Featured Writer:
Tony Rondell Peeples

Tasha just gave birth to baby Eva over an hour ago, at 9 AM on June 9th, 1999. A radiant light as bright as the dazzling sun breaks through the clouds and squeezes its way through the partially closed blinds that hang in the hospital room window and lays across the face of baby Eva. The hospital room light is dimmed to Tasha’s liking. Baby Eva nestled in Tasha’s arms as Tasha placed three gentle kisses on Eva’s forehead as they both cry. The constant beeping from the heart rate monitor lingers in the midst of the crying. Baby Eva cries because it’s how she greets the strange new world while Tasha cries because she just gave birth to her new purpose in life, and an hour later she finds out she doesn’t have long to live. The doctors say she may have three months at most.

 

Tasha’s husband, Eva’s father, Thomas, sits in the chair next to the hospital bed fighting to keep the joy he received an hour ago as he is now filled with grief and disappointment. His forehead rests on his clenched fist and his elbows on his continuously bouncing legs. His mind races with questions as he tries to hold on to the great joy of having a healthy newborn baby girl while he resists being devoured by the devastating news that his wife will be gone forever in a matter of months. Tasha looks at baby Eva then over at her husband Thomas, whom she calls Twin, as he weeps lightly.

 

"Twin, do you remember why we named her Eva Talulla?” Tasha asks.

 

Thomas raises his head with a face full of despair. His legs stop shaking as he wipes the tears from his face and a small smile appears as he begins to answer. “I do. Eva means life and Talulla means lady of abundance. We prayed that her life would fit her name and it will.”

 

Thomas paused for a moment. “And I haven’t forgotten the name Tasha is an abbreviation of Natasha meaning ‘birthday’. Natasha receives its meaning from the English name Natalie which refers to 'birthday of the Lord’.”

 

Tasha blushes. "Exactly why my parents named me Natalie. I was born on Christmas day, and I was their greatest gift being the youngest sibling. My dad started calling me Natasha and then you started calling me Tasha.”

 

Thomas looks at Tasha and then at baby Eva as the smile on his face spreads. "You both will always be my greatest gifts. Look at our little ray of hope looking just like you, as the sun shines on her pretty, vanilla face.

 

Tasha looks at baby Eva with joyful sadness on her face. “She has your beautiful green eyes. She’s so full of life, she can breathe new life into a dead plant.”

 

Thomas looks at Tasha as he feels her pain. "She has my eyes, but she'll have your heart. The heart to help others, to serve God, and to love all. You both display an exalted sense of oneness with each other. I see the connection in love and you both are the guiding light. I know you both will always keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace, and she will share her life abundance with the world."

 

Baby Eva breathes through her nostril and smiles with her beautiful green eyes staring straight at Tasha and that radiant light still lays upon her face. Tasha tries to smile as she replied with a quavering voice of sadness.

 

“That’s true twin, but the whole purpose was that our beautiful Eva lives that life of abundance with us both. We’re supposed to help create that abundance in her, and I will never see it grow. I’m holding on to what’s still left of me. The life I had planned slowly slipped through my hands. My ugly past has destroyed my beautiful future. I can’t even breastfeed my daughter.”

 

Tasha gets more emotional as she kisses baby Eva. “I left that world behind. I thought everything would be ok. I want to live a long loving life with you and baby Eva. This can’t be happening. Lord, please help me.”

 

Thomas gets up out of the chair and sits on the bed facing Tasha. “Life shows up sometimes in ways that we don’t expect or understand. We both changed our ways, asked for forgiveness, and were forgiven. “Thomas picks up baby Eva and kisses her on the forehead as the radiant light follows baby Eva’s face. One day life will serve you a luxurious cuisine of joy.”

 

Thomas leans over and wipes the tears from Tasha’s eyes, then grabs her hand and kisses it. He rubs the track marks on her arm to give her some comfort. “And the next day life will present to you a buffet of great devastation. All you can eat. And some days the good and bad will show up at your dinner table together. It does not matter how good we are, things will not always go right. The unexpected will show up unexpectedly and leave a mark. We determine what kind of mark is left. Either a mark of defeat or a mark of victory.”

