Faith Within

By W. R. Leggett

A feel-good adventure story about a man and woman who mean to convince their son, a genius scientist, that there might be more at work in their lives than just his intellect and science. An accomplished scholar learns that his simple, hometown parents may know more about life than all of his books and degrees combined. Join them as they convince a hard-nosed thinker to feel rather than just think.

• Language: English
• Publisher: W. R. Leggett
• Release date: Oct 13, 2011
• ISBN: 9781452426631

Book preview

Faith Within

by

W. R. Leggett

SMASHWORDS EDITION

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PUBLISHED BY:

W. R. Leggett

Copyright © 2011 by W. R. Leggett

Smashwords Edition License Notes:

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

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This book is a work of fiction. Characters, names, places, events, organizations, businesses, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, locales, or events is entirely coincidental.

Chapter One: The Son and Light of the Future

A proud mother and father look upon the podium on a large stage in anticipation of the arrival of their only son. This day had finally come after many years of sacrifice and it marked the birth of the future, as it would be known to the world from that day on.

They woke up this morning with smiles of pride in the thoughts that they had some part, any part, in this miracle but they were content in the knowledge that this day would have come with or without their efforts. It was meant to be and they knew it. They just wished that the world could have the privilege of this knowledge and the faith to believe in it.

Although they worried about his future and their performance as parents, they also could not help the feeling of excitement that would come from attending this historic event. Their son had given them special passes, which would place them in the front row of the conference and give them a clear and unobstructed view of their pride and joy. They would be at arm’s length from dignitaries, politicians, and top physicians, all there just to see their son. It would be a surreal experience that would be unlike any that they had been through before.

They were simple people but, although this experience would be like no other, they were not without experience entirely. In fact, they had seen and done things that could not be claimed by many and it had led them to this day.

The introduction was eloquent and fitting considering the keynote speaker. The host of the event told of the extensive education that their son Vonn had been through. He told of the research that Vonn had conducted and the many countries to which he had traveled in his work. He told of the personal sacrifices made on his journey to this end and how he had dreamed of this accomplishment since as long as he could remember. Their son made his appearance and, after a standing ovation and a wink to his mother, he began an articulate dissertation on his journey to this discovery.

Their son had discovered a family of plants, the extract from which, would miraculously and exponentially enhance the body’s own immune system in its attack of cancer and other similar cells. It was shown to have increased the white blood cell’s ability to destroy cancer cells, in particular, by as much as eighty seven percent. Testing had shown an even greater reduction in certain types of cancer cells on which it was used. Breast Cancer, Lung Cancer, and several other types of blood and bone cancers were among those tested successfully.

He had made an enormous leap toward a solution to a problem that had plagued the human race for ages. He had done it in, what many would consider, a very short time. He had only been out of college for nine years. He had done what thousands of top scientists and physicians all over the world had been unable to do, after committing their entire careers to this problem.

Vonn had been dedicated to the problem but was never obsessed with it. He had always put the necessary time and effort into his work but never crossed the line of obsession like so many before him. It was as if it was meant to happen and he simply did what he needed to do to cross the finish line and nothing more. No one would ever have accused him of laziness or indifference, it just seemed to come easy to him and he never seemed to be stressed by the process.

Throughout his young life and education Vonn had always been a realist, a person who lived in the material world. He always tried to find a logical explanation for everything and never looked to the heavens for answers to any of the questions that challenged him. Vonn had been brought up in a household strongly based in the belief in God and dedicated service to him. He was taught to believe and have faith as the answer to all of his life's challenges.

He was less than accepting of this way of life but never rebelled against it either. He simply did as he was told and went his own way believing only in the world as he could see it and feel it. The closest he had ever gotten to being a believer of anything was his attachment to his lucky pocket watch he had been given as a boy. It was the only thing that never left his sight as he grew up.

He remained respectful of his parents and attended church with them until he left their home to pursue his dream. They were grateful for his respect but knew in their hearts that he had never accepted true faith into his. They knew that they had done their best to pass on their beliefs but had never told him what had solidified that faith for them. They always wanted him to willingly accept this concept on his own without their pressuring him. As true believers they felt that their son would do as he would be guided whether he knew it or not and they were content with that.

After the conference had come and gone and the press had nearly burned their son's skin with a constant barrage of camera flashes, Vonn made his way to them through the crowd. He was bubbling over with boyish excitement although he had remained professional in the delivery of his speech. He gave each of them a huge hug and thanked them for always being there for him. He insisted that they go out for an intimate dinner, just the three of them. He felt an obligation to show some individual attention to his parents amid all of the excitement. He felt that this would be a small gesture to help them feel confident that he would remain grounded among all of this public adoration. He knew that this would be important to them and felt that he should show them that he was still their little boy. He wanted them to know that he still respected them for everything they had done for him.

At dinner the conversation was brimming with technical terms and medical stories that no one but Vonn could ever understand but they listened intently as if they understood every word. They reveled in the joy that it brought to their son's face to roll around in the science that he had used to create this miracle. They even made the mistake of calling it just that, a miracle, which caused the conversation to go in a slightly different direction.

For many years Vonn had been respectful of their faith and had no intention of changing that now. He did, however, think that this was as good a time as any to make a point about his own beliefs. In a very respectful manner he began to describe how his discovery, his creation, was his alone and came as a result of no divine guidance. He went on to explain how, although he respected their right to believe, he chose to live and do and create his dreams out of material things of this earth. He chose to work with things that he could see, touch, and measure.

