Chapter
184

©
Jeannie St. John Taylor

What could he say?
Atarah’s mother deserved her daughter’s disdain, so she couldn’t know Atarah
had forgiven her. Silently, he put his arms around Atarah and pulled her close.
With her head on his chest, he held her as she sobbed.

She would have to
choose: God, Shem, and hard work on the ark followed by a new life in a new
world — or reconciliation with her mother. And death. Seemed like an obvious
choice to Shem, but maybe not to Atarah. Guilt did strange things to people and
she felt guilty about her mother.

When her crying
finally quieted, Shem said very simply, “I want you to be my wife.” He wished
he could be more dramatic. More persuasive. He wanted to proclaim his deep need
for her. Tell her how he had longed for her his entire life. Dreamed about
her.Made his room beautiful for her. He wanted to beg her to choose him. To
love him.

He didn’t.
Instead, he patiently waited while her face stayed buried in his chest.

He knew she had to
make the choice of her own free will. He loved her too much to take that from
her. Suddenly he understood for the first time why God had given humans free
will. He didn’t want puppets who followed him reluctantly. God wanted love and
respect. Relationship.

Those were the
same things Shem wanted from Atarah, but only if she chose to give them. He
couldn’t – wouldn’t – manipulate her into being what he wanted. The world may
have fallen into chaos and violence because of free will, but Shem nevertheless
understood the wisdom in God’s decision. Shem was grateful to be one of the few
people on earth who had chosen God above everything else. He hoped Atarah would
choose God, too. And choose Shem.

Finally, Atarah
released a shivering sigh. He cupped her chin in his hand and lifted her face.
Her eyes shone with grief.

“I do love you,”
she said. “I’ve loved you since the first moment I saw you on the ark. I want
to spend my life with you. I want to learn more about the One True God so I can
serve him. I want to stay on the ark and live. I want to get to know your
family better. I want to bear your children.” She paused and her eyes shifted
back and forth over his face as though searching for something. “But I don’t
know if I can live knowing my mother died without me at least trying to save
her.”

For a brief
moment, Shem considered tearing into the city on an elephant with Atarah to
bring back her mother, but he knew he couldn’t. God had called him to the ark.
Father needed his help to finish God’s work. Abandoning his mission would mean
rejecting God, and Shem refused to do that.

“I love you.” Shem
squared his shoulders and chose God over Atarah. “And I’ll never forget you.
But if you decide to leave the ark, you’ll go without me.”

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About Jeannie St. John Taylor

Jeannie St. John Taylor, best selling author and two-time Gold Medallion finalist, is the author of five non-fiction books as well as fifteen books for children. She writes and illustrates in the office-studio her husband built on their beef farm ten minutes from the skyscrapers in downtown Portland, Oregon. She and Ray have three grown children. Her books include: Culture-proof Kids, Building Character in Your Children, AMG Publishers, Am I Praying, Kregel and How to Be a Praying Mom, Hendrickson Publishers

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