 

Thomas hold’s Tasha’s hand up in the air shouting. “Today we choose victory!”

 

Tasha pulls her hand back, raises up on the bed, takes a deep breath in, and released a long flow of air with a calm sigh. “But we’re supposed to get through the unexpected times together.” Tasha slides back down in the bed and continues to cry lightly. “How can we do that together if I’m gone? I don’t even have life insurance. How will you do this alone?” I’m so sorry Thomas!”

 

Thomas lay baby Eva beside Tasha and hugs them both as the radiant light continues to shine upon the face of baby Eva. “That’s what the doctor says beloved, but what does God say? We live in a world of pain and suffering, but God will help us get through this. Whatever happens, I will never leave her side. I will always be close.”

 

Tasha begins to cry more and speak franticly. “What if my family is cursed? My sister Vilomah lost her daughter Gia last year. What if something happens to you too? Who will take care of our daughter? Oh no, what if she gets sick. Maybe, God is cursing us because of how we met. At least we turned that lust into real love. Maybe God’s cursing us because of our past lifestyle. We never thought about those things.”

 

Thomas continues to rub her arm as he tries to calm her down.

“God is a God of love, mercy, grace, and forgiveness. There are consequences for sin, but we can’t assume God is cursing us for everything we do wrong. There is no one who is not affected by the harsh realities of life, and don’t worry, in the last three months all my test results were negative, and so were Eva’s. We must trust God in all situations.”

 

Tasha stops crying but the tears continue to run down her face. “Why do bad things happen to good people?”

 

Thomas picks baby Eva back up as the radiant light continues to shine on her face. He turns her around facing Tasha.“This is our beautiful baby Eva Talulla. A life of abundance. As hard as it might be to believe, we cannot forget that there is not one righteous man on earth who will always do good and never sin. We deceive ourselves if we say we have no sin.”

 

Tasha raised up in the bed again and grabs baby Eva from Thomas.” Baby Eva will be a good person. A life full of abundance.”

 

Thomas tries to give Tasha facts in the calmest way possible. ‘An abundance of what? We never specified that. Let’s pray it’s an abundance of goodness and not sin. We all are tainted by sin and feel the effects of it in one way or another. Sometimes our own personal sin; other times, it’s the sins of others, but we always have a choice to sin or not. Because of our parents Adam and Eve, we live in a fallen world, and one of the effects we experience in the fall is senseless suffering. Always remember these 3 things. Something good will always come out of the bad because the bad times equip us for tougher times coming, this world is not the end and the worst things happened to the best person. Our Lord and our Savior Jesus Christ.”

 

Tasha wipes the tears from her eyes and stares at baby Eva. “I pray she has a lifetime abundance of love, wisdom, and protection. She will always be in my heart.”

 

Thomas puts his hand on Tasha’s heart. “I hope you will always have a place for us both in that big, beautiful heart of yours.”

 

Tasha grabs Thomas’s hand. “I will always have room for you and our beautiful baby Eva in my heart. Even when it stops beating. I remember the first time you tried to get my attention. At first, you were kind of a bother the way you stood there staring” [the couple shared a laugh in response] but I’m so glad we met. I love you! When we first started dating you always made me my favorite peanut butter and banana sandwich. Remember we use to dress alike. That’s when I started calling you twin.”

 

With so much on his mind, Thomas doubted all that he had said. He did not have the confidence he needed to believe. He looked at baby Eva with a sad face and no emotions then he looked at Tasha with a half smile that was not genuine as he spoke slowly and in a low tone.

 

“I love you too baby.”

 

Tasha decided to go home with her family instead of dying in the hospital. The doctor enters the room with the prescriptions, instructions, and discharge papers. Someone comes in with a wheelchair shortly after. Nine months later, six months longer than the doctors gave Tasha to live, she lays in bed coughing and slowly withering away. It’s the middle of March and she has gotten progressively worst. She cannot get out of bed on her own. Baby Eva slept on Tasha’s chest every night with that same radiant light covering her face, and she is the reason Tasha has been holding on.

