close communion with the Spirit.”
“Anything else?” Dana asked.
“Only this: if the test goes well, Doug and I will tell you what we know about the Wolf, and we will all begin to form our strategy for engaging him in battle.”
As Dana drove home, Reece’s words filled her thoughts. Lord, how will the enemy come after me? Just before she turned into her driveway, a picture of her radio station flashed into her mind and she had the distinct feeling she would soon have a great deal of free time on her hands.
TWELVE
“ROBERT IS WAITING FOR YOU.”
Dana’s executive assistant spoke the words softly on Monday afternoon but Rebecca might as well have shouted them. Dana had found out first thing that morning that her general manager wanted to meet with her and even though she’d had a premonition of this the night before, it still surprised her.
“Deep breath, face the music,” Dana said under her breath as she walked toward Robert’s office. “God is in this.” The hallway smelled like carpet cleaners had been there the night before. A fitting symbol for the cleaning her GM was about to do. She reached his door and came to a halt. Another deep breath and a quick prayer for composure. She would find another job. Or Reece could subsidize her to become the official Well Spring photographer. She closed her eyes and imagined the scene about to unfold.
She would step inside, sit on her GM’s plush leather couch, and after polite greetings he would say something like, “Although you’ve done a wonderful job for this company over the years, we think it’s time for us to mutually agree it’s best for all concerned parties if we go our separate ways.”
Then they would negotiate a severance package both Corporate and she could live with, she would pack her things, head home, turn off her alarm, and sleep till noon.
The meeting shouldn’t have shocked her. Dana couldn’t blame them. All the time she’d been spending on Warriors Riding, all the trips she’d taken to Well Spring to take part in the training sessions had cut into her focus at the station. Her heart was torn between the Warriors and the station and her intensity at the station had waned as her heart and strength went more and more to the mission Reece and Doug were taking them on.
Sure, all the days she’d taken off were from accrued vacation time she’d earned but it didn’t mean it was okay. And while her budgets had only been off 3 percent over the past three quarters, she was still 3 percent off. And when her goals were for 7 percent growth, it meant she and her team were consistently underperforming by 10 percent. Not acceptable. Stockholders didn’t care if she had the time off coming. And neither did her GM.
She glanced at Robert’s executive assistant and he nodded at the door. Dana knocked once and walked in. Oh boy. This wasn’t a one-on-one meeting. Next to Robert stood the head of the Seattle division—Spencer Benning—the suit from Corporate who visited a few times a year at most. Great. Two against one.
Spencer smiled, strode over to her, and offered his hand. “Great to see you, Dana. It’s been at least a year.”
“I think you’re right.” She shook his hand and offered a thin smile. “It’s good to see you as well.”
Robert and Spencer sat and he motioned to the couch across from them. She sat in the middle, her hands clasped on her lap. “I’d like to make a request in regard to this meeting.”
“All right.” Spencer glanced at Robert, then back to her.
“Can we forgo the pleasantries and the details of why you’re letting me go and get right to work on a severance package we both agree is fair?”
Spencer glanced at Robert again, then leaned forward, picked up two white folders, and handed one to Dana and one to her GM. “Before we do, I’d like to go over a few figures.”
Dana bit her lower lip and stayed silent. This was exactly what she had hoped to avoid but it was obvious her final wish would not be granted. Go with it. Play the stupid game. It won’t kill you.
“Let’s start by taking a look at your team’s sales performance over the past four quarters—2 percent down, 3 percent down, 2 1/2 percent down, 1 percent down, and based on current budgets for this quarter you’ll finish at 1 1/2 percent down over the previous year.”
This was a complete waste of time. She didn’t need to look at these figures. They’d been a splinter in her brain every day for the past year. It had irritated her and made her come up with sales and promotional packages that brought in more revenue than if she hadn’t. But it wasn’t as important as what was going on with the Warriors Riding and at Well Spring. A year ago she would have found a way to meet her sales goal. Whatever it took, it didn’t matter. Now it mattered.
Dana nodded. “Yes, down a little less than 3 percent on average.”
“That’s correct.” Spencer turned a page. “Look at the next page.”
Dana turned the page and looked at a chart tracking her station’s rating performance.
“You’re probably intimately aware that we’ve had some programming challenges on your station. Changing program directors twice in one year has not helped. Regardless, budgets still need to be set and met. Not reaching them isn’t an option.”
Another recap of the obvious. Why were they putting her through this?
“This next page is the Miller Kaplan report for the past year—again a report you’ve probably glanced at more than once.”
This time they were wrong. She hadn’t looked at the Miller Kaplan for at least eighteen months. She wasn’t sure why. Probably because Robert never paid it much attention and never used it to evaluate her performance. Did it matter what other stations were doing compared to hers? The goal was the goal was the goal as had just been stated.
“As you can see, you’ve outperformed every station with similar ratings to yours and your revenue is even ahead of five stations who have up to 15 percent higher ratings.”
He tossed the packet on the coffee table in front of him, sat back, and crossed his legs. “That includes three stations here in our own group.”
“You’re not going to fire me?” Dana blurted out the thought without giving consideration to how stupid it would sound. She glanced at her GM who offered an affirming smile.
“This is true. We had hoped to go in a bit different direction.”
Robert slid a sheet of paper across the glass coffee table and tapped it twice. “Before you look at that sheet let me apologize. Based on your request at the start of this meeting we obviously have done a poor job of conveying our view of your performance and what we think of you. With that in mind, take a moment to peruse this sheet that will give you a better feel of what our thoughts are with regard to your future with this company.”
Dana picked up the paper. It took only ten seconds to read but she stared at the words and figures for over a minute.
• Dana Raine new position: station general manager
• Salary: $285,000
• Vacation days: six weeks paid
• Bonus structure: Immediate $15,000, and $15,000 per percentage point over goal each quarter from the previous year
• Start date: May 20
Was this real? She looked up. “You’re promoting me.” Another obvious comment, but they didn’t seem to take offense.
“Yes.” Spencer smiled. “You’ve done an excellent job. And not only with the numbers. As surprising as this might seem we do care about more than the bottom line. We care how our leaders treat the people they lead. Why? Because people do better in an atmosphere where they feel encouraged, believed in, and fought for. We know you’ve stood in the gap for your salespeople. We know you fight for them in promotion meetings. We know you’ve gone far above and way beyond to make sure they’re appreciated. When people have a leader like that, most of them will overachieve. Which you can see from the Miller Kaplan, they have done and continue to do.
“I guess in that sense that brings us back to the numbers so maybe that is all we care about.” He laughed. “We talked to your salespeople and eight of the nine said your leadership over the past ten months has been stellar. Better than it’s ever been.”
Memory's Door (A Well Spring Novel) Page 7