If heaven needed her brother they got a hero

Song: Heaven was needing a hero

By: Je Dee Messina

Start song at (1)

The thick pages reminded Jack of the books he'd read to his sister. The pages he passed were beautiful. One even showed a shepherd, with a familiar shepherd's crook, watching a flock. The drawing so lifelike, Jack could almost hear the being of the animals. Finally the bookmarked page came, a winter scene showing the two siblings have bully skating on the pond.

"That's the one." Mrs. Bennett said looking over the winter spirit shoulder. "You see the story of Penny Overland's brother starts when she was born. Her father told her about how her eight-year-old brother had promised to keep her safe and be the best big brother he could from the moment he first saw her. He kept that promise, teaching her to be happy and have fun no matter the circumstances. He loved and protected her with everything he had. He was her hero and one late winter day he proved it to everyone else as well."

She went to another picture a few pages further; the winter scene was still there but slightly different. A young woman was standing on the ice. "This is around the time she married Jacob Bennett. She came to the pond to talk to her brother. (1)

"The day that her brother proved to be her hero was also the last day she saw him. She remembered that day vividly. They had gone skating and she had been trying to it solo. Without warning the ice under her skates cracked. Frozen in fear she looked at her brother. He remained calm and helped her to stay calm as well. She trusted her brother would find a way out of the mess they were in. As he always did. He didn't let her down; he got on solid ice then encouraged her to move towards him. When she was in reach he hooked her, much like a shepherd hooks a sheep that is in danger, and flung her to safety. And that's when happened. The ice that was breaking gave way, her brother had switched places with her when he'd flung her, and he fell in."

All the kids looked shock! Jack on the other hand looked lost in thought.

"She had run home, but there was nothing anyone could do. When the sun set a few hours later the ice had covered the whole. There was no way to get to him safely. When spring came and it was safe to look, there was nobody found. At first the family felt that they would never find closure, but it was Penny who finally got them out of their sadness. She remembered how much he had valued and in encouraged fun in all situations, even ones as sad as the loss of a loved one. Not to be disrespectful but to honor the loved ones by cherishing the good times not the sat. So she took those lessons to heart and with her help the family returned to the happiness they'd had before, if a little different. She didn't change herself, she simply used her own personal skills to help her brother's memory and ideas live on. She missed him greatly but she knew that he would always be her hero, and how he was a hero in the villager's eyes as well."

Jack came out of his thoughts with tears in his eyes. The scenes Mrs. Bennett described linking perfectly with his own memories including this tale of Penny, though he hadn't known who she was at the time, talking at the pond before her wedding. He had stood in a tree while she spoke to the frozen water. Hearing her words as they touched his heart!

"I guess heaven was needing a hero someone just like you!"

Jack came over and wrapped protective armor on Jamie and Sophie. Then he hesitated, but Mrs. Bennett, no Mary, waved him closer. The three of them joined her by the book as she turned to the next picture.

This was a portrait. A close-up look of Penny's brother. There were obvious tear stains on the page, Penny had looked at this picture a lot, but the drawing was clear as if it had been drawn yesterday. A tall, lanky teen wearing a simple wool shirt and a pair of leather pants held in place by straps of leather bound around and up his legs. He held a hand carved shepherd's crook and a smile full of love and fun lighting up his face. His eyes seem to be plotting some prank. His hair was in disarray, as if he had never combed it a day in his life. When Jamie side he spun around to stare at the guardian of fun.

"His name was Jackson Overland." Mary turned to look at Jack as well.