Four Lives and a Grain of Sand E-Book

Barbara Shriver

• Herausgeber: BookRix
• Kategorie: Gesellschafts- und Liebesromane
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2015

Beschreibung

  Izzy is a beautiful young girl who passed away with Cancer. Her only wish from life was to bring happiness to others. As her ashes are scattered on the beach, they touch four peoples lives, each searching for something. And miracles happen.

Leseprobe

Barbara Shriver

Four Lives and a Grain of Sand

BookRix GmbH & Co. KG81371 Munich

Four Lives and a Grain of Sand

Four Lives and a Grain of San

Chapter 1

As the waves come crashing onto shore and the sun shone brightly overhead, the crowd of people stands on the beach with heavy hearts. For today they are all saying goodbye to Their friend, Isabelle, known to everyone as Izzy. At the tender heart of sixteen she left this earth, as ashes to ashes and dust to dust, for cancer had consumed her. Her ashes flowed from the urn, blown by the wind, and mix with the grains of sand.

With their heads bowed and tears in their eyes, each person is remembering times they've spent together and parts of their lives that she had touched. Izzy was a person that will always be with them in their hearts. She was a very special girl. Curly blond hair, blue eyes, dimples and a radiant Smile that filled the room, making each person feel immensely happy each time they saw her. Izzy had this way about her. An inner warmth and charisma that touched you. Warming your heart and making you smile, an inner glow.

The last two years of dealing with cancer merely dented her soul. With a positive attitude Every day she still believed she would overcome it. She never gave up hope. As each person around her crumbled with grief, she stood strong and her belief to beat cancer never wavered. Even in the hospital you would find her sitting with the younger cancer patients reading them Books or playing games with a them trying to make them smile and feel good, not worrying About herself, not letting it get her down. Even at the end, bald and only weighing 89 pounds, she refused to give up. But she didn't have a choice.

From the time she took her first step life held nothing but joy and excitement for her. Always full of life. Dance classes, gymnastic and cheerleading, she was constantly on the move. Her family and friends wondered at her as she juggled it all, yet kept her grades at a 4.0 average. Brains and beauty and an overflowing warm heart. Making each person feel special in her presence. She made friends where ever she went. It was like she was a magnet, drawing people to her. No one was a stranger, just a friend she hadn't met yet.

With a large, loving family, they all felt the cancer when it hit. Something was wrong with Izzy.She kept smiling and insisting everything was fine. But they knew it wasn't. It started with the little things. Her mom noticed she seemed to have a hard time concentrating. She stared at the same page over and over again. While driving with her Dad, she hit the car in front of her the guy at a stop light. Her reflexes were off. She would laugh with her brother and sister, then just stop and stare off into the distance. There was something definitely wrong with Izzy. She wasn't herself. At first her parents thought maybe she was under too much pressure. They were starting to talk about preparing for college and her choices for life. But then came the day in cheerleading practice. At first she couldn't remember the cheers then she just wilted like a flower and passed out. After many hours at the hospital and many tests later it was confirmed. Izzy had an inoperable brain tumor that was malignant and progressing very fast. Nothing could be done. She had 6 months to live. "No", Izzy said, " They're mistaken, I can beat this." At night after school, she spent hours devouring every article or book she could find about cancer, but during the day she smiled and acted like life was perfect. Her friends and family were there to support her, but she supported them and tried to keep her once happy life the same. Eventually, she was in the hospital more or at home in bed, but she was never alone. Everyone wanted to share her last moments Then it was all over in the blink of an eye, sixteen years. She was gone.

Today they stand on the beach to say goodbye. She asked to be cremated and sprinkled on the sand where she remembered nothing but sunshine and happiness. Playing in the sand as a child with her family, fishing, picnicking, and body surfing with her friends. She said the beach was part of her soul. This is where she wanted to be forever, there with the grains of sand.

The large group of people standing on the beach seems to include so many people from different parts of her life. The kids from school, her dance teachers, the members of the Church, the cheerleaders, neighbors, the postman, the guy from the local ice cream shop, the woman from the bookstore, the beauty shop girls where she got her hair cut, the family who owned the vegetable stand on the way to the beach. There were doctors and nurses and even other cancer patients who came to say goodbye to the beautiful young girl with a radiant smile.