 

With her eyes closed, she softly sings along with her favorite song ‘Anything worth holding on to’ by Matt Bloyd and Chrissy Mezt’. Though very sick, she’s calm and relaxed. The light in the room is very dim, just the way Tasha likes it. Thomas is sitting in a chair next to her bed feeding baby Eva as that radiant light continues to lay across her face. The healthcare provider is gone for the day.

 

The song ends and baby Eva starts to cry almost simultaneously, and the radiant light no longer shines on her face. Thomas gets up and lay’s baby Eva on Tasha’s chest. Baby Eva immediately stops crying. Thomas looks at Tasha and realizes something isn’t right. Tasha isn’t breathing. Thomas picks baby Eva back up and she cries harder than she has ever cried before. It appears she knew her mother was gone. Thomas is panicking because he doesn’t know what to do. He tries to lay baby Eva in her crib, but she clings to his shirt and won’t let go. He finally gets her to let go and calls 911.

​

The dispatcher can barely hear him over baby Eva’s ear-piercing cries causing the dispatcher to think she is hurt. Thomas walks into another room and is finally able to explain the situation to the dispatcher. After he hangs up, he walks back into the room and tries to calm baby Eva. He picks her up and hands her the bottle and she pushed it out of his hand. The more she cried the more he panicked. Baby Eva is reaching out to her mother. Thomas tries to calm her down by talking to her while he pats her back lightly.

 

“I know my beautiful Eva, I know. Mommy is gone far away but she will always be close in your heart, and daddy will never leave you. I love you to life, my sweet daughter. I need to find a way to turn this darkness back to light.”

 

Baby Eva continues to cry and stare at her mother’s lifeless body. Thomas decided to lay baby Eva back on Tasha’s chest until the paramedics arrived. He slowly carries her over to Tasha and baby Eva gets calmer, the closer Thomas gets to Tasha. He lays her on Tasha’s chest once again and baby Eva stops crying immediately. Thomas turns Tasha's favorite song back on and stands over them both and just stare as baby Eva clings to her mother in comfort. He picked baby Eva back up to see if she would cry. As he slowly raised her up, she started to cry so he laid her back on her mother’s chest and she fell silent.

 

As he stood over the two people, he cared for more than anything in the world, he constantly wondered how he would take care of baby Eva now that Tasha is gone. He hears the voice of Tasha saying: “I’ll be so far away. How will you do this alone?”. At that moment the reality of the situation set in. He realized he would be returning to work soon and baby Eva would not be ok without both of her parents around. He began to cry as he fell to the floor. He remembers telling Tasha to always remember that something good will always come out of the bad because the bad times equips us for tougher times coming. He realized it’s time to live up to that.

 

“God what am I supposed to do now? Please give me faith to always believe in You, and the wisdom and courage to take care of baby Eva.”

 

Thomas did not realize that he took care of baby Eva by himself the nine months Tasha was bedridden, and he was on leave from work. All he could think about was baby Eva’s non-stop crying when she was not with Tasha and the challenges he was about to face. A white man raising a black daughter alone. He was too afraid to ask Tasha’s family for help and to stubborn to ask his own. Thomas has not talked to anybody from Tasha’s family or his own family since the day of the proposal until the funeral. Thomas proposed to Tasha two months after they met and both sides of the families were unhappy about the engagement, but that did not stop them from getting married. They were married a month after the proposal and Tasha was pregnant a month after the courthouse wedding. They were so in love, and they decided to leave their street lifestyle behind. But it was too late for Tasha. The damage of her lifestyle had already taken its toll.

 

Three months later it’s baby Eva’s birthday. Thomas sits in his car outside of baby Eva’s daycare center losing the capability to cope or function with life. Thomas is a writer, and he also works part-time in a fish market. He is discouraged because he can’t get anybody to believe in his books. He’s also drained and on the verge of a mental breakdown from the loss of his wife and the failed effort to support baby Eva on his own. He feels so tired that he can’t sleep. He stares at the daycare center wondering if he’s able to take care of baby Eva any longer or should he ask a family member to adopt her. He remembers telling Tasha and baby Eva that no matter what he would never leave baby Eva’s side and he would always be close. These life-changing events have caused him an intense amount of stress, which is causing symptoms of fear, anxiety, worry, and depression. He feels overwhelmed and incapacitated.

