Jesus sees me, can you?: A Story about Henry—the Not-Homeless Boy

By R.C. Lane

Ten-year-old Henry and his mother deal with the loss of his father and homelessness. Their faith in God grows as they face the challenges before them. Jesus hears Henry's prayers and protects them. He places people and events in their lives to show them that he loves them and sees them. A fictional story of real life struggles highlighting a strong, loving mother who never gives up. She faces the challenges of being homeless with determination, humor, and love for her ten year old son. Ten-year-old Henry learns life lessons and the struggles of homelessness while growing in his Christian faith and making friends along the way.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Page Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Aug 21, 2019
• ISBN: 9781684566549

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Jesus sees me, can you?

A Story about Henry—the Not-Homeless Boy

R.C. Lane

Copyright © 2019 R.C. Lane

All rights reserved

First Edition

PAGE PUBLISHING, INC.

New York, NY

First originally published by Page Publishing, Inc. 2019

ISBN 978-1-68456-652-5 (Paperback)

ISBN 978-1-68456-653-2 (Hardcover)

ISBN 978-1-68456-654-9 (Digital)

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

Chapter 1

About the Author

This book is dedicated to my wife Brenda, my soulmate, partner, muse and editor.

Commit your work to the Lord and then your plans will succeed. Proverbs 16:3

Hi, my name is Henry, and I am ten years old. This is my story of my mom and I not being homeless anymore. When I was a little guy, my dad went to war in Afghanistan; he was gone for a very long time. He was gone so long that I would look at his photo a lot so I wouldn’t be so sad. Once in a while he would talk to us on the computer. I loved it when I could see and talk to him. Mom and I would write Dad letters, and I would draw pictures of us playing catch and swimming at the lake. Mom worked at Big Mart while I was at school, and Ms. Alice would meet me at the bus stop. I would stay at her home until my mom picked me up after she was done working. Ms. Alice and I would cook dinner every night for Mom so we all could enjoy time together. I loved helping Ms. Alice make her secret meatballs and sauce. I had to take an oath that I would not give away the secret recipes, or I would tell you more about them. They are my favorite to make and eat. I love the spicy meatball. Ms. Alice would laugh when I would say that. Sometimes we would dance around to Frank Sinatra records that she would play while we cooked.

One day my mom met me at the bus stop and told me Ms. Alice had fallen and broke her hip and was taken to the hospital. We would go to the hospital to see her. I would draw her pictures and bring different toys to show her to cheer her up. I gave her a blue T- Rex named Rexy to stand guard and protect her. I told her Rexy would keep her company, and it was okay to play with him if she felt lonely. Ms. Alice then had to go to a convalescent center so she could get better. Ms. Alice lost her husband, Mr. Carmen, before I was born; she had his pictures in her den. He looked like a nice man. Ms. Alice said he was a great husband and father. They had a daughter named Maria, but she lived far away in a big city. She had some kind of big job and was always busy, so we never saw her. Maria was worried about Ms. Alice being alone and falling, so Maria wanted her to stay at the senior center with people like her. I didn’t like the center much; it smelled funny. The people were nice; some of the old people would give me quarters and candy or rides in their wheelchairs. One man taught me to play checkers and even let me win most of the time.

As time went on, we saw Ms. Alice less and less. Mom’s job was getting hard, and she had to stay late a lot. She didn’t have much time to drive to the center to see Ms. Alice. Mom had to put me into an after-school program at the YMCA in town which was open till 6:00 p.m. Mom always picked me up just before 6:00 p.m. I was usually the last to leave which was fine. I enjoyed it when it was just me and Ms. Becky and it wasn’t so noisy. We would color, draw, or play with the clay. I liked to make dinosaurs with the clay. Mom and I would stop and pick up Chinese food, subs, or pizza most nights so Mom could check over my homework, do the laundry, and pack my lunch for school the next day. She seemed sad and tired a lot, so I tried to be the best boy possible and help her with the cleaning. I made sure my toys were put away and that my clothes were in the hamper. If all the chores were done on Saturdays, we would go to the park or the library in the next town over which showed free movies. One day coming back from the park, Mom saw a church that had a sign that said Welcome, families. Summer youth programs and vacation Bible school program starting soon. Mom thought it would be good for me to meet new kids and join a youth group. She also said vacation Bible school would be fun plus the after-school program was not available in the summer. She hoped the church had a day care for my age group for the summer. I was not sure about this church thing. Mom said she went to Sunday school at my age and she enjoyed it.

The next day was Sunday, and Mom had me put on my good clothes, and she put on a dress and did her hair. I haven’t seen her dressed up in a long time. Sunday school was okay; I met a few kids I liked, and Mom seemed to like the reverend and what he said. People seemed friendly; they smiled a lot and hugged each other. On the way home, she seemed happy and said, We’ll have to go to church more often. She also said, I signed you up for the youth group and vacation Bible school. Reverend Rob had said that his wife and a couple of the ladies would be running a summer program so you can make friends and have fun at the church. I think that helped Mom; she was worried about finding a summer program for me that didn’t cost a lot and was safe. Letters from my dad came less and less, and the phone calls and video chats stopped. Mom said it was because Dad was in the mountains and they did not have Wi-Fi. We started to go to church regularly, and on Wednesday nights Mom would pick me up, go eat, and come back for family service. Us kids ran around and played in the gym while the adults had a Bible study and then coffee and dessert, which us kids got some dessert and milk.

One Saturday just before the start of the new school year, two men in uniforms like my dad’s uniform came to the door. Mom sent me to my room to play as they talked. I heard lots of talking then my mom crying. As soon as the men left, I came out of my room and asked her if she was okay.

She wiped her eyes and blew her nose and said, Come. Sit down. I have to tell you something.

Mom told me Dad was not coming home. Instead Jesus needed him in heaven.

I was mad. I said, I need my dad. Jesus has Grandmom and Pop. He can’t have everyone. I cried, and my mom held me.

The next day we went to church, but I was sad and quiet. Mom talked to Reverend Rob and his wife after church so they could help her with the funeral service. Over the next week, Mom stayed home from work and people from the church and neighborhood came over and brought food. Mom didn’t sleep much and seemed quiet. The day of the funeral, Mom had us wear all black clothes, and a lot of people were there wearing black clothing also. Men from the military were at the funeral, and six soldiers carried my dad who was in a box called a coffin. Then other men fired guns in the air for my dad. Mom said it was a salute to honor him for doing a good job. I was sad and confused that my dad was in a box and was placed in the ground where we had to leave him and go home.

Mom spent a lot of time on the phone with her job, insurance companies, and the military. One day we went to our bank, and Mom talked to a man behind a big desk while I picked out a bunch of lollipops at the next desk over. After we left, on