Jen (from A-Z Bedtime Stories by Celia Blake)

Jen lived in Port Washington with her mom, dad and her sister, Shelly, who was nearly two years older. They lived in a cute cottage overlooking Lake Michigan. A walking trail and a wooden stairwell led down to the public beach. In the distance, two lighthouses extended way out beyond the marina.

Jen, standing on the deck of their house and looking out over the water, watched a sailboat slide across the sparkling waves with the powerful springtime wind. It was Saturday, so there was no school.

“Want to go down to the shore and skip stones?” asked her sister.

“Sure,” replied Jen.

Shelly yelled to their mom, “We’re going down to the beach!”

“Look after your sister!” their mom hollered back.

“I’m ten years old, Mom. I don’t need looking after” Jen added loudly.

“Race ya!” Shelly exclaimed, running down the trail toward the steps.

“Hey, no fair! You got a head start!” Jen ran after her sister.

“I won!” Shelly huffed when she reached the beach.

Jen picked up a stone and aimed toward the water. She threw it across on an angle. It skipped twice. She smiled.

“Good job,” said Shelly while picking up a few stones. “Watch this,” she said and aimed at the surface. Her stone skipped three times.

“Good job,” said Jen. She scanned the shore for the perfect flat stone. There were many beautiful stones and pebbles of various colors to choose from. Some were so pretty they often took them home. Most were oval and smooth around the edges due to the lake, but some were flatter than others. She decided on a medium-sized red stone. She took aim and threw. One, two, three skips. Then a wave came in and it was over.

On Shelly’s next try she got five skips! No matter how hard Jen tried, she couldn’t seem to skip a stone more than three times. “Let’s go back inside. I’m hungry.”

When they returned, their mom was sorting through the mail. “Oh, look. Your report cards!” she exclaimed. “Honey!” she yelled toward the other room. “The girls report cards came in the mail today.”

As her parents opened the envelope, Jen felt nervous. She didn’t get bad grades, but it seemed that she always had to try harder than her sister at nearly everything. It was kind of annoying. And sure enough, Shelly had achieved straight A’s again. Jen, on the other hand, received all B’s and one C, in Math. Still, their parents were proud of them both and took them out for custard that afternoon to celebrate.

The next day, while Shelly was in Choir practice, Jen was in Sunday school. Jen didn’t have a very good singing voice, so she had chosen not to join the church choir with her big sister.

After class, the Sunday school teacher, Miss Katherine, asked Jen to stay, but dismissed the rest of the students.

Jen wasn’t too worried, but she was curious as to why Miss Katherine would want to talk to her alone. As she waited she read the chalk board: Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for the good to them that love God, to them who are called according to his purpose.

“So!” Miss Katherine spoke up. “Why are you so distracted today? You seemed to be daydreaming through the entire class.”

“Oh. Ah. I. I’m sorry, Miss Katherine. I guess I’m just tired.”

“Why are you so tired, child? You should be full of energy at your age. Didn’t you sleep well last night?” she asked.

“I slept fine. I guess. I guess it’s just . . .”

“What? You can tell me. What’s bothering you?”

“Well. It’s just that. Well. I’m not good at anything, Miss Katherine.”

“Of course you are, Jen. What brings this on, honey?”

“Well, my sister, Shelly, has a pretty voice and sings in the choir. I can’t sing at all. She gets straight A’s, but I only get B’s. She does everything better than me, and I just feel like a total loser.”

“Oh, dear. You’re not a loser. Not at all. Don’t be so hard on yourself. For one, your sister is older than you, so you must accept that she will be advanced in many things.”

“I guess.”

“And, two—it is never a good idea to compare yourself to other people. We all have our own talents. So, you don’t want to sing, find something else.”

“I can’t sing,” said Jen.

“Well, that doesn’t mean there isn’t something else meant for you. You just have to find it,” she replied, smiling. “It is also important that you realize that these things don’t determine who you are. You will always be an eternal light of love, simply because you are you; and, you are a child of God.”

“Thank you, Miss Katherine.”

“Try new things. Pray. Be positive. And, be happy for your sister, not jealous.”

“I’m not jealous. I just . . .” There was a long pause, but Jen couldn’t find the words to describe what she wanted to say.

“Okay. Maybe I can help,” said the teacher. She reached for her purse and dug around inside. Items clicked and clanked together as she searched through the contents of her purse.

“Oh, here it is!” she exclaimed, pulling out a bottle of silver nail polish. She handed it to Jen.

“You can have that.”

“Nail polish?” Jen replied.

“It’s not just nail polish. It’s magic nail polish.”

Jen looked at her teacher with one eyebrow raised. How old did she think Jen was? “Ah. Okay,” she replied, reluctantly. “Thank you.”

“This nail polish will help you find what it is you seek,” said the teacher.

“How can nail polish do that?” asked Jen.

“It comes with directions.”

Jen examined the bottle, but there were no directions.

“I will give them to you,” said Miss Katherine. “First, you must paint your toenails with this polish. And with each toe, think about something you’re grateful for.”

“Okay,” said Jen.

“Then, I want you to read part of Romans.”

Jen looked at the blackboard. “Chapter eight?” she asked. This was sounding more like a Sunday school assignment, and Jen wondered if she should have just kept quite.

“They are all good chapters. You choose. I recommend chapter twelve.”

“Okay. Thanks, Miss Katherine,” said Jen, politely.

“Oh, I’m not done,” replied the teacher. “Finally, I want you to walk barefoot with your new nail polish on. It must be in the morning dew of the grass or in the morning sand of the beach. The next morning take the walk again. And then the third morning, you take the final walk. And, just do whatever you feel like doing in those moments.”

