Chapter 3

Leonard rode slightly behind his granddaughters so he could keep an eye on them and make sure they stayed safe while riding their horses. Both of his granddaughters, Carly and Christy, had been riding for years and were excellent equestrians. Leonard just laughed as Carly took off and dared her sister to try and catch her. Leonard wasn't too worried as these were open fields and there wasn't anything dangerous for the horses or the girls to get into. The girls knew not to get too far ahead of their Papaw and were waiting for him by a small creek when Leonard caught up to them.

Both girls had dismounted by the time Leonard got there and were holding the reigns of their horses as they let them drink and rest for a little while.

"Well girls, tell me what's going on in your lives. What's new?"

Carly looked at her sister silently asking permission to say something, but Christy just shook her head no. "I think Mom is having an affair," Carly blurted out so fast that Leonard wasn't sure he heard her correctly. I was at home using Mom's phone to play a game when her phone rang. I thought it was Dad calling and said hello, but a man's voice I didn't recognize started talking. He said "Marie, please don't hang up the phone, just listen. I truly enjoyed the time we spent together at the medical conference. I apologize for what happened in my hotel room, but I think you are smart and beautiful and so full of life and I would like to see you again. Please call me."

Christy then said, "You promised you weren't going to say anything. How could you?"

"Because next to you, there's nobody I trust more than Papaw. Because I don't know anyone smarter or stronger or more loving than him. Because he always knows the right thing to do. Because I'm scared that Mom and Dad are going to get a divorce and ruin not only their lives but ours too. Because," and both girls started sobbing.

Leonard loved his grandkids just like he loved his kids and it broke his heart to see them hurting in any way. When any of them hurt or cried, so did he. He stepped forward and hugged his granddaughters to himself and just let them cry, never saying a word, just sharing their pain.

A few minutes later, when all of them had finally stopped crying, Leonard said, "Girls, tie up the horses so they won't run away, and then let's take a little walk."

After the horses were tied up, they climbed up a relatively steep slope till they came to the top of a good-sized hill. When they got there, they all sat down on the ground in a circle and Leonard said, "Girls, I have some things to tell you. First of all, the success or failure of your parent's marriage is not your responsibility. They are supposed to be the adults and no matter what, love you and take care of you. Now, I don't know what's going to happen with your Mom and Dad. Life is hard sometimes but life is also good. What I do know is that you are surrounded by people that love you and will always take care of you. Your grandmother and I are going to have a little come to Jesus meeting with your Mom and Dad. So, have a little faith that in the end everything will be okay. Alright? Do you guys feel at least a little better" Both girls nodded their heads yes.

"Now I'm going to tell you something that very few people know. You two are responsible for saving my life. It's an interesting story, one I've never told you before because I didn't think it was the right time. When you two were just a few months old I got the flu and that led to me getting double pneumonia. At the hospital, in the intensive care unit, I became septic, my kidneys completely shut down, I had to have emergency dialysis, and was on a respirator for approximately two weeks. During that time the doctors said I almost died four separate times. At one point they thought I was brain dead. When they first told me they wanted to put me on a respirator, you know what I said? NO! I just felt like it was my time to die. I had basically done everything I ever wanted to do, all my kids were grown and I was so proud of them. I always wondered how I would act when it was my time to go. I wasn't afraid to die because I believe in universal salvation or that God will save every person. When I said no to being put on life support, your grandmother got really close to me and said several things to try and get me to change my mind. I love your grandmother dearly and didn't want to leave her, but nothing she said to me had any effect on my decision until she mentioned you two and how you needed me. I have a picture on my refrigerator of you two being held by your Mom when you were just a few months old. I'm sure you have both seen it many times over the years. Whenever I look at that picture, and see your little, smiling faces, I see every good thing in this world. So, I said okay, you can put me on the respirator. That's how you two saved my life."

Leonard looked at his granddaughters and saw they were just about ready to start crying again, but he just kept talking because what he had to say was important.

"Girls, if you never remember anything else, remember this: I will always love you no matter what. There isn't anything you can say or do that will make me stop loving you. Now, I may be disappointed in your actions or disapprove of your decisions, but I will always love you. That's the way God loves us and that's the way I love you.

Now let's head home. You guys have to take care of these horses and I have some grilling to do, and I'm not talking about hot dogs and hamburgers."