Coral's Pathway

By Patricia Anderson Luttrell

Coral lifts her eyes to look out the window. Outside, displayed in its full glory, is Coral's garden. If asked to describe her garden in three words Coral would easily say love, peace, and life.From a young age, Coral shared countless hours with her parents in their home and garden. Her mom and dad had taught her many lessons about giving. Love is giving, Coral could still hear her mother's voice, the garden is always giving. Her garden is love. Though they were gone, their memories and teachings grew only stronger with each passing day. Again, as always, those memories would give her peace. Peace surrounded her because of their love, Coral reassured herself. Her garden would remain a place of peace because of the love her parents planted there so long ago.Mostly, there is life in Coral's garden thanks to its abundant gifts of fruits and vegetables and more. This year the garden surpassed all previous years with richer and more vibrant crops. Everything tastes better, too. Coral believes this is due largely to the remarkable irrigation system built by Professor Charles Austin, who lives on the adjacent property. Professor Austin built a well and a pathway through and around Coral's garden. It is a labor of love from the one man who makes Coral feel as safe as her father once had.Love, peace, and life are in Coral's pathway, but there are obstacles. Life is everchanging, even love.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Mar 11, 2021
• ISBN: 9781098015596

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Coral's Pathway

Patricia Anderson Luttrell

Copyright © 2020 by Patricia Anderson Luttrell

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.

832 Park Avenue

Meadville, PA 16335

www.christianfaithpublishing.com

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Coral Banks

There is life in her garden.

And love is her pathway.

Part 1

It isn’t noon, and already the cool early morning air is losing its battle with the rising sun.

Even the dark soil is growing faint in its struggle with the unexpected heat. Coral rises. I am just a foot soldier. Might as well retreat to the house. There would be strength in a new day. Dishes wait in the sink, and the stove calls for Coral’s attention. I’ll see you guys later. This is my Saturday and I won’t give up that easily. Coral is fine with the little housework needing her attention. She loves her garden and words. In that order, each gets the lion’s share of her time on this one day of the week she claims as her own.

Coral’s garden is her special place. Her refuge is a large space behind her home. Maintaining a garden is hard work. But it is well worth the struggle. Her efforts produce a source of nourishment for her body, her mind, and her soul. The harvest feeds Coral and gifts friends. Blue jays, robins, and the occasional woodpecker visit in pursuit of her fruit and give music in return. Flowers entertain her with a robust parade for much of the year. Peace and beauty are everywhere, reminding her over and over of God’s mercies. Her garden is a feast for the senses, and Saturdays are set aside for their enjoyment. Time alone with her Savior magnifies the beauty outside her window, or is it the other way around? She easily loses herself in her thoughts. Her mind drifts to another day, a rainy day that would bring its own special blessings for her garden.

A small room looks out onto her private haven. It is an extension of the peace her garden provides and is the perfect place to enjoy her two loves; simultaneously. A desk and chair sit in the optimum position for her to gain inspiration from the garden’s beauty while indulging in whatever is the current literary piece of choice. Coral sits back and takes in the extraordinary display before her. Herbal iced tea on a nearby snack table is a reason to commend herself. It is a wise decision made earlier that morning for such a moment as this. She sips from the tall drink and savors its tasty coolness. It is a good defense against the growing heat. Her pleasures aren’t expensive. They could, however, be particular. Unfortunately, the cover of the book in her lap promised more than the inside had given so far. She returns her senses to the solace just outside her window.

A sound comes from the area of the fence in the back of her yard. Coral rises and walks toward the window. A cursory look in that direction reveals nothing. She shrugs and assumes; I must be hearing things. Her eyes move to the water flowing along the pathway in the garden. The stream originates from a well at one end of the pathway. Water flow can be controlled by opening and closing off portals built into the well walls. Rocks and stones of varying sizes and shapes make up the pathway and mirror the design of the well. In the midst of the garden, a newly installed wooden trough collects and releases the water through openings like the ones on the well. Strategically placed rocks and stones on the outside of the trough complement the pattern of the well and pathway. Several outlets release the pooled water into recessed canals to carry the flowing water throughout her garden. It is a mastery of artistic beauty and a marvel of engineering design.

