No Wasted Tears (17 page)

“Are you having dinner with Pastor tonight or what?” They were
both waiting for an
answer.

“We decided to get together tonight. I wanted him to get a little better acquainted with Sara, so I invited him to dinner. Then I called Sara, and I guess from the smells raffling through the house, she started cooking right
away.”

Tina stood, gathering her purse. “Well, everyone who’s going with me needs to get their things. We’re about to leave the station.” She watched as all three of the children began to clean up their
areas.

“Cynthia, it would be a joy and a lot of help if you wanted to tag
along.”

“I thought you’d never ask. Let me get my purse.” Cynthia
turned, heading down the
hall.

“Enjoy yourself, Destiny.” Tina winked as she started toward the door. “I’m sure you and Pastor will have an interesting dinner with Auntie. We should be back around ten this evening. We’ll see you then.” With that, she grabbed her keys, made sure the kids were ready, and headed for the
car.

Destiny returned to the living room. She had plenty of time to relax. After she checked the lock on the door, she sat down and immediately closed her eyes. There were still a couple of hours before Adam would
arrive.

Flipping on the lights in the living room, Sara relaxed against the doorframe, watching Destiny sleep. Her eyes scanned Destiny’s outfit all the way down to her shoeless feet. Destiny never liked wearing shoes. Lord, she was so much like her mother. Sara’s heart was full as she admired the young lady who had been through so much in life. It seemed as if everything in her life was changing since they had come to Seattle. She was happier than Sara had ever seen her, but some things in her behavior gave her a slight concern. She never failed to ask if any calls had come from Stanley and she was always checking the locks on the doors almost obsessively when she was home. Sara heard her crying in her room on several evenings after everyone went to bed. Even the way she had entered the house today alarmed her. She had been nervous as she came in the house, turning on the lights to the living room and porch only to realize that it wasn’t even dark out yet. Maybe she needed some counseling for battered
women.

She prayed that Destiny would inquire about the programs and if not at Greater Community then maybe a private center.
Bless her, Lord
, Sara said to herself.
My
sister would be so
proud of her.
Clearing her throat, she watched as Destiny’s eyes
opened.

“Baby girl, when are you going to start getting yourself ready for dinner? Pastor Wheeler will be here shortly.” She smiled, deciding that now was a perfect time to wake her
up.

“Thank you, Auntie. I need to get up and get started now,” she responded, sitting
upright.

“Baby, you don’t owe me any thanks,” her auntie said, kissing her lightly on the cheek. “I should be thanking you for being the best child anyone could ever want. Now go get dressed. Pastor will be here in a few
minutes.”

After dressing, Destiny went into the kitchen. When she didn’t see any signs of her aunt, she began to set the table. Sara came in shortly after and began to hand her the silverware she
needed.

“We’ll put the food in the oven until Pastor gets here so it won’t get cold,” she said, heading for the living room. Destiny did as she was instructed and then followed her into the living room. Sara sat in the living room in her favorite chair, rocking back and forth. Destiny sat across from her, relaxing on the
sofa.

Looking around the room, Destiny was pleased with how the house was becoming a home for each of them. Their tastes were different, but they managed to compromise on a lot of the decorations, giving the home a country, chic elegance. The family photos of the twins, Cynthia, Sara, and herself graced the tops of the tables and the walls. Destiny admired all of the pictures. Picking up the picture of Sara, she admired the softness that epitomized her
character.

“What are you thinking about, Destiny? You’ve been kind of quiet the whole evening,” Sara asked, breaking the
silence.

Destiny shrugged. “Just thinking about everything that’s happened and how wonderful God is to bring us to this
point.”

“God always takes care of his
children.”

“I’m learning so much about the goodness of God. Pastor Wheeler is an excellent teacher,” Destiny stated, not realizing she was
smiling.

“You’re smiling like you won first place in a contest.” Sara was laughing
now.

Destiny laughed. “Is it wrong to be this happy? Sometimes I don’t think I deserve all the happiness I’m feeling right
now.”

Sara looked and rolled her eyes. “The Lord wants all of us to be happy, and you deserve some happiness. You’re a wonderful young woman, and your mama would be
proud.”

Destiny sighed. “I like him, but I’m worried that our going out might not be good for him. I noticed on Sunday how some of the young ladies were watching me at church. I don’t want to cause problems. We’ve only been there a short while. Today, before I left for work, I got a phone call, but the person didn’t say anything. It was strange, just a lot of breathing on the other
end.”

Sara sucked her teeth. “Child, it’s been almost five months. It couldn’t be anybody you know; just a wrong number or some kids making a prank. At least you’re not running up behind him every Sunday or Wednesday like a dog in heat, trying to get his attention. It’s a shame, but that’s what it is. The man’s probably been looking for a lady like you all of his
life.”

