This is the next chapter, next generation of Elizabeth and Wynn's family. This was my favorite book in the series so far. I love learning about their children and how they're working to find their own faith and their own way. I love the lessons about prayer and listening to and following God's will, as well as how to handle grief and understand love. Here are some favorite quotes:
"'God will be with you. Never forget that. And we'll be praying. Every day' (p. 8)."
"She had no idea about city ways (p. 11)."
"'And it's not just the puddles. You take your life in your hands. They never should have allowed them. Never. Autos and people just don't belong on the same streets' (p. 13)."
"'Work was part of life. Survival depended upon it' (p. 18)."
"'They say the city is filled with drivers who care little about others' (p. 21)."
"'Give that young woman out there a ride home. Some idiot driver nearly drowned her in road muck' (p. 22)."
"'Things are looking worse all the time... Have you been able to keep up with news of what's going on with Hitler in Europe?'... 'Only smatterings--now and then--and I never know how accurate those bits and pieces are' (p. 25)."
"'I admit it would be hard to stay if I felt my country needed me over there. I'll be praying' (p. 26)."
"It brought back all the horror of four years ago at my first posting. The first time I had to deal with a death. It was a robust-looking young Swedish logger. His company reported he didn't come in with the crew at the end of the day. I found him--pinned under a fallen tree. Crushed' (p. 27)."
"'She was little more than a girl... Just a girl. Way up there in some logger's cabin. All by herself' (p. 28)."
"'I had just come to bring the news that his daddy had been killed ... and he looked up at me and smiled. I felt like some kind of traitor' (p. 30)."
"'I don't even know how to put it into words, Dad--but I've never been so affected by grief--tragedy--before. Duty. Duty isn't enough at a time like that. You see another person so crushed, and there is nothing... you can do to ease the pain' (p. 32)."
"Henry almost lost control, and he brushed at tears. Perhaps it was unprofessional for a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police to cry. But even a law officer was human (p. 33)."
"She and Wynn had raised them carefully, tenderly, preparing them to make their way in an adult world. But my, how she missed them. Still missed them. The house felt so empty at times. The joyous memories were bittersweet (p. 36)."
"Elizabeth realized just how far from her roots Christine had been taken (p. 39)."
"'There's no use longing for what used to be. I can't be a little girl curled up in Mommy's lap enjoying a bedtime story. I can't run down the dusty track to meet my daddy as he comes home' (p. 40)."
"'Sometimes I just ache to... go back. To walk the trails through the woods. To smell the smoke from the campfires. To hear the soft music of the native tongue. I do miss it.' 'Is that really what you miss--or childhood? I mean, it seems to me if one has had a great childhood--no matter where you live, what you experience--it's hard to let it go' (p. 41)."
"When I want memories of growing-up years. Not the northern lights, not the winter snows, not the dogs we've played with. Not even our many friends. I think of family. And I know inside that no matter where we would have lived, I would have good memories because of that' (p. 42)."
"'He's nice looking?'... 'More than nice looking.'... 'I knew a young man like that once... Nice thing was, he didn't seem to be aware of it' (p. 43)."
"'I guess we didn't raise them to be insensitive... But they do seem to be taking on others' burdens with perhaps too much intensity' (p. 48)."
"'If you do what you can, accept it as part of life, but let God keep you open to others--then you grow from the experience' (p. 49)."
"'Our folks always wanted a family--so they took in kids whenever they found opportunity. First Mom took Susie--for a short while when her mother was ill--but as soon as the mother improved, they moved away and took Susie with them... Then there was Samuel. They thought they were going to get to keep him when his mother died and his father brought him to them. But the man remarried and came back for his son... Then came Henry. He was just--sort of abandoned by his family. It took Dad years to finally track them down and be able to arrange for legal custody of Henry... I was the next one. I lost my folks in a cabin fire. They managed to push me out the window into a snowbank... They've been wonderful parents' (p. 58)."
"'Only now am I beginning to realize that I really am out of my element. Out of my community. Out of my homeland. Away from my people' (p. 61)."
"Though the two girls did not attend one another's churches, they did develop a friendship. It was nice to have a real friend int he city (p. 64)."
"There are no prison walls if one has books (p. 64)."
"Surely with a bit of prompting the two lonely people would realize that they could add much to one another's world (p. 72)."
"Abstain from all appearance of evil came back to her mind as she sealed the envelope (p. 80)."