 

He’s listening to the song “Fix you” by Fearless Soul as tears stream down his face, and reality escapes his mental, being replaced by insanity.

 

Feeling hopeless, a sense of worthlessness, a severe disappointment with his life, and the inability to focus causes him to have suicidal thoughts. He sat in his car so long that the police were called out because he did not go in and pick up baby Eva on time. Thomas sat motionless and stared into space as the police banged on his window trying to get his attention.

 

The seat next to him is filled with birthday presents for one-year-old baby Eva. Another police officer holds an irate baby Eva as she cries and reaches out for Thomas. Thomas was not stable enough to make a rational decision to keep baby Eva and the ultimate decision to separate the two was made by the courts.

 

Baby Eva was put up for adoption and Thomas was admitted to a psychiatric hospital where he stayed for seven years. He never went a day without talking about Tasha and Eva. A few years after Thomas was admitted he started getting better and was always on the internet searching for baby Eva. Thomas found out that Eva stayed in two different foster homes in Washington D.C until she was 7 years old but couldn’t find out where she stayed after that. He kept the addresses and went straight to both foster homes the first day he was released and had no luck finding where she was presently living.

 

He visited the adoption agency that placed Eva in all three foster homes. He inquired info to help find Eva’s new foster home and was informed that they were not able to give him any information pertaining to Eva because he was no longer her legal guardian. He became very upset. After countless acts of searching for Eva, Thomas refuses to give up. He has nothing else on his mind but finding Eva. Thomas visited his psychiatrist regularly to make sure he was updated on everything he was supposed to be doing so he wouldn’t have a problem getting custody of Eva when he found her. His psychiatrist tells him it would be good if he dated but that’s the last thing on Thomas’s mind.

 

After a few more months of searching for Eva with no luck, Thomas is constantly losing hope. He sleeps through the daytime and cries through the night. He hasn’t spoken to any of his family but once in almost 10 years and he’s all alone. He’s at home watching a sermon preached by Pastor JJ Smith who is the pastor of Decatur Heights Baptist church, and the message was about trusting God after a life tragedy. The message filled him with the hope he had lost. Thomas got on his knees and prayed and soon felt a peace that surpassed all understanding. He got up and picked up a picture of baby Eva laying on her mother’s chest with that radiant light shining on her face. He smiled, kissed the picture then set it back down on the nightstand and went to bed. That night Thomas had a dream of baby Eva wearing a red sweater, white shirt, long white socks, white shoes, and a blue jean dress and she was with her mother Tasha. He noticed that Tasha looked different.

 

The next day Thomas had more energy and a new will to live. He remembered asking God to give him the faith he needed to believe in Him and the wisdom and courage he needed to take care of Eva. It was a cool Saturday morning in March. Three months before Eva’s 9th birthday. Thomas got dressed without any idea where to go. He did not realize that he had grabbed his work jacket on the way out the door. He decided to go out and enjoy the day while trusting God to keep his promises. Thomas had a car, but he decided to take public transportation to downtown D.C. He got off the metro bus at the corner of Boanerges Way and 12th Street Northwest and the first place he noticed was Sons of Thunder Music Palace. Thomas immediately thought about Tasha’s favorite song and decided to go in and see if he could find it.

 

He walked in and began to browse the store. Thomas got tired of looking so he ask the guy at the counter if they had the single. The guy at the counter was John, one of the owners of the store. John informed Thomas that there was one more in stock and he could find it in section 11, row 43 or 44. Thomas rushed over to that section, but by the time he got there a lady had already had the cd in her hand. Thomas stares at her because she looks so much like Tasha in his dream. He lingers in that area acting like he was looking at other CDs hoping she would put it back. She looked at him, smiles then walked off with the cd.

 

Thomas catches up to her and apologized for staring.

 

“Excuse me, ma'am.” Still smiling she turned around as if she knew Thomas was following her.

 

“You’re excused, sir.”

 

Thomas is smiling and relieved that she is not offended. “Please forgive me. I didn’t mean to stare or make you feel uncomfortable back there, Ayyye that rhymed” [They both laughed] “but I was informed at the counter that the cd you’re holding was the last one in the store and unfortunately, I was too late.”

