Chapter 47: Love is a Healing Force

“Now what do we do?”

“Now, my babygirl, we live.”

Halloween comes and goes without any destiny altering events, but Molly did get to do her first Halloween and Gabriel steals half of her candy. “Humph.”

This was that night: sort of. In the decorated streets of Chattanooga of the state of Tennessee many a young ones are running around with innocence and laughter in their hearts. Not by any sense of the moment do Molly and Gabriel take credit for that, but something feels different; everything is lighter.

As Gabriel watches Molly be a little girl he has true joy in his heart, but he also has a nagging concern growing in that heart for this world or at least the good people in it and for his girl. Peace to people of good will, so says scripture. He keeps it to himself for now, but from the book of Revelations or as it was earlier known the book of Apocalypse the Thousand Years are an extreme time of trials and tribulations. He is very confused and will spend much time on the Book of Apocalypse, specifically about the Thousand Years, in the coming months, but Gabriel doesn’t let it weigh on Molly.

“Trick or treat.”

“Oh my, what do we have here, a scary ghost?” says an elderly gray-haired lady who could be straight out of a fairytale book. It’s a growing weirdness to Gabriel that so many of the people they encounter seem to look a lot like characters from things Molly and Gabriel have watched, shared and or dreamt up.

“No, ma’am, I’m a good ghost.” The elderly lady laughs and they go to the next house.

Again Gabriel is watching her in pure joy and wonder because he can sense that so much has been taken from her, forced to grow up too fast, but she is living what is being given her. In one sense it makes him sad, but in the other he is here with her now and he would have it no other way. Gabriel loves and admires this young lady in every way. She is prayers answered and dreams fulfilled. Whether they are to live together as father and daughter or later husband and wife or whatever, they will live for the other, love for the other and serve the Lord for all good people and for any and all they can get to repent.

Molly catches him looking dreamy-eyed at her and she asks, “What?”

“I’m not sure what I did to deserve you, but it’s weird I feel sad for us as much as I do overly joyful. You know what I mean?”

Molly’s eyes go big and she nods knowingly, “Do you remember what you told me?”

“Which time?”

“It’s not good or bad or personal, it just is.”

“Right.”

“What happened happened and from the bad came good, very very good.”

“Ah, okay, I’m glad about that; especially if I’m the good, but...”

“We’re the good.”

“Oh, okay, then even better.”

“Exactly.”

Gabriel is getting lost. He feels as if he is going in circles in a square room. “What are you talking about?”

“About the day we met, the day that put all of this into motion. The day courage saved the world. The day love was freely given to a girl who was just beginning to ... see a new world.”

Gabriel thinks he knows when and what she is talking about, but it just doesn’t feel right. It feels out of sync. Like much of their experiences where they comment on or have feelings of gratitude for something that hasn’t happened yet. It seems like the finish line was before the starting line. “Molly?”

Before Molly answers, just in front of them, two big kids come up on a group of smaller kids, “Give us your candy or else!” The glow coming off those bullies is way too powerful for this moment. Gabriel starts to go over to them, but Molly grabs his arm and stops him. Molly waves her hand and the bullies go flying out into traffic and get hit by a truck.

“What the hell was that?”

Molly looks up at him and smiles and her eyes are the red of a raging bull. Gabriel snaps awake. He quickly looks over at Molly next to him who is lying on her tummy as pure and innocent as ever. Her pristine white nightgown fits her perfectly; not just in size, but in all her royal glory.

Gabriel is breathing hard, “Great!”

He can’t fall back asleep so as he is lying there watching Molly he remembers this very night and Molly’s first Halloween. He smiles and strokes her hair and rubs her back and then he glances just past her at a pile of candy on the end table. He tries to reach over her without waking her and then he stops as her first ‘trick or treat’ rings in his mind.