January 17, 1915

Dear Diary,

Today is Jamie's eighteenth birthday. As we had agreed on Christmas day, Nick, Jamie, and I all went into the city of Mississauga. Sara was going to come but she had to work and Grace had a cold. So that left me, Nick, and Jamie. The day started off early, around six o'clock.

There was a light knocking on the door and I went and opened it.

"You ready to go?" Jamie asked.

"Yes. Happy birthday, by the way."

"Thanks." Jamie said, smiling.

I quietly shut the door behind me. I had told Mom about our trip to Mississauga but not Dad. Mom said she would talk to him about it, which was a relief to me. I was positive that Dad wouldn't allow me to travel the two hours to Mississauga alone with two boys, no matter who they were.

Jamie and I walked the three blocks where Nick was behind the wheel of his dad's Ford T Couplet. Jamie climbed up beside him and I got into the backseat. As the time passed, I dosed off but was quickly awakened when the sun rose. I yawned and listened to hear what Jamie and Nick were talking about. They were talking about hockey stats or something. I sat back and took the opportunity to look at Jamie. His dirty blonde hair was now short, in a sort of buzz cut. Jamie laughed at what Nick had said and his blue eyes sparkled. His face was clean shaven and his jaw line was strong. I looked down at his arms and saw the muscle as he held on as we rounded a sharp corner. His hands were capable and strong, with a few bumps and bruises due to working on the farm. I stared at his hands and my mind wandered.

It was those hands that would load and shoot a gun that would kill someone else. It was those arms that would carry his comrades to safety, just like the hero in the story books. I thought of the prayer I had said the night before,

"…please God, please don't let him be accepted…"

Thinking about it and looking at his hands, I changed my prayer and started praying then and there. I closed my eyes and bowed my head.

"Dear God, Lord I know I asked that Jamie not be accepted. Father, I've had a change of heart. I want him to be happy and I know he'll be happy serving others. Let him be accepted and use his time serving to share your word and to save others. But, God, if he has to go, please keep him safe. I don't think I could lose him. Keep him and Nick and all those out there in your tender care. Please God-"

It was at that point that I heard Jamie say,

"What do you think Charlotte?" and I heard him turn to look at me. He must've seen me with my eyes closed and then nudged Nick, who also turned around.

"She's cute when she's sleeping." Nick commented. It was then that I opened my eyes.

"I wasn't asleep. I was praying." I told them, ignoring Nick's comment. I did notice, however, that Nick was turning a nice shade of red.

"Praying for what?" Jamie asked.

"Safety." Was all I said but Jamie knew what I had meant. Jamie turned around and there were a few moments of silence.

"Have you told you mother, Jamie?" I asked, breaking the stony silence.

"Yes. She supports what I'm doing, but she wants me to come home alive and in one piece, more or less."

"More or less." I repeated. We sat there for a few more moments in silence and then I thought of something else to say.

"I can't believe I forgot. I meant to ask you. Jamie, how are you feeling?"

Jamie had come into the doctor's office where I work a few days earlier with a nasty cough, accompanied by fever and congestion. I hadn't seen him since but from the looks and sounds of it, Jamie had recovered just fine.

"Fine. Dr. what's his name gave me this awful tasting crap but it sure worked."

"Dr. Kingly."

"Right."

"Well, that's good. How long do you think you'll have to wait today at the enlistment office?" I asked.

"I don't know. Could be up to six hours or more." Nick said.

"Well, in that case, I'm not going to wait around the whole time with you. I've got to pick up some stuff for Abby and Mom."

"Fine. I'm not sure they'll allow you in anyways."

I didn't say anything and the rest of the ride was made in silence and soon we pulled up to the recruitment office, a store on main street in downtown Mississauga.

"Well, this is it." Nick said, parking the car.

"Here we go." Jamie said getting out. I got out and stretched my legs. I took a deep breath, willing myself not to cry. I knew that Jamie did not want me to cry and I didn't want to embarrass myself.

"Okay. I'll come back in about an hour and see how it's going." I said.

"Okay. See you Char. Be careful." Jamie said as I walked away. I turned quickly, biting my lip and walked away, clutching my purse. I stopped as soon as the building front was out of view and took a few deep breaths. After I had composed myself, I went into the nearest store. I got what I needed for Mom and Abby and I found some new combs for Elizabeth and a new skirt for myself. Then I went into a book store and came out with the perfect present for Jamie. I had gotten him three things-a cross on a rough rope, a small pocket Bible, and then his favourite book, Treasure Island. I knew that his copy of the book was almost apart because he read it so much. I put these things into the canvas bag I had brought along and then walked back to the recruitment office. I went to the door where a uniformed man was standing.

