“When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee: and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned: neither shall the flame kindle against thee. (Isaiah 43:2 KJV)
Amanda closed her Bible and lookrd at Sarah and Beth. The three women were sitting at the kitchen table in Sarah’s family home. This was the first chance they had had to have a long visit together. Sarah’s brother, Joe, had just completed his medical training in Boston ,, and he had planned to join his father’s practice now that Sarah was moving to Seattle
Sarah had been very busy helping her father since their arrival several days earlier. Beth had helped Mrs. Adams care for Joe, as well as helping with the everyday chores. Amanda had also helped in any way that she could and had made several trips to the stores downtown to purchase items still needed for their upcoming trip. After talking with Sarah and her parents, everyone had agreed that Beth should stay close and not venture out on the chance that her father or Mr. Zimmerman might come looking for her. Mrs. Adams had expressed her doubts about Beth’s father, saying that she was sure that he was worried about his only daughter; but after hearing the complete story, she agreed with the others.
Amanda and Beth had both written to the Jensons, telling them the whole story. They had asked the Jensons not to tell anyone where they were. Beth had also written a long letter to her father and asked the Adams to mail it after they had started on their trip west.
Amanda and Beth were sharing a room upstairs and had been able to share their devotionals each day, but this was the first chance that Sarah had been able to join them. Amanda asked Sarah if she would have the prayer now, and the three joined hands as they bowed their heads.
“Father, we praise Your name that You are all faithful and all powerful. We thank You for being with us always. Thank You for Christian friends to share this journey. Lord, You know that we are anxious about this trip yet You have promised to keep us safe through all of our trials. We trust You to keep us safe and to watch over us.”
“It is hard for us to leave our homes and loved ones, but we believe this is Your plan for us. We know, as believers, we are all a part of Your family. As we travel into the unknown, we ask for safety and Your guidance. Help us to find a family of believers to worship with in our new home. Lord, we want to live for You and share Your love with others. We feel that we will have many opportunities in this new territory. Help us to see opportunities as You present them and give us the courage to speak up when necessary to share Your Good News.”
“Lord, thank You again for all the blessing You have given us. Thank You especially for these friends with me today. We trust that You will supply all of our needs. In Your precious name we pray, Amen.”
Beth squeezed the other two women’s hands as she looked around the table. “I do thank God for both of you. If it had not been for Mandy, and your help, Sarah, I would probably be married to Mr. Zimmerman now.” Beth shuddered, and Amanda smiled reassuringly at her friend.
Sarah smiled across the table at Beth. “Well, in just a few more days, we will be on our way, and I think two thousand miles will be too far for your father or Mr. Zimmerman to catch up with you!”
“I have not really had a chance to go over my plans with you.” Sarah continued. “I wanted to talk to you while I had a few minutes. As you know, a Mr. Asa Mercer met with me several months ago. He was trying to find women who would be willing to go to the Northwest Territory to be prospective brides for the male settlers already there. The Seattle
“Mr. Mercer stopped in St. Louis Seattle
“Mr. Mercer is paying the fare for any women who will join his group. I do not plan to marry; I want to go because I feel that I can finally use my education to help others. It has been hard here because so many people just don’t believe that I am a doctor. They insist that my father see them even if he is busy on another case. I have made some progress in the past two years, but I know that I could be doing so much more. It is my hope that the people of Seattle Seattle
“Mr. Mercer will be leaving directly from the East Coast. I understand he has about forty women that will be traveling with him. He is not returning to St. Louis Georgia
Amanda and Beth were glad to hear this. They had been praying that they would have a church in their new home.
Sarah continued, “We leave on Wednesday morning. I have several trunks of medical supplies and household items. Mandy has gotten most of the additional items I needed, and I hope you both have most of what you need. If not, there is still time to purchase them.”
“I have made arrangements with Mr. Jackson to rent a small house in town. It is near the community home where the other women will be living until they get married or find another place to stay. I would like for both of you to live with me rather than the community home. As Mandy knows, I am not a good cook and don’t enjoy housekeeping. I hope that I will be so busy with doctoring that I won’t have time to keep house. I can use your help in the house and may need nursing help as well.”
Beth’s eyes filled with tears at this friendly gesture from Sarah. She looked at the older girl with gratitude. She had learned from Mrs. Adams and Joe that Sarah had always been a tomboy and had insisted on accompanying her father on his rounds from an early age. She was determined not to be swayed from her goal of being a doctor. Beth knew that Sarah was strong and had faith that Sarah could do anything she set out to do. Sarah was tall, almost six feet, with dark auburn hair and green eyes. While not a classic beauty, she was very attractive, although she did nothing to enhance her natural beauty. Beth had never seen her in anything but a white blouse and dark skirt. Secretly, Beth hoped that Sarah would find someone to love in the new town, but she kept these thoughts to herself.
