*** PREVIEW ***
CHAPTER ONE
~ GOD’S TIMING ~
It was 1987; I was 21 years old and in between jobs. The only thing I knew at this point in my life was modeling and secretarial work, and to my mother’s dismay and often verbal disapproval, I was living in “sin” with my high school sweetheart, whom I met at the end of my 10th-grade year in Uvalde, Texas. I knew only two things, he was the love of my life, and I was terribly stubborn.
After two weeks of living together I had finally mustered the courage to call my mother to tell her the news. As I stood in the rain using the pay phone to call her, her heart-shredding words came, “this is a dead-end road, it’ll never go anywhere”. I refused to allow her to be right, but that didn’t ease the pain. The rain poured down and I cried. I only knew how much I loved him and that I would do anything to make it work.
Two weeks had gone by with no prospects of landing a good job, and I needed one desperately. I finally received a call back for a "sales job", not really caring about the aspects of what the job entailed, I excitedly
drove to my interview. “Commission Only” was new to me so I had no idea what it meant.
My interview was with a sales manager of Mission Park Funeral Homes, the job, a funeral plot salesperson! The interviewer was kind and willing to give me an opportunity but needed to make sure I knew my way around the city. He’d ask me questions like “What roads would you take to get from Cherry Ridge to St. Mary’s St”, I offered up several options, and directions he’d never even considered. He was thoroughly impressed that I knew my way around the city and continued to explain the job, pay, and bonuses.
I told myself, “I know I can do this!”, never mind that my demeanor was bubbly, my overall attitude cheerful, acting serious with a professional demeanor was something I had not yet mastered, but I was young and full of ambition. Afterall, I was still modeling, and I considered myself an actress, so I figured I could “act the part”. To be honest, all the other “salesmen” (all of whom were very nice, but were old enough to be my grandfather), made me stand out like a little pink bunny in a room full of old wolves.
The “job” lasted two weeks, lots of driving around the city from appointment to appointment, no sales, no money, but I experienced something that would be part of my life forever and was more valuable than money.
During our first week of training, we had the unique opportunity to visit one of San Antonio’s oldest cemeteries—Locke Hill Cemetery, located at the corner of Huebner Rd at Fredericksburg. We were asked to explore the grounds, read the inscriptions on various headstones, and later meet to discuss our observations and impressions.
As I walked around, I saw many headstones dating back to the late 1800’s. I’d lived here almost my whole life yet nestled between the busy streets of the medical center area; it had gone unnoticed by me. I walked a bit further, away from everyone else (something I often liked to do), and turned to find a headstone that struck me to my core.
“Grace Llewelyn Smith”, it read in big capital letters. “Wife of Ekillis Momon Chandler Sr 1941 -1961” “Married 1967 Lloyd Aaron Stoops”. Her epitaph read,
“Sleeps, but rests not.
Loved, but was loved not.
Tried to please but pleased not.
Died as she lived, alone.”
I couldn’t move, confusion and extreme sadness overcame me. Who was she? I was only 21, and I had not yet experienced most of my adult life yet. My teen years were amazing, yet sheltered, and even as I stood there trying to understand this, I feared that I was reading my future. I read it, and reread it again and again, in hopes of engraining the words into my brain as they had been etched into the headstone. I wanted so much to know who she was, how she lived, and what she looked like. Why did she not have the last name of either of the men she married?......
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My Story
There are many times in a person’s life that they’ll wonder, “why am I here?”, “why was I born into this life?” I know I’m not the only one that’s ever pondered that question. Through
all of life’s ups and downs, it is in the most difficult of circumstances one finds themselves in that presents the question, “why”.
To have faith, it is saying that I believe without seeing, I believe without knowing the answer, and I believe with my full heart of trusting. I first wish to thank my mother, who has been the epitome of “grace” to all who know and love her. Without her patience with me throughout my life, I never would have developed into the woman I am today, she has been an incredible role model, voice of reason, best friend and logical sounding board
for me when I needed it most. I also want to thank my sister, Lori, for telling me that I need to get this story out, that it is important for others to read about how God has moved in my
life and the unequivocal proof that He is always with us.
