Second Chances

By C.D. Sutherland, Judy Burford, Beverly Flanders and 6 more

This publication stands as a testimony of the fifth year a group of authors have assembled their collective muse to create an anthology celebrating the short story. The last four years’ anthologies, Celebrating the Short Story, Over the Moon Travel Treasures, 2020 Vision, and Coming of Age, contributed greatly to advancing the craft of Christian fiction writing in Louisiana. This year, nine published authors have collaborated to produce the wonderful collection of diverse short stories you’re now viewing, Second Chances.
The short story has long endured since the creation of language. It is a useful vehicle for presenting an account, more often concentrating on the creation of a mood rather than a plot. A short story can range from a cleverly crafted sentence all the way up to 20,000 words. Whatever the length, a short story is typically centered around one plot, one main character, and one central theme. This stands in contrast to a novel, which is capable of weaving multiple plots and themes among an array of central characters. The writing styles used in short stories can be somewhat unusual or surprising to its readers, sometimes their writers use literary techniques which might wear down a reader if employed through the length of a novel. Being short, by definition, they provide the perfect fodder for being assembled into collections, usually with some unifying theme or common element to tie them together.
The nine short stories contained in Second Chances are as diverse in technique and theme as our previous years’ writings; nevertheless, they are united in the fact that a second chance event is a common element. We invite you to take notice of the techniques used by this array of talented authors to weave those second chance related appearances into their stories.
These nine adventures will take you to places you have never been. C.D. Sutherland’s Pop, Death, & the Devil chronicles the adventures of a retired bomber pilot turned novelist named Chandler Stud after he is brushed by Death. Judy Burford’s The Journey will put you in Jenny Sue Cutter’s struggle to survive the perils of a nineteenth-century wagon train to Oregon and then her challenge to carry-on after others don’t survive. Eileen K. Copeland’s The Fisher will show you a precious moment shared by Josie Grace and her grandfather, and then reveal how it provides comfort and the hope of greater things to come. Beverly Flanders’ The Promise brings back a mother’s memories of a promise she made to God that would assure her of His presence through good times and sad times. Carole Lehr Johnson’s A Chance in Time explains how Bertha Carrick, a character in the novel A Place in Time, came to be at Dunbar Park as she sought peace to salve the sorrow of loss from London’s seventeenth-century plague. Susan Hiers Foster’s Goodbye Mrs. Kravitz is a sweet story of neighbors Sally and Jim who come close to missing out on a friendship that will enrich their lives. Internationally published author Tammy Kirby’s Second Chance Daddy tells a tale of love interrupted and God’s perfect timing. Marguerite Martin Gray’s Loyalties Severed examines George Elliott’s tough choices dealing with a young man’s wavering devotions regarding love, family, and loyalty. Finally, the talented and prolific author Mary Lou Cheatham uses Deborah to retell the story of the Old Testament prophetess and judge who led her nation to know peace without fear. When you return from these experiences, chances are some will have left you wanting for more. If so, then check out that story’s author page in the back of the book. They might have something else you’ll like. We believe you’ll be glad you did.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Narrow Way Press
• Release date: Jan 28, 2022
• ISBN: 9781937366322

C.D. Sutherland

Charles David Sutherland signs his books as C.D. Sutherland. Across three decades, he flew B-52s for the Air Force, where he was known among his fellow warfighters as The Chuck. Then he turned novelist with his "The Chronicles of Susah" series novels, which shook up the fiction world as they defied conventional classification. They blended action and emotional tension with technology and spiritual intrigue in a coming-of-age story wrapped in an epic adventure set in the antediluvian age marking the birth of a new literary genre. His readers called it Antediluvian Steampunk and declared C.D. Sutherland to be its father. If you like Biblically-based action adventures for all ages, then look at his books—you’ll be glad you did.Born in the Virginia foothills to a coalminer’s son, who long ago joined the Navy to escape a life in the dark Appalachian mines, C.D. Sutherland also joined the military. After high school, he served in the Air Force for thirty-two years, seeing much of the world, flying jets, and doing other things most men have only dreamed about doing.C.D. Sutherland married the love of his life, and they are well into their 45th year. The two of them are raising a couple of their grandsons. While C.D. Sutherland is a Baptist deacon, author, and ACFW Louisiana chapter President and project manager, he is also the owner and executive editor of Narrow Way Press, LLC, a small independent publishing company. His philosophy for life is to "do the best you can with what you have to work with.”His power verse is:“I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” (Philippians 4:16 KJV) *(*note: You can too!)