Minigardens include flowers, herbs, and cabbages, which give magnificent color to the yard. Green leafy vegetables, carrots, tomatoes, beans, and corn break up the colorful patchwork. This year’s bounty has already yielded tastier samples than all prior years. On the perimeter are pear, plum, and apple trees growing among oak and pine. Grapevines are protected by a wire fence located at the far end of the yard, and a monstrous pecan provides shade near a sitting area. Trees, grapes, and seating are courtesy of the original owners, Coral’s parents. Everything growing in Coral’s garden benefits from the ample supply of water collected in the well and its builder, Professor Charles Austin.

Again, Coral hears a noise. This time she sees Professor Austin waving from his terrace and acknowledges him.

Hi, Professor, another beautiful day, isn’t it? How are you?

I am doing well, Coral. It’s a beautiful day, and your garden is looking quite promising.

As always, take what you want, when you want. Have a good day.

Coral returns to the latest novel. This one is surely not at the top of her list. Nevertheless, she surrenders. It is an easy choice between the book and cleaning the kitchen.

Sunday morning comes too quickly. Coral dresses purposefully knowing what lies ahead, too many spaces on the church pews because church attendance is falling off. Traditional services are fighting for survival against new thoughts and new theologies. In greater and greater numbers, people are dismissing the traditional biblical teachings Coral holds dear. All around her are troubling signs. Bookstore shelves are littered with ideas that sprang up from new self-proclaimed prophets competing with one another for the title of the new messiah. Coral thinks about the book she is currently reading.

No wonder a good book is hard to find. Writers write to please the greater population. They have to eat, too.

Coral leaves her thoughts to hear her pastor say, The Stone the builders rejected will be your salvation.

The alarm on her night table announces a new workweek. Coral’s employer is Ackerman, Smith, and Gregory, Inc., a large advertising and marketing firm that provides Coral with a decent income. She is one of twenty-two clerical support personnel assisting the marketing and advertising department, the legal department, and the accounting department in their respective interests. Coral remembers to be grateful. A wave of her access card and Coral enters into the area outside the elevator banks.

Hi, Coral, had a good weekend?

It was good and restful, Betty, and yours?

Way too busy, but what else is new?

You and Arnie never listen. I keep telling you, you’ve got to make time for rest. One day out of seven, trust me, it works.

I trust that it works. I just never seem to remember your advice when I’m in the middle of my weekend.

Betty! The head of administration tries to get her attention before she is barely settled. Mr. Covington needs your help. A seat on one of the executive floors is Betty’s for the asking. She is highly skilled and popular with the staff and management. Coral shakes her head. Betty is also trusting to a fault.

A pile of work from last week waits where Coral left it on Friday. It greets her, and so does a half-distracted Arnie. Hi, Coral.

Arnel Arnie Mumfries sits at the desk directly behind Coral. She transferred from upstairs on the lower executive floor over a year ago, and the two became fast friends. Arnie and Coral are Christians, and at Ackerman, Smith, and Gregory, Inc., that makes them part of an increasingly smaller number, a sign of the times. Until Arnie arrived, Coral often felt isolated and alone. Now the sisters in Christ are best friends.

Hi, how’s your mom doing?

Still the same, Coral. She has good and bad days, good and bad moments, and you know that’s how we take it, moment by moment.

I put some vegetables in the freezer for you. Don’t forget to take them with you when you leave.

Thanks, Coral, for my mother and me. I won’t forget.

For years, Arnie’s mom has suffered with diabetes and high blood pressure associated with obesity. Her condition requires a lot of Arnie’s time and is the reason for Arnie’s transfer. The move meant less overtime for Arnie, but more time for her mom and herself.

Business is robust and days are busy. Ackerman, Smith, and Gregory, Inc., provides advertising and marketing services for commercial markets, government and private individuals. It boasts some of the best minds in the industry, adept at presenting the best public face for businesses and their clients. A number of the most skilled accountants in the nation are available to service financial matters resulting from their marketing or advertising concerns. The highly qualified lawyers composing the company’s legal department will represent larger clients in business and personal matters. Protecting the prestige and image of their high-profile clients is top priority for ASG.

The company occupies six floors in the premiere, state-of-the-art building on Washington Street. Known as ASG by employees and the public, alike, the firm is one of more than one hundred companies of varying sizes in residence at the massive complex. Businesses, services, and apartment owners comprise a small town within the confines of the magnificent structure. One equally large firm in residence is a premier innovator in the security industry. This company provides the high-tech security system utilized in the self-contained structure on Washington Street. The security firm is the hub of the chip identification industry, and a major client of ASG. The building houses a police station, a medical facility, a fire department, a water treatment plant, and the headquarters of a food processing plant, as well. The latter is another major company client with ASG. There is a good mix of business types contributing to the small-town feel, and ASG capitalizes on the close proximity of the larger businesses and smaller trades on site.

