Jo was awakened the next morning by Dieter's gently shaking her.

"Come on, it's time to get up!"

They joined Gunter, Sophie, and their sons at the table, where they enjoyed a delicious breakfast of sausage and pastries.

"Better dress warmly," Dieter cautioned Jo when they were finished eating.

Jo put on long underwear, woolen pants, a sweater, thick socks, and boots. Dieter dressed the same way, and the family was off.

They reached the ski lodge and parked, then went inside a large wooden building to buy their tickets and rent their equipment. When they had everything, they went outside and got in line for the ski lift.

"We're lucky," said Sophie. "The line isn't that long today."

At last they were at the front of the line. Dieter and Jo rode with Matthias on one lift, while Gunter and Sophie rode with Markus on the next lift. Whee! Jo thought as they rose into the air. It reminded her of amusement park rides of the twenty-first century.

"Those people down there look so tiny!" she remarked.

The lift moved over the roofs of buildings. Far below, a truck rumbled down the road. Empty chairs glided past in the opposite lane.

At last they reached the top of the mountain. The bar lifted, and they were standing on their feet. Dieter showed Jo how to get into position.

"Now give a little jump," he said. Jo did. "Perfect! Now, tilt your shins forward and flex your ankles." He showed her how to turn and how to stop. "Now push off with your poles." She did so, and off she went!

"It's like flying!" she yelled as she sped along. With the wind in her face, she continued to glide down the mountainside. "I've never gone so fast in my life!"

Alone in a world of white, she quite forgot herself, where she was, who she was with, and what she was doing, and she was genuinely surprised when she reached the bottom of the slope. She looked over and saw Dieter grinning at her.

"Did you like it?" he asked.

"It was magic!"

"I knew you'd enjoy it."

They rode the lift to the top of the mountain and skied down five more times. Jo was so energized she felt like she could keep going all day, but Dieter told her it was time to go.

"The others are ready to leave, and you don't want to wear yourself out on your first day of skiing, anyway," he said.

She felt just a little disappointed as they returned their rental gear and walked back to Sophie and Gunter's vehicle. It wasn't until she'd sat down that she realized how exhausted she truly was.

Matthias and Markus chattered excitedly on the way back to the house. Jo wondered where in the world they got so much energy.

At home, Sophie served everyone from the huge pot of soup which had been simmering on the stove all day. Jo gulped it greedily, then spit it into a napkin. She felt her face burning as she heard the laughter surrounding her. She felt a soft touch on her arm and looked into Dieter's concerned face.

"Are you all right?"

She nodded. "I'm sorry. I guess I was hungrier than I realized."

He chuckled. "That's all right. Just be more careful next time."

Chastened, Jo blew on her soup and ate it much more slowly from then on. There was bread and cheese to go with it. She ate until she could hold no more, then helped Sophie clean up and took a long nap.

One day, Dieter told Jo they were going to live in Richmond in London, England.

"Werner has taken a position at a church in a German-speaking neighborhood there, and he needs help," he explained.

"I didn't know there was a German-speaking neighborhood in England," Jo remarked.

"Oh, yes. Many work in the sugar refineries."

"But where will we live?" asked Jo.

"We shall occupy the second floor of the parsonage," Dieter told her. "It's a large house on a hill, surrounded by trees and gardens. Werner and Sybille live on the first floor."

"So instead of living with your parents, we'll be living with them."

"That's right."

"Will we ever have a home of our own?"

Dieter laughed. "Perhaps if we ever stay in the same place long enough. In the meantime, I shall go wherever the Lord leads me."

Arriving in London for the first time, Jo found herself facing a curious situation. As German had been a foreign language to her in her previous life in Concord, English was now a foreign language to her instead, and she was thankful that most of the signs in the area in which she was to live were in both languages.

Jo's heart leaped with joy when she saw her new home. It was painted white with black trim around the window and door frames. The door itself was painted blue. A large sycamore tree was in the front yard to the left, and a charming little white picket fence surrounded the yard.

Sybille met Jo at the front door, and they embraced.

"What's it like to live here?" asked Jo.

"The weather is similar to back home, except that it rains more often," Sybille replied. "I've heard it's lovely in the summer."

"And what's this new church like?"

"A bit small but very nice. The people are friendly - it feels just like church back home. I'm so glad you and Uncle Dieter are here. Werner has been overwhelmed lately."

The second floor was at the top of a long, winding staircase. The floor was made of wood, and the walls were painted white. A couple of floor-length windows let the meager light in.

Most of that first day was spent taking Dieter's and Jo's belongings upstairs. By now, little Dieter was an active little boy who seemed to be constantly underfoot. Sybille did her best to keep him out of the way while the newcomers moved in. By the end of the day, Jo felt like she was too tired to lift another finger.

"I don't think I've ever worked so hard in my life!" she said as she cuddled in Dieter's arms that night.

"You accomplished much," he told her.

"We both did." As she drifted off the sleep, she reflected on all the different places she'd lived. Concord. New York. Berlin. And now London.

How long would she live here?