Book preview

SECOND CHANCES

A Collection of Diverse Short Stories

C.D. SUTHERLAND JUDY BURFORD EILEEN K. COPELAND BEVERLY FLANDERS CAROLE LEHR JOHNSON SUSAN HIERS FOSTER TAMMY KIRBY MARGUERITE MARTIN GRAY MARY LOU CHEATHAM

Narrow Way Press LLC

Second Chances: A Collection of Diverse Short Stories is a collective work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and events either are the product of the authors’ imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

The following works were used by permission and agreement:

Pop, Death, and the Devil Copyright © 2022 by C.D. SUTHERLAND

Journey’s End Copyright © 2022 by JUDY BURFORD

The Fisher Copyright © 2022 by EILEEN K. COPELAND

The Promise Copyright © 2022 by BEVERLY FLANDERS

A Chance in Time Copyright © 2022 by CAROLE LEHR JOHNSON

Goodbye Mrs. Kravitz Copyright © 2022 by SUSAN HIERS FOSTER

Second Chance Daddy © 2022 by TAMMY KIRBY

Loyalties Severed © 2022 by MARGUERITE MARTIN GRAY

Deborah © 2022 by MARY LOU CHEATHAM

Cover photography and design © 2022 by C.D. SUTHERLAND

Unless otherwise noted, scripture quotations marked ESV are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version) copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Concerning the anthology itself:

Second Chances: A Collection of Diverse Short Stories Copyright © 2022 by C.D. Sutherland. All rights reserved.

Published by Narrow Way Press LLC

www.narrowwaypress.com

Paperback ISBN: 978-1-937366-31-5

eBook ISBN: (EPUB) 978-1-937366-32-2

3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Dedication

To Barksdale Baptist Church, working toward transformed lives by loving God, loving people, and making disciples.

Contents

POP, DEATH, AND THE DEVIL

C.D. Sutherland

JOURNEY’S END

Judy Burford

THE FISHER

Eileen K. Copeland

THE PROMISE

Beverly Flanders

A CHANCE IN TIME

Carole Lehr Johnson

GOODBYE MRS. KRAVITZ

Susan Hiers Foster

SECOND CHANCE DADDY

Tammy Kirby

LOYALTIES SEVERED

Marguerite Martin Gray

DEBORAH

Mary Lou Cheatham

About the Authors

About Judy Burford

Also by Judy Burford

About Mary Lou Cheatham

Also by Mary Lou Cheatham

About Eileen K. Copeland

Also by Eileen K. Copeland

About Beverly Flanders

Also by Beverly Flanders

About Susan Hiers Foster

Also by Susan Hiers Foster

About Marguerite Martin Gray

Also by Marguerite Martin Gray

About Carole Lehr Johnson

Also by Carole Lehr Johnson

About Tammy Kirby

Also by Tammy Kirby

About C.D. Sutherland

Also by C.D. Sutherland

About The Short Story

Expect A Second Chance

C.D. Sutherland

---

O dear agent, see what I’ve done;

I’ve written a romance!

If you don’t like it, that’s okay,

I wasn’t expecting an advance.

---

My skills are new, my desire strong;

A best seller I’ll write perchance.

My writing gets better you will see,

My potential is a vast expanse.

---

O dear publisher, take a look;

You may find you’ll want to dance.

My friends and family love my book;

So, you should venture a quick glance.

---

If rejected, should I quit;

Mope dejected, in a trance?

I’d rather finish my next book,

And expect a second chance.

