Love Changes Everything: True Joy and Peace Come Where Grace and Forgiveness Abound

By Jessica Tendayi

After discovering that the little orphaned child that she had fallen in love with in the pediatric unit was actually her husband Stevens child with his recently deceased secretary, Racquel Levin is distraught and unsure about how to carry on with life as they had known it. Seeing as her happy family unit was falling apart, Racquel decides to go away for a few days to think things through. On her way to a healing retreat, she gets involved in a near-tragic car accident and is admitted into the ICU where she remained unconscious for a couple of weeks.

April is a busy, career-orientated young woman who has just found her footing in a very well-known marketing firm. Her world literally comes to a halt when her mother almost dies in a car crash, trying to get away from her father. April visits her mother everyday at the hospital, and unbeknown to her, she catches the attention of a drop-dead-gorgeous British resident doctor, Jason Watson, who is still healing from the scars left by the demons of his past.

As Jason and April search for their answers, their love story becomes an inspiration for Racquel and Steven as their family gains a new understanding of Gods divine emotional and physical healing and the realization that true joy and peace come where grace and forgiveness abound.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Oct 20, 2016
• ISBN: 9781512759433

Jessica Tendayi

Jessica Tendayi was born and raised in Zimbabwe. She has been writing short stories ever since the age of twelve, and although none of them were ever published, she has always held on to the belief that life writes the best stories. These are stories that we can all use as God-given life lessons and strength that can be drawn from other people’s situations in order to do this thing called life. Jessica currently lives in the countryside of Toronto, Canada, with her husband and three wonderful children.

Book preview

Chapter One

She sighed quietly as she put the phone back on its cradle. She had been hesitant to answer the phone in the first place but had found herself picking up the handset. And before she could change her mind, she had heard her mother on the other end of the line.

April? her mother’s raspy voice was unmistakable.

Hi, Mum. She tried to sound casually cheerful. How are you?

Her mother did not waste any time on trivial talk. Where have you been? She demanded. I have been trying all day to get in touch with you! Her tone was accusatory. As far back as April could remember, her mother always had the tendency to be extremely miserable when she did not get things her own way. And she could tell that today had been one such day. Although April was now a grown woman who lived on her own in the city, Racquel Levin absolutely disliked not having more of a firm grip on her daughter’s comings and goings.

Some of us work for a living, Mum, she answered, rather impatiently. Besides, why did you not try to reach me on my mobile? You know I hardly check my voice messages on my home line until the weekend. What was it that was so important anyway? April noticed a sharp edge to her own voice that she did not like. She always resented talking to her mother in that way, but on more than enough occasions, her mother provoked it. Or so April convinced herself. Her mother sensed it too, so there was only silence coming from the other end. April hesitated.

Mum?

I need you to come home on the weekend. I know I’m giving you very short notice, but this is very important. And before you say anything, she hastened to add before April could interrupt, I am really sorry, April, but I cannot discuss this any further. Your father and I expect you here by Saturday noon at the latest.

Is everything okay? I mean, nobody’s dying, or divorcing, or… or…or anything like that, right? April was annoyed. She already had plans for the weekend. Why do my parents seem to think that I do not have a life? Between work and my parents, when am I going to find time to actually start looking for someone to date? Nevertheless, she could not fight the nagging thought. The underlying tone of urgency in her mother’s voice had alerted her that something was wrong.

Just make sure that you are here. Her mother sounded exhausted already. Your brother will be here too. There was that pause again, then followed by a deep, weary sigh. I have to go now, April. I will call you again later in the week.

With that said, she hung up, and April heard the phone click as her mother put the phone down. She held the phone over her shoulder for a few moments more as she replayed the conversation in her mind. Something is wrong. I just know it.

April had planned to go shopping with her best friend Leah, on Saturday. After their shopping excursion, they had planned to meet up with Rick and Dave for dinner and a movie, although the movie part was not yet decided on as none of them could agree on what to watch. Rick was Leah’s older brother, and Dave, was his best friend from university. Over the years, the foursome had become a closely knit group of friends and who did many things together. They had spent the past couple of summers backpacking in Europe. And, although Saturday’s plans were no big deal, April had looked forward to a time of fun and laughter with her friends. Year-end at work had been tough. There were so many issues on most of her accounts, which resulted in many late nights spent at the office. She barely had any time to go out with her friends. Unfortunately, they were going to have to postpone to another weekend. The only trouble was that April could not shake off the feeling that something terribly wrong was brewing at home. Why else would Carl need to be there too.

