There it was again! Adelaide sat bolt-upright, her eyes feeling as if they would pop out of her sockets. Night after night her confused dream would come. She was swinging on the swing, rocking Lily, laughing with Annie, listening to her mother singing as she made breakfast. ... And then the mournful tune from her dad's alto saxophone with the strains of "Standing Somewhere in the Shadows You'll Find Jesus" would invade her dream.

But this time she knew it wasn't a dream. She jumped out of bed. "This has got to stop!" she hissed at the reflection of herself in the mirror. She grabbed her towel and jumped into the shower. As the water poured over her, tears streamed from her eyes. What was she going to do? Then her grandmother's voice screamed inside her head: "Adelaide! You're an adult now, responsible for this family. Responsible for managing a home. Responsible for--" A groan exploded from her lips. And then she heard Lily's gurgle.

Throwing a towel around her, Adelaide hurried back to her bedroom, to the crib by her bed. There was Lily, her thin little arms flailing, her pixie face aglow. Again, it was as if a beam of light had entered the room. As she bent to pick her little sister up from her crib, out of those twinkling eyes, she saw her mother smiling at her. As always, Lily threw her flailing arms around her sister, with her usual greeting, "Adi! Adi!" Adelaide gave Lily an extra-long hug, shutting her eyes to keep the tears from spilling out. Then she distinctly heard her mother's voice--yet it seemed to be coming from Lily: "Adi! You can do it! You can do it! You can do all things through Christ who strengthens you."

Adelaide laid Lily on her bed and changed and dressed her, singing happy little songs to her, while Lily's legs jerked every which way. Settling Lily in her wheel-chair-perambulator, Adelaide took her time dressing. A plan was formulating in her mind.

Was it her mother's voice from heaven that had whispered the plan to her? She didn't know. But she knew what she was going to do. She went to Annie's room. "Annie, I can hear Thunder calling you. Time to get up. After you feed Thunder and Tiger and Buffy, go get Daddy--he's in the barn playing his sax. We are going to have a conference at breakfast this morning. Everyone in attendance! No exceptions! No excuses! Breakfast will be at 8:00 sharp." She kissed her little sister and ran from the room.

Adelaide sang as she cooked the family's favourite breakfast, pancakes and eggs. At 8:00 sharp Annie and Dad came in arm-in-arm, with smiles on their faces. Adelaide didn't know what magic Annie had performed to change Dad's mournful face to a cheerful one, but whatever it was, it was a great encouragement for what Adelaide had in mind. Nothing was said at breakfast about the "conference" that was to come.

"Annie, will you clear the table and put the dishes in the dishwasher?... No Dad, you just sit there. Here, have another coffee." She lifted Lily from her highchair, setting her on her daddy's lap. Then she sat down--in her mother's usual place.

"This morning," Adelaide began, "I had a talk with Mama--and Jesus. I have something I want to discuss with you. Dad, Mama told me that you have grieved for her long enough. She says it's time you got on with your life. It's time you began to think of your family and not only of yourself." Adelaide shut her eyes. She was afraid that there was going to be an explosion erupting from Daddy. But instead, he just got up from the table and left the house.

"Well, so much for the conference," she said to Annie.

"Don't be too sure." Annie smiled. "I'm sure I saw tears in his eyes. And I've been doin' some thinkin' too. We told Granny that we were a family and that we were gonna to stick together. Well, I've been doing some thinking" she repeated. "And I know Daddy has too. Yes, he drones on and on with his sax, and keeps on playing that mournful tune, but I think he is thinking all the while. He said so when we were on our way in this morning. He said, 'Hang in there, my little turtle dove. We're gonna make it."

Adelaide, with tears in her eyes, gave Annie a big hug. "Oh Annie, I don't know what I would do without your cheerful attitude. Life seems so complicated at times. I--we--need Mama so much."

***

It was four o'clock. Adelaide wheeled Lily in from the car and settled her into her crib for a late-afternoon nap.

"What will I make for dinner this evening?" she said aloud. "I want to do something special." Her heart was filled with excitement. She was bursting to tell Annie and Dad her news.

"Don't make supper." Dad burst through the door, ran to his daughter, lifting her off her feet and swinging her around, just like he used to do when she was little. Then he ran to Lily's crib and lifted her out, swinging her gently around. She giggled and grabbed for his chin. "We're goin' out to eat tonight. We're gonna celebrate!"

"Celebrate?" Adelaide looked at her dad.

Just then Annie burst through the door. "Adi!" Seeing her dad she stopped, a question mark showing on her face. "What's up?"

"We're all goin' out to celebrate." Dad gave Annie a hug. "I've got a big surprise."

Settled in a cozy corner of "Chuckie's Restaurant", their dinners ordered, the family joined hands, while Dad said grace.

"How would you like it if your daddy never had to leave home again to go to work?"

"What? What?" Adelaide and Annie said in unison. "Never had to go to work?" they both echoed.

"No. I didn't say I'd never have to GO to work. I said I'd never have to leave HOME to go to work. You see, today I quit my job."