Although still shy, Beth forced herself to speak up, “Sarah, are you sure? I mean, you just met me last week and you and Mandy. . .”
“Beth, I feel that I know you already from all of Mandy’s letters, and I have seen the excellent care that you have given to Joe. My parents agree with me, and I trust Mandy’s judgement. I could be called out in the middle of the night, and Mandy would be left alone. She may need your help with the house. I have prayed about this and feel this is the best decision for all of us. Of course, if you had rather not. . . “
Beth’s cheeks were pink from the praise. “Sarah, of course, I want to stay with you. It will be so much nicer to have our own home rather than sharing with all of the other women, and I would rather be with people that I know.” Beth looked at Amanda who was nodding her agreement.
"Well, then, it’s settled. I may not have much time until we leave so I am glad we had this talk. Joe is on his way to a full recovery; and I hope he will soon be ready to help my father. When that happens, I will have more time to spend preparing for the trip and time for more talks with the two of you. We should have plenty of time to talk on the train. It should take us about sixteen days to get to San Francisco Seattle
“Sarah, we appreciate your parents allowing us to stay in your home, and we are grateful for your thoughts of us when you made your plans. I know these plans make me less anxious about our future, and I am sure it is the same for Beth,” Amanda said. Beth nodded in agreement.
That afternoon, Beth went up to sit with Joe while Mrs. Adams began preparing dinner. Somehow, she did not feel shy with him, and they had had many long talks about everything.
“Joe, I am so glad I got to meet you and your family. You are so different from my family.” Beth bowed her head as she thought of her problems at home. Beth had shared a little of her situation with Joe earlier.
“I wish I could have had a family like yours.”
Joe smiled. “But you are a part of my family. . . God’s family. Sometimes our earthly families are not what we want; but in God’s family, you will never be alone when you are with other believers. Beth, I pray that you will meet a godly man in Seattle
“And I hope you and Melinda will be very happy, too, Joe.”
Joe had shared with Beth and all of his family about his excitement that his fiancée from Boston would be traveling to St. Louis Boston
Joe and Beth continued to talk for a little longer, but Beth could see that her patient was tiring. “Here, let me straighten your pillows and you try to take a nap. I’ll be up with your supper in just a short while. I probably need to go down and see if I can help your mother with anything.”
Joe grabbed Beth’s hand. “Please stay with me. I seem to rest easier when you are in the room.”
It was true, although, he did not stop to wonder why, but he had promised his mother that he would try to keep Beth upstairs until supper.
“Besides, Mandy said she was going to help tonight. You will be leaving in a few days, and I will miss you. Please stay.” He looked pleadingly at Beth.
Beth’s soft heart was swayed, and she agreed to sit with him for a while longer. She pulled a chair close to the side of the bed, and Joe smiled at her as he fought to stay awake. In a short while, he was sleeping peacefully. Beth studied him while he slept. While Sarah favored her father, Joe looked more like Mrs. Adams. He had deep blue eyes with a tanned face. One could tell by the deep laugh lines around his full mouth that he was generally happy. Mrs. Adams had told Beth that Joe had always had many friends and was the life of any party. Although Beth had not seen him out of bed, she could tell that he was tall, at least six feet, with sandy brown hair.
Beth began to pray silently that God would watch over Joe and heal him completely and that he would have a happy marriage. She thanked God that she had met Joe. She had never been around many men near her own age, and she was thankful that God had sent this friend into her life at the very time that she needed someone like him. She had begun to distrust all men after the way her father and Mr. Zimmerman had treated her. Now she saw that all men were not like them.
Deep in thought, Beth was surprised a short while later when Amanda knocked softly on the door. Opening it slightly, she peeped around the door and whispered, “Is he asleep? Come on down and have your supper while it’s hot. Everything is ready, and we can bring Joe up a tray as soon as we are finished.”
Beth glanced at Joe and saw that he was still sleeping, so she followed Amanda from the room and down the stairs. Amanda let Beth go before her into the kitchen, and the younger girl was startled by a loud cry of “Surprise!”
Beth’s mouth fell open as she gazed at the transformed room. The others had decorated for a party, and Beth was amazed when she realized it was for her birthday the next day.
Amanda led Beth to the table, and Beth saw a wonderful display of delicious food. There was fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans, pickles, and a large bowl of homemade biscuits. Looking around at the others, she stammered. “All this for me? I can’t believe it!”
“We thought we had better have your party tonight because Dad and I could both be here.” Sarah smiled at Beth as she led her to her seat.
Beth blinked tears from her eyes as she realized again how lucky she was to have such good friends.