---

This publication stands as a testimony of the fifth year a group of authors have assembled their collective muse to create an anthology celebrating the short story. The last four years’ anthologies, Celebrating the Short Story, Over the Moon Travel Treasures, 2020 Vision, and Coming of Age, contributed greatly to advancing the craft of Christian fiction writing in Louisiana. This year, nine published authors have collaborated to produce the wonderful collection of diverse short stories you’re now viewing, Second Chances.

The short story has long endured since the creation of language. It is a useful vehicle for presenting an account, more often concentrating on the creation of a mood rather than a plot. A short story can range from a cleverly crafted sentence all the way up to 20,000 words. Whatever the length, a short story is typically centered around one plot, one main character, and one central theme. This stands in contrast to a novel, which is capable of weaving multiple plots and themes among an array of central characters. The writing styles used in short stories can be somewhat unusual or surprising to its readers, sometimes their writers use literary techniques which might wear down a reader if employed through the length of a novel. Being short, by definition, they provide the perfect fodder for being assembled into collections, usually with some unifying theme or common element to tie them together.

The nine short stories contained in Second Chances are as diverse in technique and theme as our previous years’ writings; nevertheless, they are united in the fact that a second chance event is a common element. We invite you to take notice of the techniques used by this array of talented authors to weave those second chance related appearances into their stories.

These nine adventures will take you to places you have never been. C.D. Sutherland’s Pop, Death, & the Devil chronicles the adventures of a retired bomber pilot turned novelist named Chandler Stud after he is brushed by Death. Judy Burford’s The Journey will put you in Jenny Sue Cutter’s struggle to survive the perils of a nineteenth-century wagon train to Oregon and then her challenge to carry-on after others don’t survive. Eileen K. Copeland’s The Fisher will show you a precious moment shared by Josie Grace and her grandfather, and then reveal how it provides comfort and the hope of greater things to come. Beverly Flanders’ The Promise brings back a mother’s memories of a promise she made to God that would assure her of His presence through good times and sad times. Carole Lehr Johnson’s A Chance in Time explains how Bertha Carrick, a character in the novel A Place in Time, came to be at Dunbar Park as she sought peace to salve the sorrow of loss from London’s seventeenth-century plague. Susan Hiers Foster’s Goodbye Mrs. Kravitz is a sweet story of neighbors Sally and Jim who come close to missing out on a friendship that will enrich their lives. Internationally published author Tammy Kirby’s Second Chance Daddy tells a tale of love interrupted and God’s perfect timing. Marguerite Martin Gray’s Loyalties Severed examines George Elliott’s tough choices dealing with a young man’s wavering devotions regarding love, family, and loyalty. Finally, the talented and prolific author Mary Lou Cheatham uses Deborah to retell the story of the Old Testament prophetess and judge who led her nation to know peace without fear. When you return from these experiences, chances are some will have left you wanting for more. If so, then check out that story’s author page in the back of the book. They might have something else you’ll like. We believe you’ll be glad you did.

POP, DEATH, AND THE DEVIL

C.D. SUTHERLAND

0830, WEDNESDAY, 25 FEBRUARY 2015

The end. Those two words possess near magic that invokes a surge of emotions from any fiction author, not from reading them but writing them. They mark the separation from the museful universe of their beloved characters and the author’s return to the cosmos. Often, they are followed by moments of silence as the bewildered author both rejoices and mourns having finished their task. So doubly impactful were they for me when I finished the rewrite of my second novel.

My calling to write eleven novels came as I was finishing up a long career of flying Air Force bombers. The stories had been bubbling up from my muse for years. After being published, many people gave rave reviews to my stories, but I learned writing fiction was a skill set that required education and practice. My first book proved popular, but my skills were insufficient to discern its flawed mechanical presentation. Some kind editors, who seemingly came from nowhere, said they’d read my novel and felt called to help educate me while I wrote the sequel. The result was a second novel with a better presentation than the first one.

Then something marvelous happened during the creation of my third novel. As if my eyes suddenly opened, I saw what was needed. So instead of writing the fourth novel, and against the advice of my readers, I rewrote the first two novels. It took me a year, but I did it. All three novels were, at last, not just great stories but also great books.

