share in his wife’s joy at receiving her award.
Not that Madge ever complained. She never protested about how much time Russell had to spend on the road. Ever. Not about missed birthdays or anniversaries. Not about spending so much time apart. Not now and not when their boys had been growing up.
Madge was too loyal, too committed to her marriage and too much in love with her husband to utter a word against him.
Andrea let out a sigh. Whether it was inspired by a little jealousy or a sister’s protective instinct, she was not sure. All she knew was that if Russell Stevens loved his wife as much as Madge loved him, he would have come home by plane, train, car or on horseback, if necessary, and shared Madge’s special moment last night and attended services with her today, too.
“Judge not,” she murmured, hoping to retrieve some of the grace she had lost by letting her love for her sister lead her to selfish thoughts. She opened the church bulletin to distract herself and saw the advertisement for the new Shawl Ministry that Madge had mentioned the other day.
The advertisement filled a quarter-page box inside a border decorated with small crosses formed from pairs of knitting needles. It read:
Announcing the newly formed
Church of Holy Faith
Shawl Ministry
Wanted: Volunteers committed to prayer, fellowship
and the desire to serve Him by ministering
to others
Required: Willing hands and loving hearts
Knitting skills desirable, but not necessary
Come two afternoons a month to knit or teach
others to knit!
New Members Meeting: August 14, 7 p.m.
Welleswood Community Center
Donations of materials also appreciated
Memories began to surface, but before they came into focus, Andrea heard someone approaching. When she looked up, Peggy Fallon greeted her with a smile. “I heard about what happened. You look great, considering.” She sat down next to Andrea. “Do you feel as good as you look?”
Andrea groaned. “You’re a sweetheart. I certainly hope I look a lot better than I feel. Mostly, I just tire out a whole lot faster than I like these days.”
“Who doesn’t?” She tapped the advertisement Andrea had been reading. “I think the Shawl Ministry is a great idea. Tim’s going to print some signs to put up around town to see how many people we can get involved.”
“He’s got a good heart,” Andrea murmured.
Peggy laughed. “And you’ve got a very persuasive sister.”
“Madge?” Andrea asked, although she knew only too well how persuasive Madge could be. Who else could have convinced Andrea to attend the meeting for the Shawl Ministry?
“None other. But the printing won’t take too much time. Since Tim runs the church bulletin, he already has the ad in the computer. Touch a few buttons and keys, and he’s got the size he needs for the signs. They should be ready by noon tomorrow. He’s got a lot of work to do, and we were wondering if maybe you could let Jamie Martin take some time off tomorrow to pick up the signs and distribute them to the businesses in town? We need to get the signs into shop windows as quickly as we can. Otherwise, Jamie can stop in as soon as he finishes up work.”
Andrea toyed with the corner of the bulletin. “I didn’t realize you knew Jamie was going to be helping out at the agency. Word sure does spread fast.”
Peggy patted Andrea’s hand. “Good news, bad news and all the news in-between. That means, fortunately, for Jamie’s sake, that yesterday’s news gets forgotten rather quickly. He really impressed a lot of people by volunteering to help you while you recuperate. You’ve impressed them even more by letting him.”
Andrea waved away the compliment. “He’s a good kid. It was just an accident.” She paused. “I’m not sure I would ask him to distribute the signs, though. Talking to the different business owners, some of whom might want to take him to task for—”
“He knows that. He said he would do it, but only if you gave your
Not that Madge ever complained. She never protested about how much time Russell had to spend on the road. Ever. Not about missed birthdays or anniversaries. Not about spending so much time apart. Not now and not when their boys had been growing up.
Madge was too loyal, too committed to her marriage and too much in love with her husband to utter a word against him.
Andrea let out a sigh. Whether it was inspired by a little jealousy or a sister’s protective instinct, she was not sure. All she knew was that if Russell Stevens loved his wife as much as Madge loved him, he would have come home by plane, train, car or on horseback, if necessary, and shared Madge’s special moment last night and attended services with her today, too.
“Judge not,” she murmured, hoping to retrieve some of the grace she had lost by letting her love for her sister lead her to selfish thoughts. She opened the church bulletin to distract herself and saw the advertisement for the new Shawl Ministry that Madge had mentioned the other day.
The advertisement filled a quarter-page box inside a border decorated with small crosses formed from pairs of knitting needles. It read:
Announcing the newly formed
Church of Holy Faith
Shawl Ministry
Wanted: Volunteers committed to prayer, fellowship
and the desire to serve Him by ministering
to others
Required: Willing hands and loving hearts
Knitting skills desirable, but not necessary
Come two afternoons a month to knit or teach
others to knit!
New Members Meeting: August 14, 7 p.m.
Welleswood Community Center
Donations of materials also appreciated
Memories began to surface, but before they came into focus, Andrea heard someone approaching. When she looked up, Peggy Fallon greeted her with a smile. “I heard about what happened. You look great, considering.” She sat down next to Andrea. “Do you feel as good as you look?”
Andrea groaned. “You’re a sweetheart. I certainly hope I look a lot better than I feel. Mostly, I just tire out a whole lot faster than I like these days.”
“Who doesn’t?” She tapped the advertisement Andrea had been reading. “I think the Shawl Ministry is a great idea. Tim’s going to print some signs to put up around town to see how many people we can get involved.”
“He’s got a good heart,” Andrea murmured.
Peggy laughed. “And you’ve got a very persuasive sister.”
“Madge?” Andrea asked, although she knew only too well how persuasive Madge could be. Who else could have convinced Andrea to attend the meeting for the Shawl Ministry?
“None other. But the printing won’t take too much time. Since Tim runs the church bulletin, he already has the ad in the computer. Touch a few buttons and keys, and he’s got the size he needs for the signs. They should be ready by noon tomorrow. He’s got a lot of work to do, and we were wondering if maybe you could let Jamie Martin take some time off tomorrow to pick up the signs and distribute them to the businesses in town? We need to get the signs into shop windows as quickly as we can. Otherwise, Jamie can stop in as soon as he finishes up work.”
Andrea toyed with the corner of the bulletin. “I didn’t realize you knew Jamie was going to be helping out at the agency. Word sure does spread fast.”
Peggy patted Andrea’s hand. “Good news, bad news and all the news in-between. That means, fortunately, for Jamie’s sake, that yesterday’s news gets forgotten rather quickly. He really impressed a lot of people by volunteering to help you while you recuperate. You’ve impressed them even more by letting him.”
Andrea waved away the compliment. “He’s a good kid. It was just an accident.” She paused. “I’m not sure I would ask him to distribute the signs, though. Talking to the different business owners, some of whom might want to take him to task for—”
“He knows that. He said he would do it, but only if you gave your
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