Jack of All Trades
by
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That was when the roof collapsed. Then the fire was simply too hot and he could no longer enter the house. Ignoring the fire, he had actually run back into the flames, but some of the neighbor volunteers ran after him and pulled him back. They held him while he yelled and cried, then stayed with him as he slumped to the ground in tears and from the smoke that he had inhaled from the anguish, from the physical injury that he had sustained. An amazing number of neighbors from adjacent farms came to help that night, including several men who were not Amish. Without exception, they had seen what had happened. They all knew beyond a doubt, that which Jack had not yet accepted. Eventually, the fire was extinguished, although little remained of the Sueter home. People, even non-Amish people came with blankets and offers of shelter. In their rural farming world, the losses of one family were a loss for all. The sun had started to brighten the dark when they began the head-count, finding members of the Sueter family spread all over the property in the care of neighbors and helpers. When the morning was finally completely light, those who counted the family members knew that all had not been accounted for. Two were missing! Two had been lost in the fire! Sara Sueter was one of those. **** Meg didn t see the elk until the last moment. She swerved to miss it, but went off the road and down a steep incline into a mass of brushy alders in the process. Another car all but smashed into hers, but managed to miss by inches. She couldn t look long, what with her tree-breaking route, but she had seen the other car skid and spin in a full circle before she went out of sight down the embankment. Stunned, wondering how it all happened so swiftly, she remained immobile. **** That was the last straw. Everything he was working at was self-destructing. He completely lost his temper. It was a blessing that nobody saw him he was not somebody that they knew or would want to. Father Pat ran out of the building and drove away from the property like a crazy man. He had to create his plan as he drove, but foremost in his mind was stopping Kelly. He was more than slightly mad - no, furious. He didn t even knock. He just crashed into her apartment and yelled until he found her. She kept telling him to leave her alone, that he didn t know what he was getting into, and worse, that it was none of his business. She tried to run past him into the street, but he blocked her path. "Kelly, I am not going to let you pass me until you hear what I have to say. Now stand still and listen to me, and I mean right now." **** Startled by her outcry, Gene lost his balance and went over the side of the log, but fell backwards. As he fell into the river, he hit his head on a submerged rock. Then, he started to drift away in the swift current. He wasn t moving, just turning in the current like a recently fallen autumn leaf. **** Of course, everybody in the room was shaken. It was wonderful news, startling news. But Kelly the nurse was looking at Father Pat and shaking her head in disagreement. She knew that DNA couldn t prove that they were sisters, only that they were related by blood. Father Pat saw her doubt and was ready to confirm what she was thinking by sharing absolute proof of his earlier statement. "Unfortunately, the DNA tests cannot confirm that you are sisters," and he paused for effect, "except in one single, extremely rare, incredibly wonderful circumstance, and, wonder of wonders, you both meet that criterion."
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About the Book
Even in the least prepared of us, there’s the potential of a good life, of good deeds. Jack Zant corroborates that theory. Born into money, he didn’t need to know how to get along without it or how to actually earn the stuff; it was given whenever he asked, or whenever his parents thought he needed some, which was frequently. No matter the cushy station in life, things can change. Jack Zant’s changes were radical, testing, and eventually, amazing. To arrive at that triumphant finale, he had to survive mental and physical torture--no small task, given his background, but he had help, and from the least expected and most unusual of sources. It was hidden--and deeply-- but over the years that this story covers, his character slowly began to surface. Compassion, caring, and a unique kind of communicating - perhaps this cluster of "C’s" constitutes a composite of his attributes - even as hidden away as they are in the beginning. There’s one other "C": coincidence, or perhaps, design, fate. The others in his life-adventure are coincidence. He knew some of them, but not in the capacity that they emerge. Others were total strangers. Yet, in the end, they become an incredible unit. Isolation --pain--death-- job--joy--love--loved--strange companions. Is there a common bond? Those are the ingredients of the coincidences--and Jack knows all those parts - he lives them. The summary of those parts is what makes him a man to be admired, a man with a unique ability to love, and in summary, a beautiful story.
About the Author
I live in Livermore, California. My wife and I share our children-vacated home with Sam, a German Shorthair/Labrador mix that we rescued from the animal shelter. Sam thinks he owns us--a strong possibility--and let’s us live at his house. Aside from writing, my wife and I both enjoy tent camping in the Sierra Nevada, and travel especially by rail. This is my second novel. The first, Broken Minds & Broken Hearts, was published in February of 2000.