| Hope gazes into her daughter’s eyes and marvels at her tiny features. |
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| She has named her daughter Faith. It is the one and only name that could possibly fit such an amazing creation. Ironically, she had been conceived during a time when Hope had completely abandoned her own faith. She is not proud of what happened during those few months. In fact, it scares her to death. She nearly drowned in the murky water Michael had drawn her into. But her “guardian angel” was there to pull her up. |
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| Faith’s fussing brings Hope’s attention back down to earth. She snuggles the little girl and kisses her gently on the forehead. Her daughter is singularly beautiful and unimaginably perfect. Becoming a mother has filled Hope with confidence, strength, and purpose. She had been convinced that Michael was the father of her baby. She nearly cried with joy when she saw Faith’s dark skin and bold features. Her beautiful daughter will never have to know that Michael Nava even exists. |
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| A few days after Faith is born, Mark sits with Hope to talk about the future, the past, and a few things that fall in-between. He had come prepared with a long speech about the family’s ancestors, and a warning about repeating her self-destructive behavior. But Mark was never any good at lectures. So as usual, he just improvises. By the time two hours has passed, he still had not touched any of the sensitive topics. Finally, he sits back and tells her about the story that has been handed down through the generations; that their ancestors had found and hidden some kind of secret that will one day be discovered by a future Barimen descendent. |
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| Hope sits in thoughtful silence as her father’s talking fades into white noise. So there is some kind of weird family secret? The things she had seen in her grandfather’s box of research seem to make more sense, now. She thinks back to the night at the hospital, when she heard the voices; Kacey’s voices. When they spoke to her, they told her that the future holds something wonderful. Is Kacey the secret? |
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| She often thinks about Kacey, and how she had claimed to know Grandpa David when he was young. She has seen the old pictures of her posing with him. Could it be that “her” Kacey is just a descendant who happens to look a lot like the Kacey her grandfather knew? It is the only rational explanation. But why would she tell Hope that she loved Grandpa David more than life itself? And where did she disappear to so suddenly? And what was this “terrible danger” she spoke about? |
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| Mark clears his throat impatiently, the way he always does when Hope stops paying attention. She blushes and apologizes. This is not easy for him, she knows. Her father was never much of a talker, and he is probably anxious to get it over with. Mark warns her that she must start making better decisions, or risk losing everything. He illustrates this point by reminding her about the night she was attacked. Had it not been for a few very fortunate circumstances, he would very likely be having this talk with Dara instead of her. The family has been graced with abundant wealth and prosperity, and it will be up to Hope to choose how it is used after he is gone. |
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| She tells her father that Dara has earned the right to inherit the estate, and not her. The only thing she has earned is a packed bag and a boot to the curb. Mark shakes his head. He agrees that Dara has been an amazing young woman, and has shown remarkable integrity, courage, and wisdom. And she continued to show it when he had informed her of his decision. After an uncomfortable silence, Mark tells Hope about feeling helpless while watching her sink farther and farther away from him; until he realized she was lost. Mark pauses, then smiles and asks Hope to think about how she felt when she learned that he had been found alive after nearly five years. She smiles involuntarily. He quietly tells her that on the night she came back to them, he felt every bit of joy and relief in his heart, as the family did when they learned he was coming home. |
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| Hope sits in quiet remorse as her father expresses his love for her, then leaves the room. Her entire life, she had believed that Dara wanted to be just like her big sister. Imagine the arrogance. Also, imagine the irony in the fact that all Hope wants now, is to be just like her little sister. Then, sitting in the chair thinking about her choices in life, she makes the connection; she finally understands. It was as simple as flipping a switch. |
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| Her grandfather, Ho Chung Wu, had tried to tell her about it. Both her mother and father had tried to train her using the martial arts that brought them together as teens. And when frustration set in, she sought it out by abandoning her morals and giving herself freely to sin. She even thought she may have found it through cooking. But now she finally understands. |
| Her parents had found it through balance; Michael had experienced it through his so-called freethinking. For her, it is nothing quite that complicated. She is amazed it has eluded her for this long. |
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| It is just plain and simply, love. |
| — |
| “…you are here with me always; everything I have is yours. But now we must celebrate and rejoice, because your brother was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.” – Luke 15:31-32 |
Stories by Zoxell 
Love Faith’s name…it goes so well with her mother’s. Now all we need is “Love!” After all, it is the greatest of the three 😉
And, also, I loved the verse…from the story of the Prodigal Son, am I correct? Hope’s story could be considered very similar…wait! Is that the “biblical story” you mentioned, on which her story was based?
I loved the last shot – your home is beautiful…I’d love to see a “tour” of the inside, if you ever have the time…But back to that last shot. It’s gorgeous. And I love that Hope has regained her Faith, and is holding Faith up in the air. Also, if you didn’t notice, she’s lifting her in the direction of Heaven. As if dedicating her to God. Just a little symbolism there for ya! 😉
Great job!
FortA
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You are correct 🙂
This parable actually sticks out in my mind, because of the way its meaning changed for me once I became a parent. I’d heard it a million times and thought I “got” it. Funny how that happens.
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I’m glad Hope is quieting down, she could certainly use a bit of calm in her life. Also very relieved that Faith is most definitely not Mike’s daughter!
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I had thought about it, but wanted to take the next chapter in a bit of a different direction; hopefully something a bit lighter and fun before things really begin to heat up 😉
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FortA wasn’t the only one who realized that you have have Hope and Faith and are only in need of ‘Love’. But maybe the love is figurative. Hope finally has love in her child. I hope that she and Faith together discover love and that Faith doesn’t have things as hard as Hope did.
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It was one of those “aha” moments for her. She had worked so hard at being “liked” that she lost sight of the importance of being loved. Faith (both Faith and faith) helped her to finally understand. FortA and you are right, the three do make a neat little allegory to the Holy Trinity.
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What a great chapter! I’m happy that Hope is calming down, and her life is going great! Like others have said, I do think that the “love” is between Hope and Faith, and they would be together, mother and daughter! The view from the family’s house is beautiful, I would love to see a picture of the whole house. 😀
The sixth generation heir vote of the Halliwell Legacy is up. I’d be great if you can vote!
http://halliwellfamilylegacy.wordpress.com
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I’m working on some kind of “virtual tour” of the legacy house. I’ve been unbelieveably busy over the past few weeks, and I have a ton of catching up to do in terms of reading and commenting on other blogs. I promise I will find a way to catch up!
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How wonderful…Its such a beautiful chapter, the realization the talk with Mark…
Im happy that we wont see Micheal ever again since little Faith is not his, he doesnt deserve that.
And I love the name Faith, perfect!
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Writing this was very satisfying. I finally was able to give the family something wonderful after so much heartbreak. I agree with you too, Faith was the only name that made sense! hehe.
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