Heartsong (Logan 2)

"And he shouldn't have last night. I'm sorry,

Cary. I don't mean to say anything bad about him,

now, of all times, but he was wrong and I think he

realized that right away and that's what bothered him

the most. You have to be strong for your mother,

Cary, and for May. She's so dependent upon us and

especially you. She's like someone who's fallen

overboard and is barely floating on a tiny raft of hope.

You know how much harder it is for her."

He nodded.

"Yes. You're right, of course."

"You've got to be as strong as your father has

been for this family," I said and he straightened up

even more. "Now come on down and eat something,"

I ordered.

He smiled.

"Aye, aye, Captain," he said, saluting. He rose

and followed me down the ladder and into the dining

room. When Aunt Sara saw him, she brightened a bit.

Serving the meal helped her keep herself together. "We'll need a special reading tonight," she told

him when we all sat at the table. He nodded and

opened the Bible.

"The Lord is my shepherd,' " he began, and

read the psalm so beautifully, it brought tears to my

eyes.

None of us had much of an appetite, but even

May saw how important it was to eat as much as she

could to please Aunt Sara. After dinner, we all helped

with the cleanup and then Cary announced he would

drive us all to the hospital.