Notes from the Heart Healer Page #7

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So what happened?

Went fairly well for a preliminary hearing.

The judge was nice enough,

but kind of formal.

Asked a lot of questions.

There you go.

He seemed to understand I left Charlie

'cause I was desperate.

Definitely knew

I was gonna come back for him, but...

The judge wants to know

that it won't happen again,

that Charlie will be safe with Violet,

before she can consider

returning him to her custody.

How can you show her that?

Got to find a way before

next week's hearing.

Otherwise...

I don't get it. If Violet had anybody

she could turn to for support,

she wouldn't have left Charlie with us.

What does the judge expect her to do

now that she didn't do before?

Her job is to protect Charlie,

not try to solve Violet's problems for her.

So? There must be something we can do.

I talked to Pastor Newton

about subsidized daycare.

He'll look into it. He isn't hopeful.

We're in a rural area.

There's only one center in the vicinity

and it's got a long wait list.

Peyton told me about Violet's mother.

She sounds like a piece of work.

And apparently,

Charlie's grandfather on the other side,

he won't even talk to Peyton.

So what do we do?

I went to see your mother today.

You what?

I needed to find out for myself

why you couldn't come up with a better

option than just leaving Charlie with us.

Look, I guess I should have told you

before I went up there, but...

it's okay, I understand.

She did tell me that she tried to

encourage you to give up the baby.

Can you imagine?

Yeah, I can.

My father did more than encourage.

He actually arranged for

my baby's adoption.

How could you forgive him for that?

It took a very long time

before he reached out to me,

and when he did, I realized that,

misguided as he was, he thought he was

doing what was best for me and my baby.

And that one decision

cost him his grandchild

and his daughter.

- That's a big price to pay.

- Yeah. It really is.

So I also went to see Hugh Weston.

Yeah, he's not the most

sociable guy, is he?

He's okay.

Violet, if that were true,

why wouldn't you go to him when

you found yourself in need, instead of us?

He blames me.

Blames you?

When Zach's mom died,

Zach became his dad's reason to live.

He was his Scout Master,

his Little League coach.

He took a night class in algebra

so he could tutor Zach.

And when Zach got a scholarship to State,

his dad threw a big party in the backyard,

and he cried like a baby

when he toasted his son.

Zach was everything to him.

And, what, you didn't fit the dream?

I did. He liked me fine.

He treated me like family,

just until I got pregnant.

Surely he knows that it takes two.

Of course, but...

But what?

Well, Zach didn't want to burden his dad.

He didn't have any money, not really,

and of course, neither did we.

Zach said we'd created the situation

and we would deal with it.

By joining the Army?

Well, I was still only 17,

so we couldn't get married

till after my birthday,

which was right before Zach's first leave.

Once we did, though,

I would get spousal benefits,

health insurance, prenatal care,

parenting classes, the works.

"It was a no-brainer. "

That's what he said.

And what did his father say?

Have you lost your mind?

It makes sense.

To risk your life

in some godforsaken war zone

just 'cause you knocked up your girlfriend?

That makes sense to you?

I'm gonna marry Violet and take care

of her, like you took care of Mom.

It's my responsibility

and I intend to live up to it.

That's what you taught me.

That's what I'm gonna do.

Whether I agree or not?

It's my decision and it's been made.

The enlistment papers are already signed.

Come on, Violet, we're out of here.

I'm sorry.

Anything happens to my boy, it's on you.

I hope you can live with that.

I hope we both can!

Violet,

are you sure that he still feels that way?

But you haven't asked him, have you?

Well, I haven't been brave enough.

So he's never even met Charlie?

No.

We know love flows and ebbs, dear readers,

and flows again.

We know anger turns to resentment,

or guilt, or forgiveness.

But how can we guess in which directions

another's emotional tides may have turned?

How can we summon the courage to revisit

the painful moments of our pasts,

if we cannot predict the effect of time

on the human heart?

A column?

More like a diary entry.

I can't really print

most of what I've been typing lately.

Thank you.

King?

I think I know how Violet can convince

the judge to let her keep her baby.

I just have to help Violet

to find the strength to do her part.

- Look, I thought I told you last time...

- Please. Please.

Hi.

Look, Mr. Weston,

when I was Violet's age,

I had a falling out with my dad.

I wish that I had her strength,

and I went to him to make amends.

I didn't.

And because of that, we didn't come

back together again for years.

Violet needs you in her life.

Her baby needs you in his life,

and as presumptuous as this may sound,

I'm betting that you need

both of them in yours.

She's here to offer you a chance

to choose understanding over anger,

forgiveness over resentment.

I don't resent Violet.

I resented God

and blamed him for taking my son.

I've been working hard to try

and understand why he'd do that to me.

To us.

For months now,

I've been trying to find you, Violet,

tell you how sorry I am for my words.

For blaming you for something

that wasn't your fault.

For not offering to share our grief.

I let Zach down.

I let you down. I let myself down.

If you can find it in

yourself to forgive me,

I'd give anything to meet my grandson.

How often, dear readers,

are we misled by the fear

that broken hearts cannot be mended,

that tortured relations cannot be repaired,

that gestures of love

will not be reciprocated?

The woman who left her child with me

has been joyfully and permanently

reunited with her little boy.

A family court judge has determined that

the temporary abandonment of her infant

was done under extenuating circumstances,

in an ill-considered effort

to protect the child.

Having moved in with the child's granddad,

our young friend has

been able to find work.

And all three, mother,

child and grandparent,

have begun rebuilding their lives together.

Who's that? It's Mom!

Here you go.

What lessons, then, can we glean

from this potentially tragic story

with a thankfully happy ending?

Sure is quiet around here.

I liked it better the way it was.

Me, too.

You know, not all kids

are as lucky as Charlie, King.

Maybe we should try to change that

for one kid who needs somebody

to love them.

- One?

- One!

To start with.

Time to go. Are you ready?

- Just a couple minutes.

- Okay.

The heart, my friends,

is a remarkable organ.

It generally ignores our

carefully laid plans

in favor of unexpected

opportunities for love.

Hey.

- Hello.

- Don't you look spiffy.

Did you get all gussied up

to wish us bon voyage?

Nope, I got gussied up to go on a

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