"'I don't think people would understand, and I didn't want... I couldn't risk possibly damaging the name of my parents--or my God--just to get something better for me' (p. 83)."
"The presence of the Force brought stability to towns like theirs (p. 91)."
"This was the young woman he had been sent to almost five years earlier. This was the Swedish logger's young widow. Henry fought to control his swirling emotions. He was totally unprepared for this sudden encounter (p. 95)."
"Had she still been in the North she would not have given the late hour a second thought. Christine felt much safer in the North than in the unfamiliar city (p. 105)."
"I would gladly pry. I would like to ask her how she is doing. If she got over the death of her husband. If her little boy is missing a father. If she is making it on her own. Why she is cutting hair in a men's barbershop by the name of Sam's... But he asked none of those questions. Silently he watched her finish the last few snips... He had no claim on this attractive, vulnerable young woman whose face had been before him so many days on the trail. Had filled so many of his dreams out under the frozen stars. No claim at all (p. 112)."
"He longed to see her smile now--to know that things were all right in her world (p. 114)."
"'She's as pretty as a picture--and as cold as an icehouse in the middle of a blizzard' (p. 116)."
"Inside the scarlet tunic beat a human heart. One that longed for intimacy--not aloofness (p. 121)."
"'I don't fit in your world, and you don't fit in mine.' 'But there must be... a third world' (p. 137)."
"Mrs. Martin always seemed to have some package in her hand. A jar of fresh jam for some elderly couple, crocheted booties for the expectant mother, a fresh loaf of bread for a bachelor farmer. Everywhere the woman went she drew her little rainbow of happiness along with her (p. 140)."
"'God had taken care of us all these years. He's not going to let us down now' (p. 144)."
"Christine had the feeling, like his son, Mr. Kingsley thought praying was a total waste of time and only delayed a decision (p. 162)."
"Christine decided that long-range courtships were not very satisfying. Courtship? Was that where she really was? If so, she needed to do some serious sorting and thinking (p. 165)."
"'Our world isn't getting any better--or cleaner, Elizabeth. I don't know how people can treat one another the way they do. Or themselves, for that matter' (p. 167)."
"'You know... it used to be so easy when they were little and all we had to worry about was keeping them fed and clothed and happy' (p. 169)."
"How could he tell Elizabeth that their daughter might not be coming home for Christmas either (p. 176)?"
"They had done what they could. Henry prayed silently that it might be enough (p. 195)."
"As soon as she stepped inside she felt contentment wash all over her. It was so beautiful. So peaceful. So Christmas. But the feeling gradually seeped away during the service (p. 206)."
"She knew she had to get them something--if it was really going to be Christmas (p. 209)."
"Why do I feel like I've missed something? Like I didn't even have Christmas? We had a more beautiful tree than I've ever had in my life. I got nicer gifts. The dinner turned out well... So why? I even went to the Christmas Eve service. Why?... Things... trimmings... gifts--that's not what makes Christmas (p. 212)."
"'I don't want to alienate her.' 'I don't see what could be more natural than for a mother to visit her daughter who's planning a wedding. Don't you have lots of things to discuss?' (p. 220)"
"Engaged. The word rang in Christine's ears. There was something so magical about it. So belonging. They were no longer just an item. They were a couple (p. 221)."
"How could he strike her one minute and kiss her the next (p. 235)?"
"She smiled to herself. God was answering her prayers. Boyd was changing. Her heart swelled with happiness. She was so blessed (p. 239)."
"It was going to seem like a long Sunday without the comfort of the worship, without the pleasure of meeting her church friends. It seemed that Boyd's interest in spiritual things had already waned (p. 240)."
"Their worst fear had just been realized. And the felon had already been in to pay a visit to Sam (p. 246)."
"'One day I met this man. He took me camping. He taught me about life--and love. He fought with every means at his disposal until I finally shared not just his home but his name. That was what I wanted. What I needed. Acceptance. Love. The right to grow up to be a man, with a role model to show me how' (p. 262)."
"'I know you can't understand this. I've already lost his father. Do you think I would risk any chance of losing him?' (p. 268)"
"Henry decided he'd better get out of there while he still had control of his emotions. It was enough to know that the young man's wounds would heal. It was even more wonderful to know that the inner person was healing too (p. 281)."
