A Slightly-Dramatized Story of the Mayflower and Things for which I am Thankful

Once upon a time, a boat-ful of intrepid men and women fled the religious persecution of Europe to find freedom in the New World. (I won't digress about the religious persecution and bigotry they brought with them...History books clean these things up so nicely.)

On one stormy day, John Howland, an upright young man much respected by his fellow travelers, fell into the icy waters of the Atlantic. Only the quick thinking and brave actions of his shipmates saved him from perishing in the waves.

I like to imagine that Doctor Samuel Fuller, perhaps with the aid of his clever 12-year-old nephew Sam, helped to restore John to health. Perhaps John and the young Sam formed a fast friendship, perhaps John stood by Sam's side when his parents died in the illness that ravaged the boat that winter. Maybe they knew even then that fate had brought them together.

Hundreds of years later, Sam Fuller's many-times-great granddaughter met a young man named Mark Hough in the gardened walkway next to their church. Immediately she was drawn to the rich timbre of his voice, his friendly face, his honest, kind smile....traits, just possibly, that he inherited from his many-times-great grandfather, John Howland, who once narrowly escaped death after he fell off a boat.

The girl, whose name is Faith, is very, very grateful that he was saved.

I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving Day tomorrow!