No matter which book you choose that is written by Staci Stallings, you will ultimately learn that Jesus is your friend and is with you in all things. Stallings has an amazing skill in writing so that each book, each set of characters seems to be so real, so true...and so exactly what you or another might need at any time. Even when writing for young adults, as was done in this book, we all can find something that speaks to us and gently reminds us that He is there, sometimes in people we have come to know...sometimes by the set of circumstances that we have faced at one time or another... If you have someone who loves reading, I highly recommend you give a great gift of love by sharing this or any other book written by this writer, for Christmas...
She didn’t need anyone. She could be happy all on her own. “I’m better off. Other people just complicate things,” she told the statue of the horse in Memorial Circle. On Sunday, however, she went to church for the first time since the funeral. At first, she didn’t know why she went. Maybe it was just to be around other people, but whatever the reason, she was there. Until she found herself in the pew, the thought of being in a church and hearing the words of the funeral had seemed impossible to endure, but now somehow, they gave her comfort. Even if she was alone in the world, someone, God, Jesus, or whoever, was surely there with her. She’d believed that since she was a little girl, and at this point, she needed that belief more than when she’d thought there were monsters in her room. God was here, and He would help her if she just listened to Him and did what He told her. By the end of the service, she had come to the conclusion that it was she—not her friends who had decided to push away. When the minister talked about forgiveness and compassion, the hardness surrounding her heart choked its way into her throat. In her mind, she realized she was so busy protecting the hurt inside her that she’d pushed away the very people who might help her heal that hurt. She decided she should start going to church more often. Maybe it would help get her off this awful merry-go-round and set her feet back on solid ground. She needed that. On Monday, classes came and went. She aced another Dr. Greensboro pop quiz and even answered a few questions in Psychology, but somehow her heart wasn’t in it anymore. The grades were nice, but she missed her friends. She’d eaten alone for three straight days, and it was getting old. So, on Tuesday when she had to decide where to sit for English, she opted for her usual seat. If her friends were going to turn their backs on her after her behavior, she would understand, but at least she was going to try to make amends with them. She tried not to watch for them, to keep her mind on studying her notebook, but she couldn’t help glancing back to see if they had come in yet. They hadn’t. You’re early. Don’t panic. They’ll be here. Finally, when she glanced back for the tenth time, she saw him and the strands of hair that dropped into and across his face with each step he took down. Her heart raced through her chest as she willed him to come and sit by her. When he finally turned down her row, she thought she might burst. At least he was going to give her a chance. He sat down and arranged his books on the desk, but he didn’t look at her, and he didn’t say hello. Obviously, this was as far as he would go to meet her, but it was enough. “I know you’re mad,” she started without looking at him. “I’m not mad,” he said, sounding like he was trying not to be. “Hurt and confused, yes. Mad, no.” “I’m sorry,” she said, letting her heart be truly honest. “I shouldn’t have snapped at you like I did. I shouldn’t have taken the notebook like that. There’s no excuse for what I did, so I won’t try to give you one. All I’ll say is that I’m sorry for everything. You didn’t deserve to be treated that way, and I’ll try not to let you get hurt by the lousy way my life’s turned out. I’d like to be your friend if that’s still possible. If not, I understand.” He sat for a moment, and she thought he might get up and simply walk away. But he didn’t, he just sat there. “I didn’t mean to hurt you the other night, but I did,” he finally said slowly. “And I didn’t mean to upset you the other day, but I did. It just seems like I can’t do anything right with you.” She knew that feeling well all too well, and it wasn’t much fun. “I understand—maybe better than you think I do,” she said, each word like a feather in the breeze. “I’ve been in your shoes more times than I want to count. All I can tell you is I’ve spent four days totally alone, and I’ve decided that’s not what I want either. I’ll try to be honest with you about how I feel and why I act the way I do, but that’s all I can offer for now.” “I’ll take it,” he said finally looking at her and smiling just a little. Then he shook his head. “I was afraid you’d never speak to me again after Thursday and the notebook fiasco. I didn’t mean to upset you, and... well, if you have the time, sometime... I’d really like to understand why you got so upset... sometime.” “Sometime. Yeah. Sometime, I’ll try to tell you why, but right now I’m kind of dealing with a lot, so could we put it on the back-burner for a while so I can sort some of this out on my own?” “Agreed,” he said and then added, “as long as you promise that someday you’ll tell me.” “Promise,” she said, and she meant it. Jamie glanced up. “Oh. Hey, Kim.” “Hi,” Kim said, looking only at him. One down, one to go, Leigh thought, steeling herself for this encounter. “Hi, Kim,” she said, smiling. “Hi.” Kim sat down but said no more. Well, this is awkward. “So, how was your weekend?” “Fine,” Kim said, arranging her books and not looking at Leigh. “Yours?” “Fine,” Leigh said. This was going to be harder than she thought. Finally, she decided to jump in with both feet. “Okay. Enough small talk. Look. I know I behaved like an idiot, and I’m apologizing to you for avoiding you and pushing you away. I