Riley's Song

Larry clung to his wife, Rhonda’s, hand as he sat beside her bed in the cold, sterile hospital room. He prayed silently, begging God to spare his wife. “Our baby needs a mother. I can’t do it on my own. Please, God, I’ll do anything if you just let her live.”
Rhonda’s parents were in the ICU waiting room, giving him a chance to be alone with her. The tears streamed down his face as he watched his beautiful wife slowly slip away from him.
He felt a hand on his arm, and swiped his hand across his eyes, trying to hide his tears, before he turned to look up. “Pastor Thompson.”
“How are you holding up, Larry?” Bill Thompson could see very well how Larry was holding up, but wanted to hear Larry speak for himself.
“Not well. I’ve been praying and praying. It’s all I can do. The baby isn’t allowed in here to see her. I think it would do Rhonda so much good to hold her one more time. Why won’t they let her hold her daughter?” He turned to stare at his wife as his voice broke and he bit his knuckle to keep a sob from escaping.
Bill looked down at the new father. “All we can do is pray. It’s not safe for the baby to be here. There are too many germs. Just hold to her and pray, son.” Bill had been the pastor of Parkside Community Church for four decades. His health was starting to fail. His wife had died three years before, and he’d dreaded making this visit, knowing it would bring back all the emotions.
The pastor stayed for a few minutes, praying with Larry, and then he was gone again. Rhonda opened her eyes and smiled at him. “How’s the baby?” Even in the worst of circumstances, her first thought was for her daughter.
“She’s doing great. She’s with my mom being spoiled rotten.”
“Make me a promise.”
He shook his head. “You’re going to get better. I’m not making any pathetic death-bed promises.”
She sighed. “I’m not getting better. You know I’m not. Promise me that you won’t close your eyes to new love.”
He shook his head. “We’ll talk about it later.”
“Larry, look at me! Our daughter needs a mother. I’m not asking you to remarry tomorrow, or even next year, but eventually. Find a woman who makes you happy, and loves her as much as you do, and marry her. God wouldn’t take that baby’s mother unless he had another all picked out for her. Promise.”
Larry leaned forward and rested his forehead against her arm. “I don’t want to.”
She laughed softly. “You’ve always been stubborn. That’s okay. I can out-stubborn you any day, Larry Rome. Promise me.”
He sighed. “Fine. Whatever. If love clobbers me over the head, I won’t say no to it. But I’m not going to go looking for it.”
“That’s all I ask. Thank you.” She stroked her fingers through his hair. She knew her time was short. “I love you.”
He looked up, his eyes shiny with tears once more. “I love you, too. I’ll never stop loving you.”
“Are my parents here?”
He nodded. “They’re in the waiting room.”
“Go get them. Have them sit with me for a few minutes and go get something to eat. I bet you haven’t eaten yet today, have you?”
He hadn’t, but he wasn’t about to admit that aloud. “I’ll go get them.”
A few hours later, as he held her hand and prayed, she slipped away from him. He knew he’d never love again. How could he? He’d lost the only woman God had made just for him.
*****
Pastor Dan and Anna sat in the steak house holding hands. It was early August, and they were still newlyweds. They hadn’t even been married for a full month. Dan smiled into Anna’s eyes. “You go back to work in two weeks, right?”
She nodded. “I really wish things were more settled at the church. I need to go back to teaching, but doing double duty is going to be awfully hard.” She had been serving as the interim children’s minister at Parkside Community Church since Agatha, the old children’s minister, had quit abruptly a month before. “I love the children, don’t get me wrong. I just don’t feel called to be the full-time children’s minister. I feel like I’m doing as much good, if not more, as a teacher.”
A loud crash came from the table next to them. A small boy, around four or five, stood on his chair to avoid getting his feet wet. “I didn’t mean to spill,” he wailed.
A perky blond waitress patted his arm. “Of course, you didn’t mean to spill. I’ll get it cleaned up really fast, and then you can put your feet down again, okay?”
The boy sniffled. “I don’t want you to be mad at me!”
The waitress was already on the floor at his feet mopping up the mess with a towel. “No one’s mad at you sweetie. Spills happen. That’s why I always carry a towel. See?” She held up the towel she was using to clean the floor. “All done.” She stood and caught the little boy around the waist, lifting him down. “The mess is all gone.”
The boy’s parents smiled at the waitress gratefully. “Thanks. We keep trying to tell him the world doesn’t end with a spill, but he’s just not getting it.”