 

The lady looked Thomas up and down with a grin on her face. “Well, you know what they say, ladies first.”

 

Thomas has a big smile on his face. “I’m a firm believer of that. Ok, first lady, (They both laugh]) by any chance would you be willing to let me buy you two other CDs for that one? It was someone very special to me favorite song. This might sound crazy, but, you remind me of that special person.”

 

The lady is charmed by Thomas’s passion for seeking a song for somebody so dear to him. “Aww, that’s so sweet. Apology accepted, and I’m flattered that I remind you of me, I meant that special person. I wish I could help, but since I’ve been back, I’ve been searching for this cd. This has been me, and my daughter’s favorite song for years. I promised her I would find it. She’s going to be so excited. Please forgive me.”

 

Thomas now intrigued by her response and her looks. He begins to flirt.

“What an awesome mother who is also very beautiful. I’m sure you will do anything to keep your daughter happy. What’s her name?”

 

The lady smiles. “Thank you so much, and my daughter's name is Eve."

 

Thomas's eyes opened wide as he was taken by surprise by the name because it was so close to his daughter’s name. “Eve? Your daughter’s name is Eve. Eve derived from the Latin name Eva which means to breathe, to live, or to give life. The traditional meaning of Eve is life or living. Eve is the name of the first woman God created on earth. The mother of all the living.”

 

The lady continues to smile. “That is all true. Eve is a nickname I gave her just a year ago because she brought me life after six years. She brings life to everybody she loves. Her real name is Eva.”

 

Thomas doesn’t have a clue about everything she’s saying, because he is so excited and focused on the name Eve.

“No way."

 

She smiles harder. “Umm yes way. Do you know someone else name Eva as well?”

 

Thomas was anticipating her asking that question. “I do. My daughter’s name is also Eva.”

 

The lady puts her empty hand on her chest and acts like she’s shocked. “No way.”

 

Thomas smiles. “Umm yes way. May I ask you your name?”

 

The lady smiles. “If you did not ask me my name, I was going to tell you anyway, (they both laugh) I’m Natalie, the mother of Life.”

 

Thomas is surprised by her name. He pauses, smiles, and shakes her hand. “Nice to meet you, Natalie. My name is Thomas. The father of Life.”

 

They both laugh.

 

Natalie shakes her head up and down.

 

I know your name twin.”

 

Thomas thought, he heard her say, twin. “Huh. Sorry I didn’t hear you.”

 

Natalie smiling. “You heard me. I know your name friend.”

 

Thomas's eyebrows knotted in confusion. “Oh really. How do you know my name?”

 

Natalie points to the nametag on his jacket.

 

Thomas is caught off guard as he laughs and points to his nametag. “Oh yup. It’s right there. I didn’t realize I had on my work jacket. Again, I apologize. We were both on a mission to bring a beautiful song to life. Sorry to bother you.”

 

Natalie laughs, shakes Thomas’s hand, and doesn’t let go.

 

“It’s ok. I remember when you first tried to get my attention. At first, you were kind of a bother the way you stood there staring, (they both laugh) but I’m so glad we met. I, (Natalie paused) I really enjoyed talking to you, Thomas. When me and my daughter listen to this special song today, we will think of you.”

 

Thomas has visions of baby Eva and Tasha from the dream he had, and he has a great big smile on his face.

 

“That’s nice of you. Thank you. So, I’m guessing your daughter is seven because you said you gave her the nickname Eve a year ago because she brought you, life after six years.”

 

Natalie looks at the cd she’s holding. “Close. She’s eight. She will be nine in three months. This song has brought us so much peace and my Eva has brought me life.”

 

Thomas is overwhelmed with anticipation that this could be his daughter Eva. He believes she has been adopted by this lady whom he’s interested in dating. He was really surprised that she looks so much like and has the same name as his late wife. He did not want to get too personal and ask if her daughter was adopted or what day her daughter was born.

 

“Oh wow. Your daughter’s birthday is in June. This should be a great early birthday gift. Do you think there is a possibility that I can listen to this song with you one day?” asked Thomas.

