Chapter Twenty-Five

Thursday morning after she had seen Larissa and Brandon off to the middle school they both attended, Marie-Thérèse opened her apartment door to her sister Josette and Josette’s three-year-old son, Stephen. “Did you hear?” Josette said excitedly. “Marc is doing great this morning! That means he’s going to be fine as long as he doesn’t reject this kidney. I know he won’t do that—I just know it!”

Marie-Thérèse didn’t have her sister’s confidence, but the successful surgery certainly merited celebration. “Mom called me from the hospital just now. She sounded happy.”

“I’m going over to see him in a little while. But I came here first because I wanted you to go with me.” Josette shifted her son’s weight to her other hip.

“Sure. I’ll need to grab some breakfast.”

“I can wait.”

“Then come on in.” Marie-Thérèse took Stephen from her sister’s arms. “Boy, you’re a heavy kid,” she teased. “It’s a wonder your mom can carry you with that big belly she’s got.”

Stephen laughed. “It’s a baby and I’m gonna play with him. I’m gonna teach him to kick the ball, put on his shoes, and go pee in the toilet.” He grinned proudly.

“I’m sure you’ll be the perfect big brother.”

“Yep, ’cause he’s little and doesn’t know anything yet. Anton says we even gotta teach ’im how to talk.”

Josette laughed. “The list of things to teach the baby keeps getting longer. I think it’ll be a shock when he sees that it’s going to be a long time before the baby will do any of those things.”

“Baby?” asked Marie-Thérèse. “Does that mean you still haven’t come up with a name?”

Josette followed her into the kitchen where she slumped gratefully to a padded chair. “Well, before I had kids I had a hundred names ready for a girl,” she admitted. “But after having four boys, I’m running kind of low on male names.”

“Maybe next time.”

Josette groaned and laid her face on the table—or tried too. She couldn’t reach it over her huge stomach and had to be content with resting her face in her hands. “I don’t think there’s going to be a next time. I’ve done my share of multiplying and replenishing the world, don’t you think? Five kids, and you’d think I had twenty from the way people count them when we go anywhere.”

Marie-Thérèse smiled. “Reminds me of that missionary who baptized Mom. Do you remember when he and his wife visited with all those kids? Eight, wasn’t it? They were quite a sight.”

“I think the hospital emergency room admitted a lot of people with cranked necks around that time.” Josette replied with a giggle. “Remember how we both liked the oldest boy, whatever-his-name was?”

“I think he has seven kids now.”

“Wow, and me with five.” Josette kneaded her stomach. “I’m so tired of being pregnant. It seems like I’ve spent my whole life being pregnant.”

“An awful thought.”

A silence fell between, not an uncomfortable one, but one of deep thought. Marie-Thérèse was thinking of the baby that could be hers at that moment if she hadn’t postponed her trip to Ukraine. She also thought of pregnancy—how she wouldn’t mind being pregnant like Josette!

“You could go now,” Josette said. “Marc’s out of danger.”

As always, Marie-Thérèse was amazed at how attuned her sister was to her thoughts. She sent up a silent prayer of gratitude. Death had separated her from her biological sister, but she had been blessed with an adoptive sister who was every bit as close as any blood sister could be. She and Josette were the best of friends. Adoption was a wonderful alternative to those in her situation, and she wanted so badly to be able to raise more children. If only the fertility doctors could have found something wrong with her or Mathieu, something they could fix! No, I won’t go down that road again.

“There’s still the wedding,” Marie-Thérèse said, becoming aware that her sister expected a reply. “I can’t miss that.”

“It will take weeks for Marc and Rebekka to get things ready again.”

“As will rescheduling the adoption. They go by certain dates, not just when people can make it. I have to let them know months in advance.”

“Oh, of course.” Josette’s face drooped. Then she brightened. “You could at least sign up again.”

“Yeah, I guess.” The longing inside Marie-Thérèse’s heart became biting.

“What about Larissa? Has she come around?”

Marie-Thérèse let out a long sigh and walked over to the refrigerator. “Not in the slightest. Sometimes I wonder where I went wrong with that girl.” She pulled out the milk and set it on the counter before continuing. “It’s like she and Brandon came out complete opposites. He’s so understanding, patient, and considerate, while she’s selfish, impatient, and obnoxious. I wish I could put them into a bag and shake them real hard so that they even out a bit.”

“I like Brandon just the way he is. Larissa, too. She’s just going through an identity crisis kind of thing.”

“I hope that’s all it is,” Marie-Thérèse said. “You know, sometimes it’s hard for me to believe that I actually had feelings of bitterness when I found out I was pregnant with Brandon. I mean, he’s not perfect—as you can tell by the mess in his room—but he has really turned out to be my salvation these past months.”

Josette smiled. “Are you really that surprised? Pauline told you he would be okay. And he is.”

Marie-Thérèse smiled at the memory. At the time of Pauline’s death she had been pregnant with Larissa, and since everyone knew she was expecting a girl, Marie-Thérèse had thought Pauline was confused when she spoke of a little boy being okay. It wasn’t until much later that she realized Pauline had been talking about Brandon, not Larissa. Near the end of her short life the veil had been very thin for Pauline.

Marie-Thérèse fished two mugs out of the cupboard, poured milk into them, and set them to heating in the microwave. In three minutes the milk was hot. “You did want milk, didn’t you? I forgot to ask.”

“Are you kidding? I live on milk now.” She made a face. “It’s the best thing for my stomach. But I swear that after I have this baby, I’ll never drink another drop again!”

They laughed together comfortably. Marie-Thérèse sipped her hot milk plain while Josette stirred in chocolate powder. They both ate one of the flaky croissants Marie-Thérèse had purchased early that morning from the corner shop.

They began to talk again, staying away from sensitive subjects like adoption and children’s rebellion. Marie-Thérèse cupped her hands around her mug, wishing the warmth of the milk could reach to her heart. Why couldn’t she avoid the painful subjects in thought as she could in speech?

After they were finished with breakfast, Marie-Thérèse helped Josette collect Stephen and they walked to the door. Josette touched her shoulder as they waited for the elevator. “I know it’s hard now, but Larissa will come around. We’ll keep praying.”

“Would you talk to Larissa? I mean, I think of everyone in our family, she listens to you the most. She likes you. And if you could share some of your past experiences with her when you have a chance, and she could see how your choices affected your future . . . Oh, I don’t know. I think it might help.”

“I would be happy to talk to her,” Josette said. “Heaven knows I had my rebellious days, however much I hate to admit it. Maybe something I say will be useful. But you know, I’m not as worried about her as I am about that poor little girl she hangs out with. Larissa has a wonderful mother to get her through—and a really great father. Not to mention the rest of the family. Together I bet we can help her realize where she’s headed before something really goes wrong.” Josette reached out a hand to stop the elevator from closing. “Come on, we’d better hurry or Marc will wonder if he still has any sisters. Don’t worry, Marie-Thérèse. Everything’s going to be fine. You’ll get your baby, and Larissa will come around. The Lord has a way of working out problems, and all in His own time. We just need to be patient.”

Marie-Thérèse’s heart felt considerably lighter as she rode down the elevator with her sister. Josette was right. The Lord had a plan, and now she had to have faith. That was easy, right? She had been living by faith her entire life. While it was true that nothing worthwhile came easily, the Lord had always promised His help. Surely that would make the difference. And when she finally held her new baby in her arms, all the waiting would fade into nothing.

Lifting her head in resolution, Marie-Thérèse pushed her negative thoughts aside and followed Josette into the November sunlight.