She smiled again, addressing the little boy. “I spill things all the time. No one’s shot me for it yet.” She ruffled the boy’s hair. “I’ll be back in a minute with another glass of fruit punch. Okay?”
The boy nodded. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
Dan and Anna exchanged a glance. That was the type of person they needed for the children’s ministry. Someone who could react so quickly to a potentially explosive situation.
“There’s nothing wrong with you being a teacher and not taking over the children’s ministry full time. You give of yourself to the church at every available opportunity. You should be able to help out with the children’s ministry, or the women’s ministry, or anything else you feel like helping with, but still keep your job.”
The waitress stopped at their table after dropping off a fruit punch for the little boy. “Okay, I have a water and an unsweet tea. And I heard you discussing children’s ministry. What church?”
Dan turned to the waitress and smiled, absently noting the name clipped to her shirt said Ashley. “Parkside Community Church.”
Ashley’s eyes lit up. “Oh, really? I’ve heard good things about it. I’m about to finish up my last semester at UTA, but then I’m going to seminary.”
Dan and Anna exchanged a look. “I’m the pastor at PCC. My name is Dan Stevens, and this is my wife, Anna, the interim children’s minister.”
Ashley smiled and nodded. “It’s nice to meet you.” Ashley loved to run into other Christians while she was working. It always made her feel connected.
“Where do you go to church?” Dan asked.
“Oh, I go to Cornerstone. I love it there. It’s a huge church and has so much to offer. I do as much volunteer work as I have time for around school and my job here, of course.”
Dan nodded. He didn’t usually make hasty decisions, but he just had a feeling about this girl. She would be the perfect fit for children’s minister at Parkside. “Wouldn’t it be more efficient time-wise to work as a children’s minister while you’re finishing up school instead of working at a restaurant and volunteering and going to school?”
Anna nodded enthusiastically seeing where Dan was going. Ashley was bubbly and not afraid to talk to anyone. “I think so, too. That would be great to put on your resume.”
Ashley shrugged. “I don’t know. I’m not very good with children.” Ashley was unsure whether she had the temperament to work with kids. She’d never been around them much, other than her younger siblings. She was more the type to run off and be involved in all the youth activities than be the neighborhood babysitter.
Anna stared at her in shock. “You’re kidding, right? You did a fabulous job calming that little boy down. I think you should try it.”
“Are you serious? Me?”
Dan studied her thoughtfully. “Would you have some time to come to my office at the church and talk to me this week?”
Ashley stared at him for a second. “I guess we can talk about it. I’m not sure, though. I really don’t really have any experience with kids.”
Dan grinned. “I think you’re what we’re looking for. We need someone young and not set in her ways. Someone who will take direction and lead our children well. Does that sound like you?”
“I can take direction, but leading the kids may be another matter entirely. I’m willing to try, I guess.” She thought about her schedule for the following day. “I have tomorrow off work, but I have summer school in the morning. I could come by around three if that would work.”
Anna felt her heart skip a beat. Oh, it would be so wonderful if it were this easy. Ashley would be perfect for the kids, and she could be a newlywed with only one job. “Three works for me. I’d like to sit in on the interview if that’s okay, Dan.”
Dan nodded. “We need you there. You know the kids and will have questions that will be pertinent.”
Ashley saw someone at another table trying to flag her down for a refill. “Oops, gotta go. I’ll be back.”
She flitted away and took care of the other table. Both Dan and Anna watched her thoughtfully throughout their meal. She seemed very conscientious about her job, and made sure she did it well. Anna squeezed Dan’s hand. “I think we’ve found her.”
Dan grinned. “I know we have.”
*****
Ashley left Dan’s office the following day with a huge smile on her face. The job wouldn’t pay a lot, but it would certainly pay more than her job at the restaurant. She’d give her two week notice tomorrow when she went in, and start at the church on Wednesday night. She’d shadow Anna on Wednesday and Sunday, and take over the following week. This week was finals, so she’d have a short break as she learned the ropes and worked both jobs.
She was glad Anna would be there to help her. The older woman had promised her that she’d be there every step of the way.
She was all but skipping as she walked out to the car. She couldn’t believe that in two days she would start working in ministry. She just hoped she’d be able to live up to Pastor Dan’s expectations for her.
She drove home and studied for her final the following day. She was so ready to graduate. One more semester and she’d be off to seminary. She could hold out that long. At least, she thought she could.
Wednesday night was hectic. Anna introduced her to the children and explained that she’d been running the Wednesday night children’s program at PCC since she’d graduated from college, and would continue to run it, but that Ashley would be overseeing that program and the preschool ministry as well. The big thing that Anna was eager to give up was children’s church. She’d run it this last week, but starting next week, she wanted to be able to actually sit through her husband’s sermons.