 

The lady has a flirtatious look on her face, and she smiles. “Possibility is in the air, Mr. Thomas. If you’re single.”

 

Thomas takes a pen and pad out of his jacket pocket and hands it to Natalie. “Single as a base hit."

 

Natalie laughs, writes her number down on the pad, and gives the pen and pad back to Thomas.“Hope to talk to you soon now that you’re on first base with the first lady. Don’t get tagged out trying to steal bases.”

 

Thomas laughs as he takes the pen and pad and puts them back in his jacket pocket and smiles.

 

“I’ll be calling you first lady sooner than you think, then I’ll be sliding right up to your home base.”

 

They shared a laugh then a sigh of relief and comfort.

 

Thomas believes that he has found his daughter Eva. He thinks to himself this can’t be a coincidence. It’s the same name, the same age, and the same birthday month as Eva’s. Then he remembered Natalie saying the song has been their favorite for years. If Eve was his daughter that would not make sense because Eva's last adoption was only a year ago, but he was not going to stop now. They both laugh as they said their goodbyes and walk off in separate directions. Thomas waits a few hours then he called Natalie, and he did not hesitate to ask her out on a date.

 

“This is a great conversation. I would love to continue this conversation over dinner. Maybe I can meet your daughter when I come to pick you up.” says Thomas.

 

Natalie was caught off guard by the sudden date invitation but agreed. They decided to go out that Saturday. Thomas was filled with anticipation hoping on that day he would see his daughter Eva. He hangs up the phone and rejoices because he believed he has found his daughter. He immediately calls his psychiatrist Dr. Matthew to thank him for the advice to date. Thomas explains how he believes God brought him and the lady that adopted his daughter together. Thomas was extremely excited. Dr. Matthew warned Thomas that in his 28 years of practice, he has seen many patients get overly excited about hopeful situations that turned out to be great disappointments and it pushed them into another mental breakdown. Thomas assures the doctor that he is positive that this lady has adopted his daughter and he would be reunited with her soon.

 

The doctor congratulates Thomas and wishes him luck. Well, I wish you all the luck. Please keep me informed Thomas.”

 

Thomas responds with excitement. “I don’t believe in luck doctor. This is all God but thank you. Maybe my heart will reawaken, and I can find what I have been searching for.”

 

Thomas got up early Saturday morning and prayed to God. He thanked God for the opportunity to be reunited with his daughter on that day. For a moment Thomas got a little discouraged because he remembers Dr. Matthew telling him that a great disappointment could push him into another mental breakdown. Then he remembers telling Tasha that they would have to trust God in all situations, so he continued to trust God. As the time grew near, Thomas became filled with anxiety. Before, he left out, he picked up the picture of Eva laying on Tasha’s chest with that radiant light laying over her face and he began to cry.

 

“Could this be my Eva. I’m trusting you God. And if this is all a big coincidence, please bring Eva back to me. It would be such a blessing if I could find my Eva and my future wife today, but whatever happens, I’ll continue to trust You.”

 

Thomas takes the picture out of the frame and puts it in his shirt pocket. He grabs his keys off the nightstand and proceeded out the door. Thomas is now standing at Natalie’s front door. After a few minutes, he gets up enough nerves to ring the doorbell. A few more minutes passed, and the door slowly opens. Thomas's heart beats rapidly. Standing at the door wearing a red sweater, white shirt, long white socks, white shoes, and a blue jean dress was this beautiful little girl holding the door open smiling. Thomas looks down at her and stares as Natalie walked to the door.

 

Natalie pulls the door halfway open and she’s wearing a shirt that says: guess who’s back with a boomerang on it.

 

“Oh, hey Thomas. So glad you could make it.” says Natalie.

 

Thomas is still staring at the little girl trying to match her face with a one-year-old baby Eva’s face. Natalie stares at him as he stares at the little girl. Thomas looks at Natalie and back at the little girl. He shakes his head side to side, points to the little girl and yells.

 

“It’s not her. It’s not Eva. It’s not Eva.”

 

Natalie looks at Thomas as she grabs the little girl close.

 

“How did you know?” Thomas still staring at the little girl, he looks at Natalie.

