He wanted the type of legacy his grandfather left behind—the kind left by a man who invested in his hurting grandson and took him on adventures. A man who put his heart and soul into a thriving business for the community, despite rumors and naysayers. A man who went through a divorce, yet still wrote that he loved his wife in his Bible.
A man who never quit.
In the silence, the words of the hymn played once more in his thoughts.
Iwas sinking deep in sin
Far from the peaceful shore
Very deeply stained within
Sinking to rise no more
But the master of the sea
Heard my despairing cry
From the waters lifted me
Now safe am I
Earlier Noah had imagined those words being for his dad, but maybe they weren’t. Maybe they were for him.
He closed his eyes, the rain-scented breeze rustling his damp hair. Somewhere in the oak above, an owl hooted. And the song continued.
Love lifted me
When nothing else could help
Love lifted me
Love was stronger than blood. Stronger than family feuds. Stronger than revenge. Maybe that was why his grandfather put him and Elisa together—not because Noah wasn’t capable on his own, but because he was trying to mend fences. End the feud he’d been a part of his entire life.
Noah opened his eyes, his gaze once more roaming the letters on the headstone. He was a Hebert, yes—but he was loved. By his grandfather. By his friends. Maybe, to some degree, once upon a time, by Elisa.
But definitely by God.
And if he lived underthatname—under the label Loved—maybe he could finally quit sinking.
The tears had subsided. So had the rain. The deepening darkness of the night felt less suffocating now, more soothing. It was time to go.
Noah drew a ragged breath as he pushed himself to his feet. “I sure wish I could finish this. See what you left behind for me.” He tilted his head. “But a wise woman once told me that just because you stop doing something doesn’t mean you’re a quitter. So I’m not going to think that way.”
He grabbed his bag and started to turn, but the quote on the headstone caught his eye.
HE WHO HAS FELT THE DEEPEST GRIEF IS BEST ABLE TO EXPERIENCE SUPREME HAPPINESS… LIVE, THEN, AND BE HAPPY.
Man, Grandpa loved that book. What was the other quote that had taken Noah years to fully understand? He racked his memory. Something about luck. No, misfortune. He spoke the words out loud. “‘Misfortune is needed to plumb certain mysterious depths in the understanding of men; pressure is needed to explode the charge.’”
He’d certainly had the pressure lately. Noah smiled at the tombstone. “We’ll see if there’s an explosion, I guess.” He made a note to find Grandpa’s missing collector’s edition, so Noah could re-read it in his honor.
He started up the hill, bag slung over his shoulder. Quite the walk remained to get back to his truck at the ballpark, but he didn’t care. At least the storm had stopped.
Both outside and in.
Noah crested the hill to the road as more quotes Grandpa had read him from that book filled his mind.
“For all evils there are two remedies—time and silence.”