Slightly bewildered, I stared at those two little words to the left of the blinking cursor. Minutes earlier, I was reliving a fantastic adventure by the side of my protagonist. Then it ended, and I was just a bearded grandpa sitting in his red leather writing chair.

Hey, Pop. Want to play catch? I abandoned my iMac’s screen and greeted Kaden, my grandson, with a smile. Kaden was holding his well-worn leather glove, which my grandfather gave me decades before I gave it to him along with an autographed baseball on his fourth birthday, almost two months ago. It merely said Pop in big black letters. To my delight, he had reacted as if Babe Ruth had signed it. While he had several other balls, the one I had signed was his favorite for playing catch.

This is probably as good a time as any. I gave him a high five, and we headed toward the back door. When we stepped onto the porch, Kaden let out a yelp. Icy white flakes fell from the gray sky.

What is that? Kaden peered intently through the window. In Louisiana, snow was a rarity, and this was the first snow of his entire life.

Snow. Haven’t you ever heard of snow?

Yea, he said, scrunching up his nose. But I never knew it was real.

After bundling Kaden into some appropriate winter clothing, we ventured outside. As he tried to grasp the concept of leaving footprints as he walked, I demonstrated my technique for scooping snow up with two hands. Then I packed it into a powerful projectile and pretended to be the first person to ever do it.

"I call these snowballs." I tossed one to him. He dropped the baseball and then caught the snowball in his glove. As he marveled at my inventive genius, I threw a snowball across the patio. Impressively, its short flight ended with a sudden impact against the basketball net’s backboard, causing most of its blanket of clinging snow to plummet to the ground.

Wow! Kaden jumped with excitement. You’re the best Pop in the world. I wasn’t entirely sure if he was impressed with my snowball-making genius or if he’d somehow thought I had made it snow. Either way, I’d let him enjoy being a four-year-old who admires his grandpa hero for as long as he wanted to.

It didn’t take long for the little fellow to master my technique for creating snowballs. Within moments, his skill for hurling them at targets rivaled my own. The second time he rang the backboard, I knew it was time to bump the experience up another level.

Kaden, I said with a sniff. I need to show you something in the backyard. He followed me through the iron gate and onto the virgin snow cover. There I packed a large scoop of snow into a ball and rolled it across the ground. Kaden’s eyes grew wide, watching it grow as I pushed it along in a zig-zag pattern. Soon it went from basketball-size to beachball-size, and then beyond. A couple of minutes later, I stopped to admire my progress—it was nearly as tall as Kaden.

Pop, how are we going to throw that?

Puffing a bit, I gave it a final push, and my chest tightened. Steadying myself with my left arm against the cedar privacy fence, I almost straightened up. No matter how hard I tried to pull air into my lungs, I couldn’t. My short and rapid breaths sounded like I was hyperventilating. Sharp pain in the center of my chest prompted me to put my right hand over it. I wondered if I strained my chest muscles by pushing the snowball until it was too big. Though my lungs were full I needed more air. It was probably bronchitis, aggravated by the cold air.

When I retired from the Air Force, the VA diagnosed me with chronic bronchitis. It made sense to me because it had plagued me every winter for my last few years on active duty. After I retired, it seemed like I would get a bad case every November. But this was almost March.

Regardless of the month, I knew what I needed—a z-pack and some guaifenesin. I resolved to make an appointment with my physician.

As the tightness in my chest released its stultifying grip, the pain faded. I straightened, letting my right hand drop to my side and I realized Kaden was waiting for my answer as patiently as any four-year-old could.

We’re not going to throw it, I managed to say, a little mousier than I would have preferred. I chuckled, being happy my breathing had mostly returned. Then I grinned at him and said, We’re going to make something cool.

Everything made out of snow is cool, he said.

Right you are. His unintentional pun inspired me to pull his wool cap over his eyes. We both laughed.

After I started rolling another ball, Kaden joined me in pushing it around the yard. When it was almost as big as the first ball, I arrogantly lifted it with a grunt and placed it