"'Daisies? They're cheap.' 'They're pretty.'... 'They'd cheapen the whole wedding. I'm not standing in front with a bunch of daisies. You might as well use dandelions.' She said no more. It would be red roses. She was sure they would be beautiful. But they would not remind her of open meadows--of singing birds and happy voices (p. 287)."
"'My church will always be important to me. I have no intention of giving it up after I marry. I had hoped... have prayed daily... that you'd share my faith. No, not share mine... have one of your own. That you'd feel... understand.'... 'You're not shoving that religion stuff down my throat. I thought I'd made that clear' (p. 291)."
"'Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers' rang in her heart (p. 292)."
"Why did she think she could go directly against what was so clear, what she had known all along, and not pay the consequences? Why did she pretend to be seeking God's direction when she already knew what those directions were? Why had she prayed for His leading, then shut out the voice that would show her the way (p. 292)?"
"How had things gone so wrong? There was only one answer. She hadn't listened... and obeyed (p. 296)."
"'We should have known it wouldn't work. We are too different. Have different values. Different dreams. I'm sorry. So sorry. It will not work' (p. 297)."
"'Boyd would have been able to give you everything.'... not everything. Christine's heart responded. Not everything. He was stripping me of my self-respect. My peace of mind. My faith. I would have lived in fear. In subjection (p. 299)."
"'When his father died I decided I never wanted that kind of pain again. Never. It hurt too much. One minute I was alive and happy, and the next... The police came. A lot of me died that night. I would have died completely if it wasn't for my faith. Somehow God would get me through it. I hung it on that. And Danny. Danny gave me a reason to live' (p. 314)."
"He moved cautiously toward the chair and crouched down. The light fell over the face of a very small, very dirty boy, curled up in a ball, a fishing rod tucked in close. He was sound asleep. Henry straightened, his heart pounding his mind tumbling with prayers of gratitude... 'Look... He's fine. Just sleeping.' And then she was in his arms, weeping, clinging to his shirtfront, her head buried against his chest as all of the pent-up emotion of the long day poured out in a torrent of tears. He just held her (p. 317)."
"'It was you... wasn't it? The Mountie who came?... And you knew who I was... all this time?... You didn't say anything.' 'I didn't know what to say.'... 'It's ironic. I always told myself that if I ever met that Mountie again, I would give him my thanks... for being so kind. For trying to help in a terrible situation. For not deserting me... And when I did meet you, all I could do was snap' (p. 322)."
"'Thanks for the supper. That was the best meal I've ever had' (p. 324)."
"As she stood there in the wash of soft lamplight, holding the door and trying once again to express her thanks, he wondered just what it would be like to hold her when she wasn't weeping. In his heart he dared hope that it wouldn't be too long until he would know the answer (p. 324)."
"What did 'starting over' mean to her? Had she really opened the door to friendship--maybe just a crack (p. 325)?"
"'If the clouds are too thick to let the sun shine through, we have dark, cloudy days. Sometimes they even look mean and ugly. If the sun can shine on them, they look white and fluffy. Pretty. If we could look at them from the other side, way up where the sun lives, and they would always look woolly white and fluffy.' 'You mean on God's side?' 'God's side... He has a very different way of seeing things.'... 'I like the white ones best.'... 'I think we all do. But we need the dark ones. They bring the rain--makes things live and grow. But we're always glad when they have done their work and gone away.'... 'If we didn't have rain--we wouldn't have lakes. Then we couldn't go fishin'.'... 'That's right, my little man' (p. 328)."
"'For a while I thought that sun above the awfully dark cloud would never shine on me again. But it was there--all the time. On God's side. I just had to let it come through' (p. 330)."
"'I would love to be Amber again.' He leaned forward and kissed her gently. It was a promise that she accepted (p. 331)."
"As he looked around the room at the happy faces and listened to the soft chatter, he was sure there would be an abundance of welcome. He had never felt happier in his entire life (p. 336)."
"'How could I use such poor judgment? Where were all those lessons in faith (p. 338)?"
"'You need to listen for the answer... and obey, even if it goes against what you had hoped for' (p. 339)."
"'I'd be happy to join your pack' (p. 343)."
"He wanted to rush back and shout the wonderful news. And he would. Momentarily. He had the feeling no one would be at all surprised. But first he wanted to linger--to savor this special moment of happiness. She had said yes, and it made his heart sing. Above, beyond the moon and stars, he felt the Father gently smiling down upon them with divine approval from somewhere up above. His heart breathed a sincere prayer of thanksgiving. Truly, God was good (p. 344)."