don’t like it when people do that to me, and I shouldn’t do it to the people I care about. You were only trying to help, and I appreciate that. I’m sorry, and if you’ll have me, I’d like to be your friend again.” Once the words were out, she felt better. She’d tried to deny how much she missed Kim all weekend, but she knew at that moment that if Kim didn’t accept her peace offering, Leigh would miss her a great deal more. After a long moment, Kim sighed. “I accept your apology,” Kim said, looking at her with hurt behind her eyes. “I want to be your friend, but you’re going to have to trust that I’m your friend and not keep pushing me away.” “I’ll try,” Leigh said, nodding. “When I get out of line, just bop me one and say, ‘Leigh, you’re being an idiot again,’ and I promise I’ll try to snap out of it.” “Deal,” Kim and Jamie said together, and they all laughed. After class Leigh and Jamie walked back to the dorms together. Everything seemed back to normal. They laughed and joked the whole way home. Neither of them ventured into any deep questions or apologies. They just were friends, and for Leigh that was more than enough. The semester hit what Jamie referred to as “hyper-speed”—too many tests too fast to study for anything. It was true the tests and the assignments were coming fast and furious, but Leigh was handling them with style. Since her English class apology, she and Kim had gotten close again. The reading study sessions were even going well. Every Wednesday night they met, read, discussed, and usually ended up talking about everything else in their lives until after midnight. In fact, the semester was turning out better than she had dared hope. She looked forward to English class when she could sit with her friends, pass notes, and act like a kid again—no parents, no complicated mess of a life. Just her and her friends. It was heaven.
Leigh was a troubled girl. I couldn't blame her. Her father had been killed in an accident and her mother had sent her to stay with her aunt on the other side of the country! It was supposed to be for a few weeks, but had turned into months. Now it was time for college, and her cousin Kari was already planning to attend the same school as her boyfriend, Jamie. So, without too much thought by anybody, Leigh was also going to the same school and, sadly, as roommate with Kari...
Really not a good thing for several reasons. Leigh and Kari had gotten along alright when she first came. Kari's mother was the sister of Leigh's mother, so it had been arranged by the sisters, without talking to either of the girls... Now, Kari, in particular, had felt the need to be free of constant parental guidance, and found having her cousin staying in the same dorm room stifling...
Soon Kari was spending more hours with Jamie, out of the room, than in it. Leigh didn't mind that, but when Kari's mother started calling to talk with her daughter, Leigh found herself having to lie to her Aunt. Something she not only didn't want to do, but was, by her nature, not a good liar... Kari, naturally, began to feel that she was living with a spy for her mother...
But something began to unfold about that relationship. For instance, Leigh later learned that Jamie played a lot of sports with his friends, while Kari sat and watched. And how did that information become known to Leigh? Well, Jamie and she turned up to be in the same English class!
Along with Kim... Kim and another girl were rooming next to Kari and Leigh and quickly developing an impression for Kari that was not favorable. She seemed to be always yelling loud enough to be heard in their room. It was an easy relationship to develop with Kim as she grew sympathetic, first, for Leigh, and then their relationship developed as friends. Leigh even went home with her a few times on weekends, knowing that Leigh would be alone then.
And when Leigh started trying to reach her mother and could never get through to her, it became apparent to her friends that something was very wrong... By that time, her friends included Jamie as the three of them were in the same English class and even began to study together... getting to know and enjoy each other's company...
Was it inevitable that Jamie, who began to walk Leigh back to her dorm after class, sometimes stopping for a drink to talk, that each began to care for the other? Both of them knew what was happening. But, for Leigh, it just created trauma--what was she thinking, falling for her cousin's boyfriend...while he was still her boyfriend?! She started fighting her feelings and pushing Jamie away... And he really didn't want to be pushed away and was hurt...
“Leigh,” Jamie said, turning and laying an arm across the seats.
“No, let me finish.” She turned to him and looked at him. “I always thought I knew how to be a true friend, but everything I’ve ever done for anybody has been a shadow compared to what you did for me. Nobody’s ever cared about me enough to really force me to take a look at what I was doing to everyone around me—much less what I was doing to myself. I’ll never be able to repay you for that.”
Her gaze turned to liquid and dropped to her lap. Slowly he smiled, then pulled her to him and kissed her curls. “You don’t have to repay me for anything.” “But...” “Just remember that I’m here for you, and I always will be. That’ll be payment enough.”
I enjoyed, especially, how Kim was helping to bring her two friends even further together. An interesting way, for me, was the way this small study group "read" their assignments before the next class. Each of the parts would be read by an individual student. It worked to bring a fun and interesting time for all... So, I had to learn just how it would happen:
This book is suitable for mid-teens through adults in my opinion. The emotions are strong and you'll be crying and laughing all the way through. But, one thing you'll know is that Love is Strongest... And, sometimes, God's plan works out...just fine...
God Bless,
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