Looking for Salvation at the Dairy Queen by Susan Gregg Gilmore Read Free Book Online

ago that picnicking was no excuse not to set a nice table. When everything looked just right, Ida Belle would reach into the back of her old, red Rambler and start unpacking mounds of country ham, coleslaw, potato salad, sliced tomatoes, deviled eggs, green bean casseroles, freshly cut watermelon, and, her crowning glory, hundreds of homemade brownies, covered with her very own milk chocolate icing. And when all was said and done, there on the bank of Nottely Lake, it looked like the Fourth of July had run right into Thanksgiving Day.
    No one was allowed to eat one bite until all the baptisms had been performed and Daddy had blessed the food to the nourishment of our bodies. Martha Ann could be heard repeating Daddy's words, “That's right, to the nourishment of our bodies.”
    Brother Fulmer said the sight of that country ham waiting to be carved was enough to make even a saved man feel weak in the knees. And I believe he must have been right, because just when you thought your stomach couldn't wait any longer, Daddy, dressed in a long, white robe, would appear from inside a small green nylon tent. The crowd would fall silent, and everyone would part in front of him as if they were seeing Jesus for the very first time.
    Mama made that robe for Daddy right after they got married. She even sewed weights into the hem so it wouldn't float above his waist when he walked into the water. And on the left cuff, she had embroidered in gold thread the words, “Oh Lamb of God, I come!” taken from Daddy's favorite hymn, “Just As I Am.” Being that it was the same hymn that had serenaded his own granddaddy's salvation, Daddy insisted that it be sung before every baptism at Cedar Grove Baptist Church. Miss Raines brought a battery-operated cassette player from our classroom, and as soon as Daddy walked out of the tent, she pushed a button and the music started filtering through the hot summer air.
    Daddy walked to the lake's edge and stepped into the water and smiled reassuringly as though he had just put his foot into a warm, soapy bath. He waded farther and farther into the lake until the water was around his waist, and then he turned, with his arms outstretched toward his congregation. All the candidates for baptism were lined up on the water's edge dressed in their bathing suits and wrapped in towels. I still wasn't sure what I was doing there, and I still didn't understand why I had started crying in church in the first place. Maybe I was just missing Mama. I used to get to feeling that way at the beginning of summer when I had more time on my hands to think about things other than long division and dangling prepositions. But no matter what the reason, I was minutes away from getting right with the Lord and there was no turning back now.
    Martha Ann and I were first in line with Emma Sue standing right behind us and Lolly standing right behind Emma Sue. Mrs. Huckstep was not about to see us redeemed before her precious granddaughter, so Emma Sue had found herself on the banks of Nottely Lake, looking as confused as we did. Martha Ann didn't like the water. She never had. I think she was afraid she'd be swept away like Mama. And she particularly didn't care for water getting in her nose or her ears, so she stood there with little pink plastic plugs stuffed in every hole above her chin except her mouth, which she kept locked tight.
    Daddy looked toward Martha Ann and with his eyes motioned for her to join him in the water, but she didn't budge. He paused for a moment, and then waved his left arm, signaling again for her to step into the water. Before we left the house that morning, Daddy had spent a long time talking to Martha Ann about the baptism and how she'd be safe in his arms. But all that talking didn't seem to matter much now. She just stood there, frozen, like she didn't even see him standing right there in front of her. Miss Raines stepped toward her and put her arm around Martha Ann's shoulder, trying to coax her into