Before Destiny could comment, the doorbell rang. She jumped to her feet. She
let Pastor Wheeler in as Sara came to her
feet.

Destiny held the door open for Pastor Wheeler, and as he walked into the room, he stopped to hug her gently. Destiny smiled warmly at
him.

“Hi, Destiny,” he said quietly as he looked over at
Sara.

“Hi, please come in.” Taking him by the elbow, Destiny led him into the center of the
room.

“Good evening, Miss Sara. I hope it wasn’t too much trouble fixing dinner for
three.”

“No, no, not at all,” Sara said while giving him a
hug.

“I hope you’re hungry,” Destiny said as she took his jacket. “We put everything in the oven, waiting for your
arrival.”

“I am,” Adam responded, “and it smells
wonderful.”

Adam and Destiny followed as Sara led the way into the kitchen. Sara instructed Pastor Wheeler to sit at the head of the table while Destiny filled each glass with the richly colored tea she considered the best. After placing a lemon on each glass, she placed them in their respective place. Sara brought out the food in the beautiful servers that she only used on Sundays. After making sure she had everything, she settled herself in the chair next to
Destiny.

Sara gestured toward Pastor Wheeler. “Pastor Wheeler, if you don’t mind, I would be honored if you would bless the
food.”

Adam was pleased. They all bowed their heads as he blessed the food as well as every occupant of their
home.

“Amen,” they all chorused at the end of the prayer. Then, reaching for the collards, Sara began to fill each plate with the delicious contents of each
bowl.

“So Pastor Wheeler, how was your day at the church?” Sara inquired as she began to cut her
ham.

Adam cut into his ham, taking a bite before responding. “I generally take Mondays off because of my schedule on Sunday. So today I relaxed and began to pray about what God wanted spoken to his people in the coming
week.”

Sara took her time in responding. “I believe that every pastor should take a day of rest. God wants his men and women to be open to receive and not tired out by all of the issues they have to deal with throughout the week. You have to attend to your own spiritual, physical, and emotional needs because it’s crucial to your ability to serve
God.”

“Auntie, I never heard you talk about the role of the pastor before. I knew you loved the Lord, but now I can see your respect for the role of a pastor,” Destiny said while sipping her
tea.

Sara chuckled. “I’ve never been married, but I do know that the relationship between the pastor and the church is like a good marriage.”

Sara wasn’t surprised when she noticed the rise of his brows, probably realizing she had a revelation that very few understood. “Yes, Miss Sara, the relationship between the pastor and his church is much like a marriage. It’s a partnership, each giving one hundred percent to make sure they are caring equally for each
other.”

“So,” Sara said, “have you lived in Seattle all of your life, Pastor?”

“Yes, ma’am. I was born here. My parents are still living, and I have a twin brother, Marvin, who lives here as well. The only time I left was to attend college in
Atlanta.”

Sara nodded. “I had never been to Seattle or anywhere else ‘til
Destiny told me about Tina wanting us to come and live here. But I do think I’m going to enjoy it
here.”

They ate freely, biting into the ham and dabbing the juices of their collards up on their plates with the homemade biscuits. They talked about everything from the weather to sports, business, and local events taking place in Seattle. Adam
talked about his family with so much love and respect. Sara studied him and understood what so many of the women at his church saw in
him.

Sara gave Destiny an approving smile. Pastor Wheeler had made her laugh at his jokes and cry when it came to his love for the ministry. Destiny would be treated like a real lady with this man. He’d pulled her into his heart and he had done it in less than two
hours.

Her niece seemed to be caught off guard by all that she had seen transpire between herself and Adam. Sara watched as she swallowed the food in her mouth, rinsing the last bite down with a gulp of
tea.

Then she jumped up saying, “We’ll clean up the kitchen, Auntie. You go and relax for a while.”
She picked up the empty plates and took them to the
kitchen
sink.

Sara sighed heavily before responding, “You’re right, baby girl. It’s been a long day.” Rising from the table, she extended a hand toward Adam. “Pastor, please come by again. It was really nice having you here for dinner. Our house is always open to you. Try to get baby girl not to worry about that phone call she got today. I told her it was probably some kids playing on the
phone.”

“Thank you,” he responded, rising to his feet. “Everything was delicious, Miss Sara. Thank you for having me
over.”

As she eased out of the room, she called good night to Destiny over her
shoulder.

Adam and Destiny stood together in the kitchen doing the dishes. The low hum of the refrigerator was the only noise to be heard for a while, along with the running
water. Rinsing the soap from each dish, Destiny was almost in tears, laughing as Adam spun story after story of his and Marvin’s exploits as kids. With all the dishes dried and put away, Adam tossed the damp dishcloth across the sink and guided her back into the living room. They heard Sara singing as she prepared herself for
bed.