Mary Anderson came along to finish the tour of the Wednesday night children’s ministry. Mary and Ashley popped their heads into the youth room and saw Jarred leading an exercise with the teens with Kennedy’s help. Ashley was happy to see the attentiveness of the teens. They all seemed to really enjoy Jarred’s leadership.
As they made their way to the preschool area, Mary explained that while Anna worked with the school age children, there was a class for the three and four year olds that took place in the pre-school wing. That would be the place Ashley would need to concentrate her focus on Wednesday evenings.
They looked into the room and saw the children singing along with a Christian song. There was a pile of crafts lying on the table. “Do the teachers come up with their own thing, or do I need to provide what they do?” Ashley asked. She hoped she wouldn’t need to be providing material for them. This semester wouldn’t be horrible time-wise, because there were only a couple of classes she still needed, but once she started seminary, it would be a strain.
“They do their own thing, but they get approval for it from you. Usually they plan out their activities six weeks at a time, and run them all by you at once.”
“Okay. I can handle that.” Ashley was thrilled that she’d only have to deal with it every six weeks. It would make it easier for her. Hopefully the teachers had an idea of how things should be done, because she knew she didn’t have a clue.
As the song the children were singing ended, Mary led Ashley to the front of the classroom.
“This is Miss Ashley. She’s our new children’s minister.”
The children all waved and a couple jumped up and hugged her. Ashley met the two teachers and they walked further down the hall.
“This is the toddler and two year old class. Once the kids can walk, we send them down here until they’re old enough to go to the pre-k room. Usually they just do a quick Bible story, and maybe a craft to go with it. Typically the Bible story is all they can sit still for.” Mary led Ashley through the room, showing her the set-up. There was a sturdy changing table on one end and on the other a bathroom with a tiny little toilet for the toddlers who were potty-training.
Mary introduced Ashley to the two teachers in the classroom. Both were obviously very capable women. “The church actually pays teachers for the little ones on Wednesday and Sunday nights, but we rely on volunteers for Sunday mornings,” Mary told her.
One of the teachers, a blonde woman in her mid-thirties, was holding a sweet little girl with pigtails in her hair and her thumb firmly planted in her mouth. “Who’s this?” Ashley asked referring to the girl. For some reason, that little girl’s big brown eyes tugged at her heart.
Mary smiled. “This is Riley. She’s shy and doesn’t warm up to strangers very quickly.” Mary explained about the shyness so Ashley wouldn’t be offended if she tried to talk to her and Riley chose to stay with her teacher.
Ashley smiled. “Hi, Riley. I’m Miss Ashley.” Riley regarded her solemnly for a moment, and then leaned out of her teacher’s arms toward her. Ashley’s arms went out automatically to catch her and she snuggled the little girl close. “Well, hi there.”
Riley pulled her thumb out of her mouth and whispered, “Hi.” She promptly stuck her thumb back into her mouth and stared intently at Ashley.
Ashley spent a moment talking to the teachers there. When Mary was ready to take her to the next room, she tried to give Riley back to the blond teacher, but she wouldn’t let go. Ashley finally asked, “Do you want to go with us?”
Riley nodded without removing her thumb, and rested her head on Ashley’s shoulder. Ashley looked at Mary and shrugged, but kept the little girl in her arms as they went to the next room. There, Mary introduced the two teachers for the bed babies and her own little girl, Bethany. Bethany was in the process of trying to open the gate that led into the hallway.
Mary scooped her up as they walked in. “This is Bethany. She’s my little spit-fire.”
Ashley grinned. “Is she your only?”
“My only spit-fire? Yes. She’s not my only child, though. I have two others that are in Miss Anna’s class. They’re boys and much easier to deal with than Miss Bethany here.”
Ashley laughed. “Are you a spit-fire, Bethany?” Bethany chose that moment to stick her tongue out and spit. Mary looked mortified, but Ashley just laughed harder. “I think I see what you mean.”
She looked through the nursery. There were eight cribs and a changing table. Two glider rockers were off to one side of the room and the cribs were on the other. Half the room was in darkness as babies slept. “Are there ever more than eight babies on a Sunday?”
Mary shook her head. “Not so far.”
“So how is this room staffed on Sundays? One teacher every week? Rotation?”
Mary smiled. “There are two specific teachers for Sunday school, and then we have different women rotate in and out for the service. For a while, Anna was in here every Sunday with one of the youth, but when Pastor Dan came along, he put a stop to that. Every mom of a preschooler is in here one Sunday every two months. The youth still volunteer in here to help whichever mom is here.”
