By Fay Lamb

Once upon a time … yes, I’m beginning this story this way … Once upon a time, my husband and I, on occasion, had to hunt for pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters just to stop and get two cups of coffee on our way to work. The only essentials more important than things like braces, and doctor bills, violins and violin lessons, golf clubs, golf lessons, and tennis rackets, and fees for tennis tournaments were groceries and payment of monthly bills that kept the lights on and a roof over the kids’ heads. Stopping for coffee on our way to work ran a close third.

Back then, my father-in-law loved to play lottery. Why not? He worked at Kennedy Space Center. He lived in a small apartment. He had few bills. He liked to take a chance on the money that he truly didn’t need in order to live. He played lots and lots of lottery. Marc and I, on the other hand, wouldn’t even chance losing a dollar that we could use for coffee money. Dad would stack up his lottery tickets and hand them to my husband every month or two and tell him to go cash them in and use whatever he’d won. That was our game of chance. Would he or would he not have any winners? Usually, we eked out just enough for the beloved morning beverage.

Then one day, my husband and I were sitting outside Donuts 4 U digging in the coin holder in the car looking for anything silver to mine enough for two cups of joe. We came up empty. Marc opened his wallet. No bills had magically appeared, but he spied the telltale pink and white that reminded him that Dad had gifted him with a handful of lottery tickets.

We both turned and spied the convenience store across the street and smiled. Surely, there had to be a winner in that bundle. Marc pulled across the road, headed inside with the tickets, and a few minutes later he came out shaking his head. He had to be kidding. All those tickets and not one winner?

He sat and stared ahead.

“Do we have enough for coffee?” I asked.

“Yes, we definitely have enough for coffee.” What he held up was actually just enough for our morning treat.

“Then what’s wrong?” Worry started to creep in. Had he robbed the clerk of $4.00 so that he wouldn’t have to brave telling me we could have no coffee? If so, why weren’t we scurrying across the street and then making our getaway?

“There was one ticket,” he turned toward me, “and the clerk said he couldn’t cash it. Dad hit five of the six numbers.”

You can imagine how far my mouth fell open. Maybe I could pay for a month of braces and a month of violin lessons or a tennis tournament for the kid to climb in the rankings. Did the other kid need a new golf club? We had it covered.

“He missed the multi-million-dollar jackpot by one even number.” Marc smiled. “One even number.”

If you haven’t guessed, that was a lot of payments on those braces, quite a few violin lessons, and several tennis tournament fees. “That’ll free us up for a heck of a lot of coffee at Donuts 4 U.” Yes, that’s what I said.

Marc had a different idea. “We have to call Dad and let him know. It’s his money. He can turn the ticket in for it.”

That’s why I love my husband. I was definitely jesting about worrying about him stealing. Marry an honest man, and no matter what happens in your life, you can work through it. Marc is the most honest man I know. Of course, we had to call his father.

For a couple, who, at the time, were literally living about a week short of each paycheck, what my dear father-in-law did next was truly an incredible act of kindness. He told us that he played the lottery for us. The money was ours. He knew how those little every day incidentals and extras for the kids could deplete a checking account and sometimes extra cash is what keeps you going—like the morning coffee from Donuts 4 U. Actually, it wasn’t so much about the coffee as it was just having an extra minute or two with Marc before we parted ways and went to our respective jobs to find each other—and the boys—for a hectic evening of after school activities and whatever else we found to do. My father-in-law wanted us to have those moments, and while the money was always nice, simply knowing that he wanted that for us was his ultimate kindness. Such an incredible act of love.

Marc’s dad is gone now. We had the pleasure of having him live with us for a while. I got to cook for him and to do for him, but I, in no way, ever returned all the kindnesses that he did for us.

Fay Lamb writes emotionally charged stories with a Romans 8:28 attitude, reminding readers that God is always in the details. Fay donates 100% of her royalties to Christian charities.

Storms in Serenity is the first book in Fay’s Serenity Key series. Fay’s other series include, Amazing Grace and her novels, Stalking Willow, Better than Revenge, Everybody’s Broken, and Frozen Notes. The Ties that Bind Series includes Charisse, Libby, Hope, and Delilah.

Fay’s is also the author of The Art of Characterization: How to Use the Elements of Storytelling to Connect Readers to an Unforgettable Cast.

Note from Jennifer: Fay’s newest release is Delilah. Don’t miss reading this one!