"May I help you?" the man asked, his eyes kind despite his harsh face.

"Maybe. I mean, my two friends came here about an hour ago and I just wondered how much longer they might be?"

"What are their names?"

"James Forest and Nicholas Stein."

"One moment please and I'll find out."

I waited outside and a minute later he came back.

"They've just completed the paper work. They have the medical exam and the physiological exam and then they'll have to sign some more papers."

"How long will it take?"

"About 3 hours."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

I walked away, wondering what to do now. I went over to the Ford and put my bag in the back seat and then shut the door. I walked away from the car and then noticed a small park in the corner of the area, about half a mile away. I walked there, hugging myself in an attempt to keep the cold out of my jacket.

When I reached the park, I sat down on a swing and began to cry. All the feelings of the fact that this was real started to bubble up, along with the fears and concerns I felt. What would I do if my best friend ended up getting killed or hurt? What would I do without my best friend there for me when I was ready to pull my hair out because of my job? He was the one I could always count on to make me smile, make me laugh, make me, well, act like me. I didn't know what to do so I just cried. I let the tears fall freely and openly, making a well-worn path down my cheek. I didn't think about time, work, or anything. In fact, I jumped and almost fell out of the swing when someone asked,

"Are you okay?"

I turned to see a young woman, maybe twenty five years old, holding a baby close to her chest and her blonde hair blowing freely in the wind.

"Yeah. I mean, I will be."

The young woman smiled sympathetically and sat down on the swing beside me.

"You have someone enlisting, don't you?" she asked softly. I looked up at her. Her eyes were gentle and compassionate.

"Yeah. My best friend." I said, another tear escaping and rolling down my cheek. I quickly wiped it away.

"I understand how you feel. It's okay to cry; you don't have to ashamed of it."

"What about you? Do you have anyone enlisting?"

"Yes. My husband."

"I'm sorry."

"Thank you." she said and then continued. "But, honestly, it's okay to afraid. It's okay to cry."

"I know. It's so difficult because Jamie-my friend-wants this so badly and I feel as though I should support him but I'm so scared for him."

"I know. Daniel, my husband, wants to serve so badly, and now that our baby is a couple months old, he's been antsy to enlist. I'm terrified at the thought of Jacob here growing up without his daddy. I don't know what I'll do, except pray."

"Gives a new meaning to 'going on a hope and a prayer'."

"It does. But all we can do is trust that the Lord will protect them and keep them from harm."

"My father has always told me that the Lord has a plan for my life, a plan that will prosper me and not harm me-"

"A plan that will give you a hope and a future." the woman finished the verse.

"Right." I said, smiling.

"Jeremiah 29:11. It's what Daniel and I were married to." the woman smiled.

"That's beautiful." I said.

"Thank you. My name is Eve, by the way."

"Charlotte."

"What a beautiful name."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome. So this Jamie, are you engaged to him?"

"No. But can I tell you a secret?"

"Of course you can." Eve's eyes grew big and bright. The way they sparkled reminded me a lot about Jamie's eyes.

"Whenever people ask me who I'm going to marry, I always think of Jamie."

"Does Jamie feel the same way?"

"I don't know."

"Well, that certainly makes things interesting."

"It makes things complicated, that's for sure."

"Well, I'll defiantly keep you and Jamie in my prayers."

"Thank you. What about you and Daniel? How long have you been married?"

"About two years now."

"Wow. You two must be so happy."

"We are. Jacob completes our family." Eve looked down at the baby and smiled.

I was going to say something but I heard someone call my name. I stood up and turned and saw Jamie running towards me.

"Hi." I said once he reached us. "You all done?"

"Yeah. Both Nick and I were accepted." Jamie smiled broadly.

"Congratulations!" I said with false enthusiasm, giving Jamie a hug.

"You ready to leave?"

"Yes."

I turned to Eve, who had also stood up. I introduced Jamie and Eve and together we walked back to the parking lot.

"We should write to each other." I said. "That is, if you're okay with it."

"That would be wonderful."

Eve and I exchanged addresses and then we hugged good-bye. I waved to her as Nick drove away from the recruitment office.

I know that Eve and I will become great friends. It's so great to find someone who's not family that understands what I'm going through. I'll write more of the details about the deployment of Jamie and Nick soon, but it's been a long day and I'm really tired.

More later,

Charlotte

PS-Dad didn't say anything when I walked in today so I don't know if that means he's mad at me, he's not mad at me, or worse, he doesn't know!