I know that through the years, I have often written about a book I’ve read and how it both interested and sometimes challenged me.

Not too long ago I read a book entitled Take Good Care of the Garden and the Dogs. It was written by Heather Linde and she says that the title reflects the very last words her mother spoke before her death.

The author writes about life in a tiny town in Alaska. She talks of her family, friends, faith and also the interaction with the Tlingit people from that part of Alaska.

She hunts, picks wild berries, makes jam, cans salmon they’ve caught. All in all, her story reflects a lifestyle far different from mine.

In this town are churches of different denominations but there seems to be a wonderful interaction among them and also the natives who have lived there for generations.

I was intrigued as she spoke of the carving of a new totem pole and how each pole tells a story. When the new one was finished, several hundred people carried it and placed it into the ground where future generations would see it and marvel at all the stories these totem poles tell and also the craftsmanship they exhibit.

The interaction between the people, the churches and the respect for the Tlinget people who exhibited the ability to preserve the natural beauty of the area garnered my interest.

As the book begins, the author has been very badly injured. She was riding a bike and was actually ‘run over’ by a pickup truck. Her pelvis is broken in several places and she has to be airlifted to Seattle for surgery and later, much to her dismay, finds herself in a nursing home for rehab. She has terrible pain, resents being in the home, but as she gets to know the help, she adjusts and is finally able to go home but requires assistance for some time.

Oh…I also found it interesting that she wrote obituaries for the local paper. The editor of that small paper insists they don’t just want a few details but that each obit gives a word picture of the individual’s life. That requires that she interview family members and friends.

As I read her words about losing her mother, her daughter’s marriage, how she enjoys fishing and hunting, and her understanding of the culture, I found myself drawn into her writing and longing to know more about her life. I was especially eager to read about the way that so many different folks from different backgrounds and of different faiths worked together to make a community filled with peace and compassion.

Each chapter began with a quote from the “Book of Common Prayer”. For example, if she is writing of hunting or fishing, she speaks of the need to actually ‘use that food’ and not waste the life of that fish or animal. The quote on her piece about hunting is “Give us all a reverence for the earth as your own creation, that we may use its resources rightly.”

I found her life vastly different from mine and I was awed at the awareness of God in the everyday life of the people. I think that a large portion of our society fails to reflect that dependence and awareness of God.

I was especially interested to read her concept of ‘forgiveness’. She wrote that while she had no animosity towards the driver of the truck that hit her, she hadn’t spoken to him and she purposely avoided him. And, in a small place, that’s no easy job.

Thanksgiving was approaching and she can’t find a turkey at her store. She comes to the conclusion that if she wants a turkey, she must go to the small store where this individual works. She plans to slink in and out and avoid him.

Well, it doesn’t happen and she relates she couldn’t understand her own actions because when they finally met, she hugged him and actually gave him a kiss on the cheek and they began to talk.

They talked for quite a time and she told him about her feelings and problems. His remorse was apparent and she found it easy to share her thoughts with him. They soon found themselves laughing together.

She speaks of the ‘relief’ she felt. As I read this, I found myself wondering if this wasn’t a perfect example of how ‘forgiveness’ lightens our burdens and let’s us move on without rancor and bitterness.

At an annual memorial service held, each name is read. As the name is read, she can conjure up a vision of that individual. She mentions the feeling of thanksgiving that seemed to overwhelm her knowing that she was part of that community, she had overcome her health issues, and she was living and enjoying her life in her beloved Alaska.

At this service, they sang, “Amazing Grace”. Personally, that is one of my favorite hymns. But she said that as she sang the words, for the first time in her life she didn’t focus on the words, “a wretch like me’ but on the words, “Tis grace that brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home.”

I’m going to stop on what seems like a book review and conclude with the thought that filled my mind as I read about singing “Amazing Grace”. Each of us has been blessed by the ‘grace’ offered us by a loving God. While we probably are ‘wretches’ that keep on going astray, we can rely upon God’s grace to carry us safely into the future whatever it might hold. And that ‘grace’ will surely lead us to our heavenly home. We just need to turn to God and ‘trust’.

And isn’t that promise of ‘grace’ the most wonderful reassurance. It should give us both hope and challenge to ‘keep on keeping on’. Even when and if we feel alone, we are never alone. God is always, always there.