Articles Archives
River shows the best a father can offer, himself
Editorial
By Tom Rivers
Feb. 27, 2003
Force yourself to read Peace Like a River . Even if it means staying up late a few times. The story will stay with you, and keep you going when you hit your mid-morning or late-afternoon metabolic swoon.
Grab River from your local library and get the coffee pot brewing. Beam up a bag of microwave popcorn.
Grab a thick blanket and sink into your favorite chair.
I wanted to be part of the River expedition. I wanted to support the local libraries and their community reading project, which they are calling "A Tale of Three Counties," featuring discussion groups and visits by the book's author, Leif Enger . More importantly, I got a copy of River because I wanted to read a good book.
I'm not a book reviewer, but I thought River was a great effort by Enger . It's a book about honor and overcoming desertion by your wife and mother, and conquering a series of other bad things.
It's not a happy-happy-happy-sex-sex-happy kind of story. Enger hammers at some of life's tougher issues and God's role in them, and our response to God when things begin to unravel.
I liked the book because of Jeremiah Land, the father of three kids whose wife left him when he decided he didn't want the big bucks. Instead, he became a dedicated school janitor.
The Jeremiah Lands of this world, whether real or fictional, don't get their due. They don't grab headlines. They don't delay marriage and fatherhood so they have their "freedom," experiencing all the world has to offer with as many people they can bring along for the ride.
Mr. Land never ran away from his kids. He stuck it out.
He never ran up a big bank account or massive credit card debt. Rather than late nights watching Sportscenter, Jay Leno and the cable shows, Mr. Land pored over the Bible and prayed. Sometimes all night.
Is this guy for real, I asked myself more than once. (He's not, but I've met his type. The guy who puts in an honest effort at work, and still makes it home for dinner. He's the scout leader, the PTA member and Sunday School teacher. More importantly, he's always seems to be there for his wife and kids.)
While Jeremiah Land certainly inspires, wait to you meet Roxanna. She comes later in the book, after Jeremiah takes his son and daughter on an expedition to find the oldest son, Davy. He's a remarkable fellow too, but you'll have to read for yourself.
While the Lands are rumbling through Minnesota and the Dakotas in search of Davy, their gas tank dips below E. Desperate, they come upon a gas station and Roxanna is at the door.
A snowstorm hits, and the Lands rent a room from her. They stay for weeks and a romance develops between her and Mr. Land. When things get serious, he sleeps in the barn, while Roxanna and the kids stay in the house.
Roxanna knows dejection, her previous loser-boyfriend left her. But Jeremiah Land breaks down her rough exterior with his steadiness, faith in God and devotion to his children. Plus, he's not a woman-beater, spewing verbal garbage like her previous love.
Jeremiah sees her beauty and draws it out. He makes her feel like a woman.
She in turn learns to love his kids, who have needed a mother, since theirs took the easy way out and chased a guy with deep pockets.
I don't want to give out too much of the story. If you're into a real love story, and not that Danielle Steele- and Hollywood-goo, then pick up the book.
I read the book the same time David Ricks of Medina was in Orleans County Court. The 24-year-old from Medina pleaded guilty Jan. 30 to first-degree assault. He beat up his live-in girlfriend's 4-year-old son so bad the boy was left in a coma.
The boy can barely move, can't see and is brain dead.
This week also marks the beginning of a trial in Seneca County where 27-year-old Eric Parsons is accused of setting a fire Nov. 5, 2001, that killed his wife and four children, ages 1 to 6. Parsons reportedly had affairs while married and spent the night before the tragic blaze with his 18-year-old girlfriend.
It's easy to lose faith in people, especially young fathers, with guys like Ricks and Parsons.
But Enger , author of Peace Like a River , shows us another way.
The book is medicine for the soul.
Courtesy of Batavia Newspapers Corporation