The preacher started his eulogy. " Izzy and I had long talks the last couple of weeks. She asked that we don't be sad, for she wasn't afraid. She believed God had a higher purpose for her. Izzy is free to blow with the wind and join the many grains of sand here on the beach. May you go forth and bring happiness to each person you come in contact with, for love and happiness are what she has felt in life from each and every one of you stands before her. As he tilts the urn toward the earth, they raise their voices and begin to sing.

Chapter 2

Hope

As the wind blows the ashes fly through the air, being mixed with the grains of sand and being carried they know not where...

As the wind blows, so comes the sand. The young woman sitting on the bench picks up her head and brushes the sand from her cheek. She hears beautiful voices singing a song from the group standing down the beach. Sitting by herself on the bench, looking out at the ocean contemplating her life. She is taken back to another time She is sitting on the window seat looking out the window and she is six years old.. Her best friend is leaving. Waving to her as she takes her new parent's hands, and they walk to their car. June was one of the lucky ones. With a name of Hope why couldn't she be so lucky? You would think there was a reason the nuns bestowed this name on her. All she's ever known was the orphanage and the love of the nuns. For at the tender age of six she can't even remember her friends. They have come and gone so quickly.

Sister Clara comes into the room. "Hope, come away from the window and come help me work on this month’s bulletin board. I need your help drawing pictures for the story we're going to tell. We're working on Noah's Ark and we have a lot of animals to draw and cut out. " Hope smiles at Sister Clara because she knows Sister is just trying to keep her busy so she won't miss her friend. It's not the first time she has done so. Hope looks at Sister, "Do you think someone will come for me soon, maybe someone is looking for a little girl like me?", as she touches the necklace she wears. A half heart with a small blue stone. The nuns say she had it pinned to her shirt the night they found her on the front steps. She'll never take it off, she'll never lose it. Maybe some day her mother will find her, that's what she chooses to believe.

Today is her birthday, well, it's the day they celebrate her birthday. No one was ever sure. The sisters will be having cake and ice cream for her with everyone, but first the younger children must get ready for the visitors. Once a month Mother Superior held an open house for people to meet the children and get to know them. As many times as Hope had attended an open house, she never liked them or felt comfortable. She was more of a bookworm and very shy almost to the point of being there, but being invisible. Hence, never really opening herself up to finding a family. Not realizing this until too many years later when it was too late to make a difference.

At the age of 18 on Graduate day, Hope looked forward to starting college. Though she was never adopted, it was a blessing that she was awarded a full Liberal Arts scholarship at New York University through the Edward Lee Foundation for four years, providing she kept her grades up. Since NYU was so close to the orphanage she was able to donate her time helping the sisters with the children which she loved. In the back of her mind a family of her own was forming.

Hope had made the decision the second year of college that Social Work would be her calling. She worked hard toward her goal. One day on campus, sitting under a tree, she was studying Early Childhood Development. Deep in thought, a soccer ball rolled onto the blanket. Looking up, she locked eyes with the most beautiful set of green eyes she had ever seen. A handsome young man stood in front of her, wavy brown hair and a big smile. "Hi", he says, "My name is Adam". I think we're in the same Social Welfare Policy class. What's your major?" Hope, answered "Social Work." "Mine too," he says. And so began the first romantic adventure in her life. Over the next three years they were inseparable. Hope had never been so happy. After graduation, Adam accepted a position as the Career Counselor at Flagler High School in Florida. Hope accepted a position as Social and Community Service Assistant for Flager County in Florida. They decided to get married. After a small wedding with Adam's family, they packed their bags, car and headed to Florida.

Settling into their new life took some time, but the one thing they both loved was the beach. Many times at the end of the day they would call each other and say, "Meet me at the beach". Hope would rush home, pack a picnic basket, grab a bottle of wine and together they would discuss their day and watch the sun set. Things seemed to be going perfectly, even though Hope had a hard time not thinking about her cases or worrying about one of the children she was working with.