"You did what?" Adelaide's face looked like a thunder cloud. Now what would her family do? This business of acting like an adult suddenly felt like--like-- She was about to explode.

"Wait! Wait! Wait'll I tell you the whole story." He grabbed Adelaide's arm, stroking it. "There was about to be a big change in the company. I'd heard it talked about before Mama took suddenly ill. I knew that there were going to be some lay-offs soon. So I went to the boss and had a talk. He told me that I wasn't one on the list to be laid off. But I asked if he would lay ME off. That way I could quit and still be eligible for my full pension benefits--severance pay, EI benefits, back pay, built up holiday pay--the full packet. I've been with the company for over 25 years. He agreed, thanking me, as it would save one man from having to be laid off."

"But Dad, you're only fifty-two! You're too young to retire. What would you do with your life?"

"Oh, don't worry, my Chickies. I've no intention of lazing around, taking it easy. I went to the bank, deposited ALL the money, and took out a small loan."

Adelaide and Annie were speechless. Had their dad completely flipped?

Dad went on. "You know that big barn at the back of the property? You know, Annie, next to where Thunder's shelter is? Well, I've been thinking--for a long time now--why not turn that into a garage. I've used it many-a-time over the years, as you know, for fixin' machinery and other types of vehicles. So why not use it for fixing farm machinery--trackers, etc? I aim to turn it into a business. I'm going in tomorrow to finalize the paper work. I've seen a lawyer. Everything is legal and above-board. All we need to do is come up with a name. And that's up to you--all of you. He turned to Lily. Her face was like a sunbeam.

"Well, I've got some news too!" Adelaide and Annie said in unison, as was often the case.

"You go first, Annie." Adelaide touched her little sister's arm.

"You see, Thunder and Buffy and I took a trip around the neighbourhood today. Most of the farmers and their wives are working in town, ya' know. And when they get home, they're so tired that they just have to drag themselves around to do their chores. So I offered my services. Three of them, Thorntons, Stranges and Thompsons, were delighted to hire me. Don't know what my pay'll be, but that doesn't matter. It's a start. I also offered to keep their dogs and cats when they go on holidays. I can fix up Buffy's kennel. He doesn't use it anymore. And I could--" Annie's eyes sparkled as she shared her news. "Now what's YOUR news?" She turned to her big sister.

"Ad-i! Ad-i! Dad-i! An-ni!" All eyes turned to Lily. She had actually articulated each name clearly. All she had ever said before was "Adi". Each of the family reached over and gave her a hug.

"Well Adi. What's YOUR news?" Dad reached for his daughter's hand.

"Today while I had Lily at her therapy group, I had a talk with the supervisor. Last week I had heard of three of the mothers with handicapped children, who really wanted to go back to work. They were looking for some day care where they could drop off their kids. So the idea that I had brewing in my brain all week, to open a daycare for handicapped children, has come into fruition...Oh yes, I know what you are going to say, Dad: what about my education? Well, I have thought of that too. I'd already given up the idea of going back to school. It wouldn't be possible, with the house and Lily to look after. So I plan to finish my psychology course by correspondence. I was going to discuss it with you, Dad, but you've seemed so...so...preoccupied."

"I'm sorry, Honey. I know I've left the burden of the family on you. Things will change, I promise. But what about licensing for it--the daycare?"

"It's already been approved. Mom had set the wheels in motion before she became ill."

Dad jumped up from the table to where his daughters were sitting. He grabbed them, pulling them from their chairs. "We're in business!" he said, not caring what the other guests at the restaurant thought. "What'll we call our triple venture?"

Annie, her face all smiles, turned to her dad. "Today as I rode through the trees on my way back home from my ride around the neighbourhood, as soon as I saw our place, it was as if a light suddenly came on. Dad, you're always playing 'Standing Somewhere in the Shadows You'll Find Jesus'. Well, I think we found Him, and I think a good name would be--"

"You're right!" Adelaide jumped up and hugged her little sister.

"'OUT OF THE SHADOWS'" the sisters echoed in unison. "How about THAT for a name, Dad?"

"Perfect! Just perfect. This family today has come out of the shadows."

That evening, Dad gathered his family around Lily's crib and gave thanks to the Lord for leading them OUT OF THE SHADOWS and into the light. It was the first time since their mother had died that Dad had prayed aloud, except for his short, curt grace before each meal.

As Adelaide lay in bed that night she heard her grandmother's voice: "Adelaide you're an adult now. You have a family to care for. Think you can handle it?"

"Yep, Granny, You betcha! I can handle it, with the Lord's help I can do all things. I've made an abrupt landing from childhood into adulthood. And, know what? I know I am going to love it."

c 2010 - 2011 Helen Dowd

ADELAIDE SERIES:
Story 1 - An Abrupt Landing
Story 2 - Out of the Shadows
Story 3 - Heavenly Sunshine
Story 4 - Reflections
Story 5 - Mists From The Past -I
Story 6 - Mists From The Past -II
Story 7 - The Birthday Surprise
Story 8 - Dad's Big Surprise
Story 9 - Further Surprises
Story 10 - Into The Light

Watch for further stories in the ADELAIDE SERIES at a later date. hmd