“That will help me find answers.”

Miss Katherine nodded, yes.

“Okay, if you say so.”

“Good luck.”

“Thanks,” said Jen. “See ya next week.”

So, that night, Jen did as she was instructed and painted her toenails with the magic nail polish and thought of ten things that she was grateful to have, including her family, her health, her teachers, her friends, and other things that made her happy.

Then Jen read Romans chapter twelve. Two things stood out for her. So she highlighted them both. Verse two: Be transformed by the renewing of your mind. And verse six: Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them.

Jen fell asleep shortly afterward and slept great.

She woke up early, feeling wonderful. Her parents were asleep, but her sister was in the bathroom, so she let her know she was going to walk the beach before school. That was fine, because if Shelly wanted to check up on her, she could look out from the deck.

After she descended the stairs, Jen took off her shoes and stepped barefoot onto the morning sand of the beach, just like Miss Katherine told her to do. A small wave washed over her feet. And, she could hardly believe it—her toenails sparkled brightly as the silver polish reflected rays of light off her toes. It was so bright, in fact, it looked truly magical.

When she stepped forward, the reflecting light dimmed to a normal, yet still very bright sparkle. Jen walked the beach. It was a beautiful morning. The birds sang from the neighbors’ trees. The wind blew in the unique scent of the vast lake—a mix of fish, seaweed and fresh, crisp air. As she walked, the waves continued to roll in, washing over her feet and her sparkling toenails. She felt peaceful.

Jen paused and picked up a stick. She sat down on a large piece of driftwood and looked out at the lake. She noticed her fading footsteps as the waves washed away her prints. The water darkened the color of the sand. With the stick, she drew a picture in the sand, making swirls and extending the pattern out as she stood up, bent over, and drew down the shore. She formed leaves in the sand and used the colorful pebbles as flowers in her drawing. After a few more paces down the beach, she looked back at her work. She had to admit, it was quite beautiful. Glancing back toward her house, she saw her sister on the deck. Shelly waved and motioned Jen to come home.

Jen wondered if Shelly could see her stick drawing in the sand. At that moment, the wind picked up and a larger wave rolled in. Jen watched it wash over her drawing, fading her markings in the sand. The next wave washed it clear away, as if it was never there.

But it had been there. She had enjoyed it in the moment. And it was okay with her that the wave washed it away. That moment was just for her. And, actually, she hoped her sister did not see it. She wanted to keep that moment all to herself. And God.

Shelly was still waving her home. So, smiling contently, Jen walked back to the house and got ready for school as usual. Her sister didn’t say anything.

The next morning Jen walked the beach again, like Miss Katherine said to do. Her toes glowed again. And, she felt peaceful. This time, Jen felt like building a sand castle or something. She got down on her hands and knees and did just that. She didn’t even care that her pajama pants were getting dirty. She scooped and patted the sand, forming hills and valleys. In the center she built a tall cylinder and formed it into a tower. With a small twig, she shaped details such as windows all around and spikes on top. She completed her sculpture by forming a mote around her tower and filling it with water, which took some time since she had to use her hands.

“You’re filthy!”

Jen jumped, flinching in surprise. It was her sister’s voice.

“Come on, we have to leave for school soon,” said Shelly.

“Sorry. I lost track of time.”

“Nice castle, though.”

“Thanks,” replied Jen.

The third and final morning Jen walked the beach, the sun rose above the lake. Ribbons of pink, peach and lavender spun across the horizon. She had decided to take this walk a bit earlier so she wasn’t late again, as she had been the day before. It was cooler outside, and her feet were cold; but, she was used to it since the lake water was always so cold.

As Jen walked the beach, looking at her sparkling toenails, she felt that peacefulness again and was very grateful. Looking up she noticed someone else on the beach ahead. It was a woman facing the lake. She had an easel in front of her. As Jen got closer, she recognized the lady. It was Miss Katherine!

Her teacher looked over and smiled. With a paintbrush in her hand, she waved at Jen.

Jen ran along the shoreline, excited to see Miss Katherine.

“Good morning, dear!”

“Miss Katherine! Hello. What are you doing out here?”

“Well, as you can see, I am painting this gorgeous sunrise.”

Jen looked at Miss Katherine’s painting. The lake sparkled below a colorful sky, and the lighthouse in the distance looked lovely. Miss Katherine had painted streaming light shining out of the lighthouse, shaping the images into a glowing cross.

“Oh, Miss Katherine. It’s beautiful!”

“Thank you. I see you painted your toenails.”

Jen nodded, smiling.

“Would you like to try painting the lake?”

“I. I. Ah. Yes. I would love that.”

The teacher walked over to a bag she had set aside, away from the water. She pulled out a mini easel and set it up with canvas and a small wooden palette for her student.

Jen sat on a piece of driftwood with an empty canvas in front of her. She had six colors to choose from and three paint brushes. “I don’t know how to start,” she said.

“Just give it a try. Do whatever you feel like doing. Play around with the colors and the feel of the brushes. Don’t be afraid. You can always paint over what you don’t like.”

So, Jen dipped her paintbrush in the blue and a bit of the white paint and brushed it across the canvas. It felt good. It was fun. Her arm moved naturally as her hand guided the brush across the canvas. Her brushstrokes ebbed and flowed. Jen felt something special in that moment, in the movements. Though she had never used oil paint before, it was as if she had always painted. Yet, something new and exciting was beginning. Just like the day.

The End

A-Z Bedtime Stories

06-08-26