She shrugged her shoulders helplessly as she proceeded to her bathroom en-suite to take a shower. It had been an extremely long day, and her boss had contributed much to the misery of that day. So much so, that for most of the afternoon, April found herself, on several occasions, entertaining thoughts of quitting her job right there and then! But common sense prevailed and she slaved away at her computer long after the office had closed for the night.

Half an hour later, April emerged from her bathroom in her favorite soft, ruby-colored bathrobe and matching slippers. Her hair was still wet, so she tied it up with a towel in a bundle above her head. She headed to the kitchen and made herself a quick dinner, heating up a portion of her frozen lasagna and making a fresh garden salad. She decided that some bread would complement her dinner nicely, but was disappointed to find that she none left in the fridge. She was in dire need of some groceries.

Her three-bedroom condo was one of the achievements that she was most proud of, because it was one of the few things that she had done for herself without her parents’ financial help. The condo suited her lifestyle perfectly – she had a spare bedroom for those few and far between overnight guests, and the smallest bedroom, whose floor-to-ceiling windows overlooked a small section of the lake, she used as a home office. The main entrance led through a small hallway that opened up to a generously spaced living and dining area, with the kitchen located to the right of the dining area. Large windows in both rooms allowed for the penetration of lots of natural light, making the place cozy, fresh, and inviting. April loved natural light, and it was one of the reasons she fell in love with the place. The bedrooms and bathrooms were to the left and back of the living room.

She sat in one of her plush suede couches to go through the pile of mail that she had placed on the side table when she came in from work. When the oven bell rang to indicate that her dinner was ready, she took the mail with her to the kitchen. She sat at the breakfast nook and ate in complete silence. The only sound that could be heard was that of envelopes being ripped open and paper being unfolded and then folded again; bills being placed in one pile, and garbage in another. This was her usual evening routine.

After she had finished eating, she returned to the couch, with the intention of watching the news to catch up on the day’s events. As she sat comfortably in the corner of the couch, her feet curled up against her chest, she thought of calling her brother to see if he might have any further insight or information regarding their mother’s rushed family meeting. She reached for the phone and dialed his number.

Carl was five years older than April. He held a Master’s degree in Software Engineering from the University of Waterloo. After spending several months tirelessly looking for a job in a market that seemed to be overflowing with well-qualified software engineers, he had finally landed a great position with the government, based in Ottawa. April had visited him on several occasions while she was still in University, mainly to see if she might like living there, but in the end, she had preferred to start her own independent life in Toronto, away from all the family. Carl was a private kind of guy, who kept to himself a lot. Yet he was also very caring, and extremely protective when it came to his sister. When she first left home, he had called her at least three times a week. Eventually, he had realized that his little sister was now a grown up woman who could take care of herself. She knew what she wanted in life and was eager and determined to pursue it. Now he only called her once or twice a week, usually on weekends when he had some free time.

He picked up on the fourth ring.

Levin. He sounded out of breath, almost as though he had just run up a flight of stairs to answer the phone. April wondered about that for a second, as she knew Carl did not use the stairs to get up to his condo. She quickly shrugged it off, concluding that he must have been working out on his treadmill. She also realized that from the way he answered the phone, he had not checked the caller ID. Otherwise, he would have known it was her calling.

Hey Carl. It’s me!

Oh, hi Chimpkin. How you doing? He had called her Chimpkin from as far back as she could remember.

I… I’m okay. You?

I guess I’m okay. His answer was flat. No indication that he intended to say more.

Did Mum call you? April was unsure how to bring up the reason for her call.

Yeah. I guess she finally got a hold of you, since she has stopped bugging me about not being able to reach you. He sounded amused. Their mother always had a tendency to overreact.

She did. So do you know what’s going on? What is it that is so urgent that we both need to be there? April was eager to get to the crunch of the matter, and fast! Carl could tell his sister was annoyed by the request, but he also knew that she would still oblige their mother.

I don’t have any more details than you have, Sis. I have no idea why Mum wants us home this weekend. Actually, I have to work late on Friday night, so I will have to leave here early on Saturday morning in order to make it there by noon. What are your travel plans?

Well, I was thinking could catch a ride with you, but since you sound a bit pressed for time, I’ll just take my own car. Perhaps I will ask Leah to come along for the ride.