He went on for over an hour about how these things he had accomplished were of his own doing and had nothing to do with faith. He searched for a way to say that faith was for the weak of mind without hurting his parents’ feelings. There was no pleasant way to express that feeling so he just let it come out. He said that, although he truly did respect the rights of others to believe, he would rather live his life of this earth and choose not to pin his dreams on higher powers that can't be confirmed by science. He said that he, more or less, believed that people who invested their entire being into something that could not be seen or touched were weak. He believed that looking to something, not of this world, for help with something you couldn't handle on your own could only be described as a sign of weakness or lack of intellect.

A silence came over the table as the words left his lips. He felt, for a moment, that he had crossed a line and hurt the people that he loved the most and who lived only for him. Instantly a feeling of despair and regret came over him as he waited for a response from his loving parents. He just knew that he had created a dark cloud on the entire day that should have been nothing but positive. As he looked at his parents, they looked at each other and smiled. For a genius of a scientist he was as confused as a freshman on his first day of college.

After the words left his mouth he had instantly prepared himself for a passionate and possibly angry reaction from his devoutly spiritual parents. Instead he received a mutual smile from both and a look of both satisfaction and anticipation. A look much like that on the faces of parents on Christmas morning as they watch their children approach the tree surrounded by gifts. He did not know what to do with this reaction even though it was far more pleasant than he expected. This accomplished scientist felt like a child again as his parents gazed upon him with this unusual look.

He couldn't help but to look at both of them in a somewhat defensive and confused way and say, What?

Both Emani and Grace looked at each other again and nodded as if to say It's time. Without a word of discussion on the matter, at that moment anyway, they decided that their son must be enlightened by the experiences that they had been through and the path that had led them all to this day.

Not sure what to do with this reaction, Vonn was faced with the possibility that there may have been more to the lives of his simple parents than he had ever imagined. He had grown up in a small town in Southern Wisconsin and attended schools that were not the best but did the best with what they had. He had watched his parents leave early in the morning for the mill and return late in the afternoon for as long as he had been alive.

He would get off the bus and run across to Mrs. Davidson's house every day after school until his parents made it home from work. Emani had made an agreement with her to mow her lawn or shovel snow from her driveway, in exchange for watching Vonn after school. She would have done it for free since she loved that little boy as if he were her own. She knew that Emani was a proud man and would never let the favor go unpaid, so she accepted. Vonn's parents traveled together to and from work since before his birth so he always assumed that it had been that way since the beginning of time, or at least their time.

In all that time he had never recalled hearing them have even a cross word to say between them, much less an argument. They always seemed to act as though they were lucky to have every day together and showed no desire to have it any other way. He knew that to be normal until he made it out into the real world as he called it. Although as a boy, he never gave it much thought, as an adult he couldn’t recall coming across any other couples that got along as well as his parents did. Without really ever realizing it he had been comforted by this environment and it had made him a calm and confident person.

He was the center of their universe, but for so many more reasons than just blood. He was their hope for the future. Their faith had convinced them that he was destined to make a difference in the world. They could never have known the magnitude of the difference he would actually make. Even if they did, it would not have changed the way they treated their golden little boy. They had devoted their lives to his wellbeing in every sense and could not have done any more or any better for him if they tried.

Chapter 2: The Enlightenment of their Son

Emani took the lead and began to tell Vonn his own history. He began to explain the journey that had brought about the way they lived and the way they chose to raise him. He explained that he had not always been a true believer and he had traveled quite a path to get to the peace and comfort that his faith now afforded him. He began his story as a young man in Charleston, South Carolina. He was the son of Mary and Delvin. Mary was an elementary school lunch lady and Delvin was a machinist and an accomplished welder.

They were not wealthy people but they were well respected. Neither of them was particularly spiritual nor did they attend church on a regular basis. They did what they needed to do to provide for him and otherwise kept to themselves for the most part. They had instilled in him that, if he needed something, he either had to earn the money to buy it or he had to make it himself.

His mother was an easy-going person and did as she was told by his father, that is, until she wasn't in the mood for it. Most of the time Emani felt as if his father ran the household but realized later in life that he was merely allowed to wear that hat as long as he didn't push it too far. His father was a forceful man and knew how to apply his weight to any situation but he also knew exactly when to walk away from his mother.

She was a kind woman who took pride in her work and enjoyed working around kids of all ages. She wanted little to do with the work that his father did and that suited him just fine. The less time they spent together the better they got along. They were not known for being overtly loving with one another but they had an understanding and that was good enough for both of them. They argued over money and chores as any other married couple would do but they knew when to draw the line and they never let it get out of hand.

Emani’s father was a hardworking man who was very skilled in the art of metal persuasion. He could build or fix anything metal and had earned a reputation as the Go-to Guy for the neighboring shipyard repairs. His father's shop was a virtual playground for anyone interested in metal fabrication, but it was also a very dangerous place for anyone not familiar with the craft. It was dark, for the most part, as it was a refurbished warehouse and had never been truly designed for how it was being used. It had metal shavings and shards if steel lying about and everything in the shop had a thin layer of black dust. The shop was never cooler than one hundred and twenty degrees, even in the winter, due to the enormous furnace that his father had built for smelting steel. Emani grew up in and around this environment so he felt right at home in what most would consider a chaotic world of sharp and dirty things.

As Emani spent time in the shop, he became obsessed with combining metals in the furnace and experimenting with his creations. He had no real set goals in his experimentation other than to see what would be the result of his concoctions.