The Oak Leaves
Authors: Maureen Lang
Tags: #Fiction, #Christian, #General, #FICTION / Christian / General, #FICTION / General
“Drawing from her own life experience, Maureen Lang invites us to experience the honest disappointments and glorious discoveries that come from mothering a son others may see as ‘different,’ yet God sees only as His beloved child.”
Liz Curtis Higgs, best-selling author of
Thorn in My Heart
“I couldn’t put this book down. Vivid, compelling, and deeply moving, with issues that touch the soul,
The Oak Leaves
was a story that lingered in my heart, and made me ask, just how much am I willing to accept from the Lord? . . . Every moment you spend with this book is worth it.”
Susan May Warren, award-winning author of
Reclaiming Nick
“Maureen Lang’s
The Oak Leaves
is a beautiful, beautiful story of the many kinds of love and their divine author. I feel privileged to be one of the first to read it.”
Lyn Cote, author of
The
Women of Ivy Manor
“This is a wonderful story—told from a wealth of experience and from the heart—of the anxiety, despair, mourning, and eventual acceptance associated with having a child diagnosed with fragile X syndrome. . . . This book offers hope and comfort, as well as a celebration of the little joys . . . of raising a child with fragile X.”
Elizabeth Berry-Kravis MD, PhD, Director of the Fragile X Clinic and Research Program, Rush University Medical Center
“Readers who have children with disabilities, readers who know families affected by disabilities, and readers who are simply drawn to a rich, well-written story will be lifted up by this beautiful work.”
Gail Harris-Schmidt, PhD,
coauthor of
The Source for Fragile X Syndrome
“Maureen Lang has made the world a better place, and families impacted by fragile X syndrome, now and in the future, owe her their thanks.”
Robert Miller, Executive Director, National Fragile X Foundation
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The Oak Leaves
Copyright © 2007 by Maureen Lang. All rights reserved.
Cover photograph of woman copyright © by Banana Stock/Fotosearch. All rights reserved.
Cover photograph of leaf copyright © by istockphoto. All rights reserved.
Cover background image on bottom copyright © by Veer. All rights reserved.
Author photo copyright © 2005 by Jennifer Girard. All rights reserved.
Designed by Beth Sparkman
Edited by Kathryn S. Olson
Published in association with the literary agency of WordServe Literary Group, Ltd., 10152 S. Knoll Circle, Highlands Ranch, CO 80130.
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, King James Version.
This novel is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons living or dead is entirely coincidental and beyond the intent of either the author or publisher.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Lang, Maureen.
The oak leaves / Maureen Lang.
p. cm.
ISBN-13: 978-1-4143-1345-0 (pbk.)
ISBN-10: 1-4143-1345-4 (pbk.)
I. Title.
PS361.A554O15 2007
813′6—dc22 2006033334
For my husband and my children,
and families everywhere
affected by fragile X syndrome
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
A Note from the Author
About the Author
Q & A about Fragile X
Sorrow is a fruit.
God does not allow it to grow
on a branch that is too weak to bear it.
Victor Hugo
Acknowledgments
It seems impossible to contain within a few words the gratitude I feel toward so many people for the production of this book. When the Lord first whispered to write this story, I knew I was neither ready nor willing. But from my first gentle and encouraging readers, too numerous to name, I received the assurance needed to conquer those early drafts. From other moms who have lived through the horror of receiving a life-changing diagnosis on their child, I received affirmation of my goal: to write something that will remind us we can survive. Through all of my critique partners, I became convinced this book was more than cathartic.
My appreciation to Meredith Efken for helping me to find the focus of this story and to Jill Eileen Smith, Joelle Charbonneau-Blanco, Julie Scudder Dearyan, Karen Dale Harris and so many others from my critique groups for their unwavering belief in the value of this project.
Many thanks to my agent, Greg Johnson, and his assistant, Marjorie Vawter, whose enthusiastic report caught Greg’s attention. Not only did he successfully market the proposal in record time, Greg also prodded me into imagining a sequel. Now I don’t have to say good-bye (at least just yet) to the characters I’ve grown to love.
Finally I’d like to thank the Tyndale team of Stephanie Broene, Kathy Olson, and Karen Watson. Their wise input, friendly assistance, and ready accessibility made the process of producing this book a pleasure from the very beginning. Kathy, your insight and reassuring footnotes made editing this book a joy. My deepest thanks.
Introduction
To my son Kipp and his wife, and to their children and children’s children in America,
I can think of no better way for you to know me than to share with you my journal from the time in my life that revealed God’s plans for me—plans far different from my own. This is my legacy to you.
I assure you each word is true. If you inherit anything from me, may it be the knowledge that love is stronger than fear, especially with faith in the One who is love: “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.”
—Cosima Escott Hamilton, 1874