 

“How did I know what?”

 

Natalie opens the door all the way and lays her hand on the little girl’s shoulder.

 

“How did you know this wasn’t Eva? They look just alike.”

Thomas looks stunned as the door swings all the way open. He watches another little girl skipping down the hall wearing exactly what the other little girl standing at the front door is wearing. The little girl skips closer as Natalie and Eva’s favorite song plays.

 

Natalie still has her hand on the little girl’s shoulder. “This is my niece Gia, and here comes our little bundle of life. They are always dressing alike. My beautiful Eva. She is the reason I live.”

 

Thomas is so excited he doesn’t hear everything Natalie is saying. He does remember Tasha telling him that her sister's daughter Gia passed away a year before Eva was born and he’s confused. Eva skipped up to the door with a big smile on her face. Thomas stares at her knowing it’s his daughter. He began to cry as he takes the picture out of his shirt pocket and hands it to Eva.

 

Eva stares at it, smiles, and hands it to Natalie. “Look mommy it’s you.”

 

Natalie looks at the picture, smiles, and looks at Eva. Thomas heard Eva tell Natalie that it was her in the picture. He is really confused but at the same time very excited to find Eva. He falls to his knees crying with great joy and thanking God.

 

“It’s you, Eva. My beloved daughter Eva. God has brought us back together. Thank You, Jesus!”

 

Natalie has both of her hands over her mouth crying and one of her shirt sleeves falls down her arm. Needle marks show on her arm. Natalie looks at Thomas as she pulls her sleeves back down.

 

“Eva. This is your father baby. Remember I told you he would be coming to visit you today.”

 

Thomas saw the needle marks before Natalie pulled her sleeves back down. He stares at Natalie wondering how she knew he was Eva’s father before now. Eva starts to cry because she’s happy to see her father. She runs to Thomas and hugs him.

 

“Daddy. I missed you. I missed you, daddy. I wanted to fix you when you got sick in your car, but the policeman wouldn’t let me. You were so far away.”

 

Thomas hugs Eva tight as he continues to cry. “I’m close now baby and I’ll never leave you again.”

 

Gia hugs both Eva and Thomas. “Hello, Uncle Thomas. Thank you for my cousin, Eva. She is my guiding light. I love her.”

 

Thomas continues to hug Eva as he looks at Gia and then stares at Natalie with a look of suspicion on his face. Thomas picked Eva up and kissed her forehead.

 

“How are you, baby. How have you been?”

 

Eva looks at Natalie, then Gia, and back at Thomas.

 

“I’ve always felt an abundance of love, wisdom, and protection. I love peanut butter and banana sandwiches just like mommy does and I’m happy I got mommy and my cousin Gia back. Mommy told me all about my cousin Gia, so I put her in my heart and shined my light on her like I did mommy. They both will always be in my heart. You’re in my heart too, daddy. One day you will need my light to guide you home and I will love you to life just like I did mommy and cousin Gia, but I can only do it once.

 

Thomas didn’t understand what Eva meant so he asked her. “How will you do that baby?”

 

Thomas is amazed that the same radiant light that once shined on baby Eva’s face has returned and it’s shining on Eva’s face again as she spoke.

 

“Jesus is the light of the world and I follow Him so I will never walk in darkness. Jesus told me that I am a burning and shining light because I am effective in the things, He has called me to do. He told me to let His light shine through me before others, that they may see my good works, and glorify the Father who is in heaven.”

 

Thomas puts Eva down, takes a few steps back, and looked at them all in amazement. He didn’t want to believe what he was seeing but he was to in love to let go. Thomas was always known for doubting. He replies in a voice of uncertainty as he stuttered.

 

“Tha’ that’s right baby. You keep, you keep on shining your light. God is faithful and our love will endure all things. I am willing to believe in this difficult situation for the sake of one another, rather than to escape what I do not yet understand. We are a family now.”

 

Natalie, Eva, and Gia all hug Thomas as Thomas's eyes follow the radiant light from Eva’s face as it travels the horizon, bouncing off a beautiful rainbow in the cloud and landing on a beautiful white dove flapping its wings in slow motion.

 

The end.