The perimeter of the complex is a collection of reflections in green smoked glass. Its doors are engineered to glaze over when people approach, and permit security to see anyone entering. Occupants, employees, and visitors must pass through a series of small but sensitive metal detectors and scanners. Identity options include retina or voice pattern, besides visual checks by guards. Weapons of any kind are forbidden in the mall except by armed security.

Accommodations for the public include escalators from the ground floor to the promenade that start and end as motorized walkways. These two floors are reserved for retailers and other businesses to service shoppers. There are clothing and jewelry stores, book dealers, shops for toys, gifts, and others, a food court, several banks, and two movie theaters. Patrons, tenants, and employees can secure services from any or all of the businesses by either cash or a debit system. Frequent visitors are able to avoid cash transactions by using a specialized debit card, which holds a chip that accesses a nationwide banking system. The chip can be programmed to record all financial activities. It can also be modified for tenants and employees to give access to the building at any hour, give access to the gym or a pool, and activate the high-speed elevators moving throughout the towering 125-floor building.

Chip identification is a growing business, but the cards containing the chips are often lost or stolen. Some tenants have opted to implant a chip under their skin for ease and to avoid loss or theft. ASG recently joined the movement by enacting their own campaign to encourage its employees to participate in the implant procedure with a specialized chip. ASG publicized the program as a decision made on behalf of the building and clients. As far as Coral is concerned, ASG is A Self-serving Group that functions in its own self-interest.

Coral began working with the company right out of college. Securing a position with the prestigious firm is considered a real accomplishment. Over the years, Coral has grown more uncertain of this general-held belief. Security is pervasive and invasive throughout the offices. Ackerman, Smith, and Gregory, Inc., often uses its powerful position to force these and other policies on its unwilling employees. Most issues are not threatening. Recent security issues have presented a new level of discomfort.

As a member of the large clerical/graphics/database support group, Coral’s contribution to the company’s workflow is generated from a waiting queue. It is a respectable amount of work that is no less or more than most of the others in her group. Work is differentiated only by levels of importance and the skills required. The most sensitive matters are set aside exclusively for the administrative staff supporting the executives on the upper two floors. Top management maintains its own private assistants and support staff. Long ago Coral decided the work is intentionally dispersed to prevent any one person from obtaining too much information, especially about the larger accounts. In addition to all the strategy done to protect company information, all employees are required to sign confidentiality agreements. Despite its best efforts, the company is not able to totally prevent the leaks that too often do happen. People talk, and a lot can be learned during conversations at lunchtime. Coral never cared for company gossip. Since the beginning it is a job that adequately pays the bills. She isn’t into espionage, and her primary duty is to her Creator.

Coral and Arnie’s preferred lunchtime leaves fewer hours of work in their afternoons. An unusually busy morning makes them appreciative of this all the more. Arnie’s too frequent confession of starting her day tired once again triggers a scolding from Coral to stop taking on so much.

Did you bring your lunch, Arnie, or do you want to splurge?

I brought my lunch. But after my weekend, I’d like to treat myself. Let’s splurge.

Coral swipes her access card for the elevator ride to the promenade. An audible sigh escapes her lips. She looks at the card in her hand. Reflecting on the ever-present monitoring device she is holding; she easily shares her feelings. Our own GPS system will let the company know when we leave, when we return and give the boys upstairs the ability to know every stop we make along the way. Who needs a clock? Do you ever wonder if they know what we are doing on the weekend?

Who knows and who cares. Arnie laughs. All I ever do is take care of my mother. It’s my whole life. Not that I am complaining, because I would really miss her if she wasn’t here. But I do wish she would get better.

I care. Where do you want to eat?

It doesn’t matter as long as we are out of the office.

Mall traffic is heavy. Shoppers are out in large numbers. With so many people in the mall, traffic would undoubtedly eat into the two friends’ lunchtime. But the loss in time is worth it to be out of the office. They choose a restaurant not too far from the escalators and pick a booth near the entrance. This is their time to relax. It is their time for opening up about what is dear to both of them, their faith, and the people in their private lives.

Coral and Arnie have frequented the restaurant and know the wait for their meals would not be long. Arnie uses the time to give Coral an update on her mom’s health; which is a recurring source of concern for Arnie. Coral offers her usual support and offers her prayers. Heard from my brother. He and his family are fine. They get quiet when the waiter brings their plates