Free Tracie Peterson by Tidings of Peace Page A

we feel very much as though God has smiled down on us.”
    The sprinkles of rain gradually became a bit more heavy. Natalie looked heavenward and shook her head. “I’ve got to get these girls home and out of the cold, or next thing I know, they’ll have the measles too.”
    Ruth nodded. “I’ll see you Wednesday night at church.”
    David tipped his hat again and waited until the woman hurried off down the sidewalk before asking Ruth if she’d rather turn back for home. His arm hurt him something fierce, but he wasn’t about to let on.
    “No, let’s go ahead and deliver these,” she replied. “The cemetery is just up the ways and we won’t stay long.”
    The rain stopped, but the dampness remained. David had always thought of graveyards as rather cold and ominous, but with Ruth at his side it didn’t seem quite so bad. She spoke in a lighthearted tone of how glad she was that Marion had thought of putting up a stone and how it was nice to have some way to honor Kenny.
    They walked a little ways past a black wrought iron gate that merelystated the word CEMETERY. The wet dead grass soaked David’s shoes, but he tried not to notice. After all, they were here for Kenny.
    “Here we are.” Ruth bent down and cleared away a few dried leaves. “We can put this one here on Grandma Bennett’s grave,” she said as she placed the potted plant atop the marker. “And we can put the other one on Kenny’s stone.” She stood back up and pointed.
    David caught sight of the stone not three feet away. He stepped solemnly to the grave and placed the plant beside the marker, not willing to cover up his best and only friend’s name. He stood staring silently for several moments before Ruth joined him and spoke.
    “Rachel told me she gave you her letters. I trust you read them,” she said. He nodded but refused to look at her. “Good,” she continued in her soft way. “I know she wanted you to see that we knew all about you, David. I hope you understand why. Kenny shared his feelings quite openly, and even when he was home on leave, he told us that he hoped one day you would understand his concern for you and that you would come here with him.”
    David glanced up ever so slightly. “I can’t believe you still want to have me around when you know what I was like. What I’m still like.” He looked back down at the ground.
    “But we do want you to stay. I love having you here because you were Kenny’s friend, but also because I’ve enjoyed your company. I care about you, David, and I know the others feel the same. Especially Rachel.”
    “I don’t see how you can say that.”
    “David, nobody is perfect. You’ve had more than your fair share of knocks in life, but only you can make a change for the better. You said that Jesus couldn’t possibly know about the things you’d done and still love you. Rachel gave you those letters to prove that it is possible.”
    He lifted his head and looked into her face. Her eyes were brimming with tears, but she wouldn’t back down. “I’ve come to love you as a son, David. From the moment I saw you standing on our front porch, I could see what Kenny saw in you. The need, the sorrow, the longing, but also the potential, the spirit, the strength.”
    “I’m not strong,” he said in a barely audible whisper.
    “You’re here,” Ruth replied, “and I think that speaks for itself. The fact is, I knew all about what you had done to Kenny, the timesyou had disappointed him. I knew you had a scandalous past and that you had a penchant for fighting your way in and out of trouble. But it doesn’t matter. You have to see that, and in seeing that, maybe you can realize that it doesn’t matter to Jesus either.”
    “God can’t be too worried about a loser like me,” David declared. “Otherwise I would have died that day with my shipmates. Instead, I have to live with the guilt that I’m here and they’re gone.”
    “I’d say you’ve just proven your own point,” Ruth