Ashley nodded. “Sounds like it’s well-organized. Will I be in charge of organizing that?”
Mary nodded. “Anna is now. It fell on the old children’s minister, but she pushed it to Anna. Anna’s been doing way too much for this church, and needs to be able to enjoy being in service now.”
Ashley whole-heartedly agreed. It sounded like Anna was one of those women who silently did everything no one else wanted to do. That was all fine and dandy, but Anna was a teacher and the pastor’s wife. Just being a pastor’s wife could be considered a full-time job.
“I’ll take over just as much as I can as quickly as I can. I’ll need Anna at first, until I learn the ropes, but hopefully by the time school starts, she’ll be free of most of her children’s ministry duties.”
Mary smiled. “I’m glad you feel that way. I think you’re going to be a great asset to PCC.”
“I hope so. I’m going to do my very best.” Mary led Ashley back to the toddler room so she could leave Riley, but Riley continued to cling. Ashley walked into the room with her and sat on the floor. “I need to finish up my work now, Riley. You need to stay here with your class.”
Riley took her thumb from her mouth to say stubbornly, “I stay with my Ashee.”
Ashley looked at Mary with a confused look. This was the little girl who didn’t like strangers? “Can we finish up in here?”
Mary shrugged. “Sure. You’ve seen everything but how the children are signed in and out. We’ll do that when it’s time to go, I guess. The last thing I’m supposed to do with you is answer any questions you may have.”
Ashley cocked her head to the side for a moment. “I’m not thinking of any right now. Of course, my brain is fried from studying for finals, and that’s probably why. Can I get your number and call you if I have questions?”
“Of course! I homeschool my kids, so I’m fairly easy to reach.” Ken, Mary’s husband, walked up then holding the hand of each of her boys. “I guess it is time to go! This is my husband, Ken, and our boys Micah and Noah. Everyone, this is Ashley. She’s the new children’s minister.”
Ashley smiled as she readjusted Riley in her arms. “I already met your sister.”
Noah shook his head. “Please tell me she didn’t throw crackers at you.”
Ashley laughed. “I don’t think she had any crackers when I met her.” She could, however, picture that little girl throwing crackers with no problem at all.
Noah sighed with relief. “That would have made a really bad impression.”
The adults laughed. “That’s okay. I understand babies throwing things. You know what?” After Noah shook his head, she continued, “I have five younger brothers and sisters and they all threw things at me, too.”
Noah shook his head again. “How will they ever grow up and be allowed to eat at a table with civilized people?”
Ashley laughed. “How old are you?”
“Five.” He held up five fingers as he answered her.
“Are you starting kindergarten this year?”
“Yup. And I get to go to children’s church now instead of preschool.”
Ashley grinned, absolutely charmed by the sweet little boy. “Really? Do you like children’s church?”
He nodded. “Miss Anna is my favorite person in the whole wide world other than my new daddy.”
New daddy? Ken seemed so natural with the boys that she’d assumed he was their biological father. Oh well. It was none of her business.
Mary looked at Ken. “I need to take Ashley to the front and introduce her to the new parents. Why don’t you go get Bethany? She likes you better than me anyway.” Ken grinned and walked off with the boys happily trailing behind him. Mary looked at Ashley and shook her head. “You’re everything to them for the first few months, and then suddenly, you’re nothing more than a regular provider of food. It’s Daddy they want and only Daddy. I swear, that girl said Dada before Mama. I wanted to cry.” She led Ashley out of the classroom and toward the desk.
Ashley just smiled. From the lighthearted happy way Mary said it, she knew she wasn’t really upset. “Kids should always say Mama first. Daddy doesn’t carry them for nine months. Daddy doesn’t nurse them. So unfair.”
Mary nodded emphatically. “That’s right!”
A man smiled and waved as he walked past the small reception desk where Mary and Ashley were standing. He’d walked about six steps past them, and then turned and came back, his eyes wide. “Who are you and why is Riley so happy to be with you?”
Ashley shrugged. “I’m Ashley James. I’m the new children’s minister. As to why she’s with me? I have no clue. She looked at me and jumped into my arms and won’t let me put her down.”
“Are you serious? No way!” He looked at her as if he couldn’t believe it.
Mary laughed. “Seriously, Larry! She wouldn’t let us take her back either. She said she was staying with her Ashee.” Mary grinned at the confused look on his face. “Ashley, this is Larry Rome. He’s Riley’s dad.”