Carl was skeptical. I don’t know if bringing Leah is a good idea, April. You know what Mum is like when it comes to family matters. He paused for a couple of seconds. She could hear him clear his throat a little before he continued. "From the tone of her voice, this sounded like one of those ‘very important family only get-togethers.’ But it’s up to you though. Besides, I’m sure you can handle a five-hour drive on your own!"

He smiled as he added the last bit of his comment to put her at ease. He was right, and he knew that she knew it too. Their mother would not appreciate her bringing a friend over if the meeting was one of those family only ones. And yes, she could make the drive on her own. She had done it many times before.

‘You are right. She replied slowly. I will see if I can take Friday afternoon off, then I’ll just leave straight from work. This could turn out to be the little break from the office that I so desperately need." She smiled. She was trying to maintain a positive attitude about the whole thing.

They spoke for a little while longer, mostly about work. Carl asked about a few of their friends, especially those with whom he had attended university. She teased him, as she always did, about not having a significant woman in his life at his age.

Come on, Carl, she said, laughing. "Mum wants grandchildren. In fact, I think she needs them. It’s the only way to get her off my case!"

Carl just smiled. His sister was right. He knew it all too well that it was time he started thinking about settling down. But he was still enjoying bachelorhood and the flexibility it offered, at least to him. At one time, April had asked if he was afraid of making a commitment. He had been just a little less than aggressive to her in his response. She had struck a nerve and he knew it. The truth hurt. And his sister was always ready to generously dish it out to him. But he enjoyed their conversations. She was the only person he could talk to without any reservations. She knew him better than anybody else, and she did not judge him. She had always looked up to him, and he had always been a tried and tested, true big brother to her.

It was almost nine o’clock when she finally got off the phone. She had missed the entire news broadcast, but had enjoyed talking and laughing with her brother. It had helped her to relax. She would have to wait for the repeat broadcast at ten o’clock if she was still interested in learning about the day’s events.

April had not brought any work home with her as she normally did. Today was one of those days when she was feeling fed up with her job. She remained seated on the couch, enjoying the comfortable silence of her home. The volume on the TV was still lowered from the time she had made the phone call to her brother. She leaned her head back and rested it on some cushions, then she closed her eyes and let her mind drift off into gentle sleep as she listened to the tick tock sounds coming from the big wall clock in her kitchen.

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By noon on Friday April had completed all the tasks on her short to-do list for the day. Her small suitcase was packed and neatly tucked away in the trunk of her car. More than anything, she was surprised by the fact that she was actually looking forward to going to her parents’ house for the weekend. It was mid-January now, and although the winds were bitter and the crisp air sharp, the scenery out there was still so beautiful. Tranquil was the word that came to her mind as she pictured the roadside scenery that she would soon be enjoying.

She had spoken to her mother the night before and informed her that she would be arriving on Friday evening. Her mother had sounded pleased, but had not - and would not - give away any further details about the reason for the urgent get-together. April had packed her small suitcase after the almost hour long conversation with her mother. Unsure of what clothes to take as the weather was supposed to remain cold, she knew all too well that Canadian winters had a tendency to have fluctuating temperatures. She was planning to stay indoors and at home all weekend, so decided that she would not need anything fancy. A couple pairs of jeans, a sweater and some long sleeved t-shirts would do.

Bye April, have a nice weekend!

She looked up from behind her desk, where she was going over her to-do list which she had drafted a few hours before, crossing off all the completed tasks. It was Tracy, one of her colleagues.

I’m leaving for lunch now, and you’ll probably be gone when I get back. I’ll be anxious to hear all about your adventures next week. She winked. April got the hint. Tracy was always trying to pair her off with some guy or the other. Match making. It was not April’s cup of tea at all. But due to the suddenness of his trip, Tracy was so convinced that April was going away with some newly found, mysterious lover for the weekend.

Thanks, Tracy. I will definitely update you, that is if I survive whatever it is that my mother has up her sleeve. Tracy smiled and waved as she left.

Relieved that Tracy had left without any further questions, April glanced at her watch. It was 12:10pm. She was meeting Leah for a quick lunch at the Mediterranean restaurant down the street from her office at 12:15pm, then head for the highway right after. She switched off her computer, undocked her laptop and packed it into its bag. Then she cleared her desk, locked her drawers and stood up to leave. She gave her entire office a quick onceover to ensure everything was in order before she stepped out into the hallway. Most of the offices were already deserted. It was Friday, after all. Most of her colleagues went out for lunch together on Fridays, most likely to celebrate the end of the working week. Only Barbara, the