After a short prayer led by Dr. Adams, everyone began eating. It seemed to Beth as if everyone was talking at once. Soon everyone settled down to the meal and enjoyed the delicious food. Just as Beth thought she could not eat another bite, Mrs. Adams came to the table, bearing a huge frosted cake. Everyone clapped as Beth blew out the candles, and Mrs. Adams began to cut the cake.
Beth was amazed that these people whom she had only known for a few days would go to so much trouble for her. She could not remember the last time anyone had done anything for her on her birthday – not since before her mother had died. Amanda had given her a gift last year, but she had gone home to Virginia
“Wait! We’re not finished yet!” Sarah exclaimed. She got up from the table and went into the parlor. In a few seconds she returned with a large basket full of gifts.
“For me? Oh, I cannot believe it! This is way too much!” Beth cried, almost overcome with emotion at their kindness.
Her cries of protest were drowned out by the calls of all at the table for her to open her gifts. There were handkerchiefs from Dan, Sarah’s younger brother. Dr. and Mrs. Adams had given her two aprons, and Sarah added a beautiful piece of calico. Amanda’s gift was saved for last and was a sewing kit with scissors, needles, and a variety of threads all contained in a small basket with lid. Beth turned to her friend to give her a hug.
“Oh, Mandy! It’s darling! Thank you so much!”
Beth faced the rest of the group, “And thank you all for everything! I can’t believe you went to so much trouble for me. The supper was enough, and the gifts are so wonderful and useful, too!” She smiled at each one.
Beth packed each of her new things back into the basket as the others began the task of cleaning up the dishes and kitchen. They refused Beth’s offers of help. Mrs. Adams fixed a tray for Joe, but Dr. Adams insisted on taking it up to his son, saying that he had not had a chance to visit with him all day. The others were just finishing the dishes when there was a knock on the front door.
Mrs. Adams went to answer the door, and they heard her talking with someone. Amanda knew that Beth was still nervous and worried that her father or Mr. Zimmerman might come after her so she went to her to reassure her that she was safe. Mrs. Adams called to Sarah to come into the other room; and as soon as Sarah saw who their visitor was, she motioned for Amanda and Beth to join them.
Amanda held Beth’s hand as they went into the parlor. She saw a man standing near Mrs. Adams and Sarah, but he was not familiar to her. Sarah drew both women forward to introduce them.
“This is Mr. Jackson. I told you that he would be traveling with us to Seattle
As Amanda shook his hand, she looked up into his warm brown eyes. “They look just like chocolate,” she thought. She smiled up at him and was surprised to see that he frowned at her. She was even more surprised to see him take Beth’s hand and smile warmly at her. Evidently, he had not liked Amanda on sight.
“What is wrong with him? He doesn’t even know me. What have I ever done to make him dislike me?” Amanda thought. Telling herself that she must be imagining his reaction, she went to sit beside Beth on the couch. Sarah sat in one of the two cushioned chairs in the room, and Mr. Jackson took the other one. Mrs. Adams excused herself and left to return to the kitchen.
“I wanted to come by and see if you had any questions about Wednesday or the trip.” Mr. Jackson smiled at Beth and Sarah. Amanda could not help but notice that he seemed to avoid looking at her.
“I think we are pretty sure of everything. Did you arrange for our tickets and baggage?” Sarah replied.
“Yes, if possible, I think it is best if you have your trunks and other large baggage at the station to be checked on Tuesday afternoon. If you need any help with that, I will be glad to arrange for someone to pick it up and take it to the station for you. I also can either pick you up and take you to the station on Wednesday morning or have someone else to do it.”
“I feel sure that my parents will want to accompany us to the station. My father and brother will make sure that our baggage is at the station on Tuesday. Have you found out any more about my ordering medical supplies?”
“You can order supplies from here or anywhere in the east, but it takes over a month to get most things. I feel sure that you will be able to order almost anything you need from San Francisco
“Can you tell us anything about our new town, Mr. Jackson?” Beth said timidly.
Riley smiled at her. “Call me Riley. I guess we will have plenty of time on the trip for all of your questions, but I will tell you that it is the most beautiful place I have ever seen. There are many friendly people, and the town is growing by leaps and bounds. I work at the sawmill, but I have a claim north of town, and I hope to get started on a house when I get back. The climate is great for all sorts of plants. We have a lot of rain, almost everyday. As you go up into the mountains, you can get a lot of snow in the winter; but down near the Sound the weather is usually milder. We have very long days in the summer which helps the growing season.”
“Is there a school?” Amanda asked.
It seemed to Amanda as if he did not want to answer her question, but he finally answered without looking at her. “Not yet.”
Amanda felt that she had been snubbed and could not understand why. She had not done anything to offend him, and most people seemed friendly to her. His actions puzzled her, but she refrained from asking any more questions as they spoke for a few more minutes before he bid them good night and told them that he would see them at the station.
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