General Fiction posted February 19, 2022 |
Going ...
Off the rails
by Wendy G
Supernatural Fiction Story Contest Winner
John smiled.
His dear wife Kate said the same thing every morning as he left for work - that she prayed for him to be safe, that angels would watch over him.
His days as a long-distance train driver were generally uneventful, and he loved his work.
***
In another home ... Erica wept. Her dear daughter Jasmine had stormed out, yet again. Another argument! Heavy- hearted, she bowed her head, silently praying.
She was at her wits' end, not understanding why everything she did was wrong, why everything she said was taken the wrong way! Jasmine had even said she wished she was dead, because her mother didn't love her, even hated her! How far from the truth, thought Erica. Jasmine had even threatened to kill herself this time.
"God, please keep her safe!" Erica begged.
***
John was nearing his destination. He rounded a bend … and there on the tracks crouched a teenage girl. There was no way he could avoid hitting her. She would be killed instantly.
He slammed on the brakes of the train, praying it would not derail. The brakes screamed, and the train rocked violently from side to side. He struggled with the controls.
Gasping with fear, he steadied the train and drew to a halt several hundred metres down the track. White-faced, he jumped out and raced back along the tracks, heart pounding, bracing himself for what he would find.
Huddled in a ball beside the tracks sat Jasmine. He was stunned.
"I wanted to kill myself!" she wept, quite distraught. He clasped her in his arms.
"Thank God you are safe! I feared I had killed you! What happened? Can you talk to me?" he gently encouraged her.
She told him of her fights with her mother, her depression, of feeling unloved.
"What I don't understand is how you got off the tracks in time …!" John puzzled.
"I don't know! I felt someone very powerful pick me up. He had a strange sense of peace and calm about him. Then I found myself sitting here, safe and unhurt! But there's no-one around!"
"Do you believe in angels?" he gently queried.
"I don't know. My mother believes in God, and in angels … she says she prays for me too."
John, taking a deep breath, told her of his wife's daily prayer.
"I believe that God sent an angel today to look after you... and me. He answered my wife's prayer. And I believe your mother's prayers have been answered today… dramatically – by an angel! And she must love you... she prays for you."
John radioed back to his second-in-charge to drive the train to the next station.
"I'll walk you home," he told Jasmine. "You know ... God must have a special purpose for you!"
Erica was stunned, totally shocked at their story. Relieved tears followed. They all thanked God for answered prayers, angels, and new beginnings.
John smiled.
His dear wife Kate said the same thing every morning as he left for work - that she prayed for him to be safe, that angels would watch over him.
His days as a long-distance train driver were generally uneventful, and he loved his work.
***
In another home ... Erica wept. Her dear daughter Jasmine had stormed out, yet again. Another argument! Heavy- hearted, she bowed her head, silently praying.
She was at her wits' end, not understanding why everything she did was wrong, why everything she said was taken the wrong way! Jasmine had even said she wished she was dead, because her mother didn't love her, even hated her! How far from the truth, thought Erica. Jasmine had even threatened to kill herself this time.
"God, please keep her safe!" Erica begged.
***
John was nearing his destination. He rounded a bend … and there on the tracks crouched a teenage girl. There was no way he could avoid hitting her. She would be killed instantly.
He slammed on the brakes of the train, praying it would not derail. The brakes screamed, and the train rocked violently from side to side. He struggled with the controls.
Gasping with fear, he steadied the train and drew to a halt several hundred metres down the track. White-faced, he jumped out and raced back along the tracks, heart pounding, bracing himself for what he would find.
Huddled in a ball beside the tracks sat Jasmine. He was stunned.
"I wanted to kill myself!" she wept, quite distraught. He clasped her in his arms.
"Thank God you are safe! I feared I had killed you! What happened? Can you talk to me?" he gently encouraged her.
She told him of her fights with her mother, her depression, of feeling unloved.
"What I don't understand is how you got off the tracks in time …!" John puzzled.
"I don't know! I felt someone very powerful pick me up. He had a strange sense of peace and calm about him. Then I found myself sitting here, safe and unhurt! But there's no-one around!"
"Do you believe in angels?" he gently queried.
"I don't know. My mother believes in God, and in angels … she says she prays for me too."
John, taking a deep breath, told her of his wife's daily prayer.
"I believe that God sent an angel today to look after you... and me. He answered my wife's prayer. And I believe your mother's prayers have been answered today… dramatically – by an angel! And she must love you... she prays for you."
John radioed back to his second-in-charge to drive the train to the next station.
"I'll walk you home," he told Jasmine. "You know ... God must have a special purpose for you!"
Erica was stunned, totally shocked at their story. Relieved tears followed. They all thanked God for answered prayers, angels, and new beginnings.
Writing Prompt Supernatural Fiction Story Word count 450 minimum-500 maximum No vulgar words, profanity, or sex/sexual terms/ sexual innuendos implied or hinted at in dialogue/scenes No animals/No satire/No scripts or plays |
Supernatural Fiction Story Contest Winner |
Recognized |
Fiction - but definitely possible.
(This is the story I wish had been possible for a friend's daughter ....)
Pays
one point
and 2 member cents. (This is the story I wish had been possible for a friend's daughter ....)
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