Have you ever been a caregiver? Some people are called to
it. Lucy Troyer is one of them. She is on her way to Jacobs
Creek to care for her cousin, Mattie Lapp. Mattie is
battling cancer. On the train, she meets Calvin Weaver and
his little sister, the only other Amish aboard. As the train
speeds through a night storm, the overhead lights flicker
and finally go out. The train begins to rock and sputter and
then comes to a complete stop. Lucy and Calvin learn that it
has broken down and they will be transported into Toledo by
bus to catch another train for Cleveland.
While waiting six hours for the next train, Lucy, Calvin and
Katie, Calvin's little sister, go to the zoo and have a
wonderful time. However, on the way back, Calvin sees a
horse and carriage and the horse looks in bad need of
medical care. He challenges the driver to quit running the
horse and see to its needs. As Lucy witnesses this scene
where Calvin become angry, she flees in horror of past
memories of another angry man, her dead husband, Paul.
Paul and Lucy were married for two years and he abused her
most of that time. She could never do anything good enough
to please him. His fall from a ladder was an accident, but
Lucy cried only tears of relief to have survived the two
years and to be out from under the stress. She doesn't think
she can ever trust a man again.
Upon arriving in Jacobs Creek, Lucy discovers that Mattie's
family lives right next door to the Weaver farm. She cannot
avoid seeing Calvin. But she is bound by her duty to care
for Mattie and make things as easy as possible while Mattie
is going through chemotherapy. And it is a difficult battle.
Mattie loses hope and feels that God has left her. Lucy
tries to encourage her to be strong and never give up. Is
she trying to convince herself also?
Calvin is a patient man and gives Lucy time and space to get
to know him and learn that she can trust him. But can Lucy
get past the nightmares of the past and forge ahead to the
future?
THE CAREGIVER is a powerful story of love, forgiveness, and
faith to believe that God has our lives in His control.
Lucy's touching story of surviving abuse and still
yearning to reach out to others will stir your heart. This
is the first book in a new series, Families of Honor, by
Shelley Shepard Gray. It is truly inspirational and a must read.
Two lives converge one stormy night on a train headed to
Cleveland.
Lucy is traveling by herself via train to Jacob's Crossing
to help care for her cousin Mattie, recently diagnosed
with breast cancer. Trying to overcome the sudden death of
her husband, she's glad to get away and focus on someone
else for a while.
The only other Amish people on the train are Calvin Weaver
and his little sister, Katie. When their train breaks down
outside of Cleveland, Calvin and Lucy band together to
face the outside world. But Calvin also carries the weight
of past hurts. When an altercation brings both their
wounds to light, they question whether they can trust each
other.
Once in Jacob's Crossing, Lucy is occupied with caring for
Mattie, while Calvin does his best to run his family's
farm. But they can't stop thinking about those special
hours spent together. Will the bond they formed last? And
will Lucy and Calvin be able to put away the pain in their
pasts to recognize the happiness that is suddenly in their
grasp?