Amazing Grace

“My faith deserted me. I could never allow myself to believe that thee might be alive.” – Alice Henderson

The cruelty of man is so enormous that it seems impossible it could be forgiven. We all need a bit of mercy from time to time. The frigid winter air gives Christy the desire to explore Cutter Gap. She discovers a cabin looked after more than usual. It’s home to Hattie McHabe, a long time resident who is blind. Christy visits and Dr. MacNeill drops off some dried beans. You would think a blind person’s home would be in complete disarray. However the loss of one sense can empower another. Sight is something that is sorely taken for granted.

Hattie McHabe went blind from trachoma years ago. Thanks to Dr. MacNeill, Becky O’Teale was able to recover from it. Hattie has a treasure trove of songs and stories in her head. It’s a bit of a trade and it was worth a lot more back then. Today we have our phones, television, digital music, movie streaming, books, you name it. Hattie is Dr. MacNeill’s aunt and he stops in from time to time since she’s there alone. Because of her condition it can be a problem for safety’s sake. But I tend to believe even with all of our advancements in security and technology today, Hattie would still be safer in the early 1900s. The current lack of respect for our elders is nearly gone, let alone respect for the average person.

Christy makes a special morning breakfast at Dr. MacNeill’s cabin. She expresses to herself how different he is compared to usual. He’s not the stubborn guy he normally is. Well, he’s falling even more for Christy’s beauty and character. That can easily charm a man, but I think there’s more to it. At the end of the day, I think our own character can shift from a public perspective to a more private and personal environment. For the first time, Christy was really seeing the Dr. MacNeill underneath.

At the mission Miss Alice is met by a man named Theodore S. Harland. He is an essayist, historian, and as he proclaims, admirer. His presence seems quite odd, even for a first arrival. His supposed letter hadn’t been received by the mission, but his purpose is to stay there for a few days board. Miss Alice is annoyed at the thought of the mission being a hotel. His quest is to record and preserve an oral history of the people in Cutter Gap. The mere presence and especially the attitude of Mr. Harland comes off as an intruder to the area.

The people of East Tennessee and Western North Carolina are often called hillbillies, moonshiners and gun toting rebels who lack any intelligence. That’s still quite common today. It’s Mr. Harland’s hope to share the folklore, the stories and the songs to people outside of the area. Just maybe this can illustrate the creativity, knowledge and genuine kindness of the people. Once it’s spreads around the nation and world, minds will change. Or at least Mr. Harland thinks so. From a personal view I think this is a monumental task and it may never change. Our accents are far from the average “American accent” that people classify as. Generally our area is poorer and has less economic stability. The mission in Cutter Gap allows Mr. Harland to go about his business to visit people in the cove. However he’s cautioned to be respectful.

With a full moon, in gloom of night, Miss Alice is moved to peer out of the window. A figure stands in the distance as smoke arises. She can’t help herself, but to see who it is. Outside with her bed attire she is struck with complete disbelief. Her daughter, Margaret, has returned from the dead. Well not the dead, but it was the belief that she had been swept away and drowned in a river years ago. She is also the wife of Dr. MacNeill. Miss Alice anxiously gives Margaret one of those small talks. How the mission has changed, the new church, the new telephone line. You get the idea. The mere presence of her lost daughter rattles her nerves, as you could expect.

She realizes that she lost faith in God that Margaret could ever be alive. After thoroughly searching the area, it was Alice who gave the signal to stop the search for her. Margaret hasn’t told Neil she has returned just yet either. She got a ride from Theodore to get close to the mission. It seems that Alice, Neil, and Margaret had many disagreements, resulting in her disappearance. One example is her happily dressed with city clothes. To be honest her fashion is incredibly modest if it was worn today. However her attitude was that of rebellion.

Come morning at the mission, Theodore plays the piano while Miss Alice and Margaret walk in. They introduce themselves to Christy in a nonchalant way. To put it lightly it’s just a bizarre environment. It’s one of those times you just want to crawl under the table. Christy is scolded by Margaret at the mere mention of her husband, Neil. The children at the schoolhouse are amazed by her presence, believing that perhaps she is a ghost. Christy has to clear up their belief pretty quick.

Neil arrives to the mission in a state of fury. Who could blame him? He lashes out telling Margaret she’s dead. He’s not in denial but in a state of indignation. It’s something so troublesome no one could truly understand without going through it themself. At this point everyone is concerned by the scene that is taking place. It’s evident that it only takes one thing or one person to turn a place and their emotions in complete disarray.

Aunt Hattie’s cabin is a place of solace, exuding songs. She sings them to Mr. Harland while John Spencer records her lyrics and musical tones. As the songs continue Christy flees to Dr. MacNeill to comfort him because of the overwhelming revelation he just faced. She fails to see him face to face. Late that night Miss Alice explains to Christy the struggle she and Margaret faced. As a child Margaret had everything her way. Margaret was selfish. I guess you could say Alice could have been more strict in parenting, but even at that time Miss Alice was a child too.

In time, Margaret demanded to know the details of her birth. She was an illegitimate child, and this resulted in her rejecting everything her mother lived by. I think this happens often in our society and results in a vicious cycle that seems to never end. Margaret had resentment wanting nothing to do with her, hence, marrying Dr. MacNeill and moving to Cutter Gap. It wasn’t long though that Miss Alice arrived to the area, uninvited. She was intentionally staying by her daughter’s side by means of the mission.

It’s Margaret’s belief that Neil needs the people of Cutter Gap and not the other way around. He was often gone for weeks at a time while attending to patients. She would go days wondering if he was still alive. Her pain is understandable, but as Dr. MacNeill puts it she knew what she was getting. But so did he. We see this so often where people are not faithful to one another. Through haste of judgement they don’t realize what they’re getting into. Nevertheless marriage is often treated as a cheap promise, and not till death do you part. She was running away from her problems rather than facing them. Margaret’s been hiding the secret that she is stricken with Tuberculosis (TB), and she reveals to Miss Alice it was never her intent to stay. She accepts her mother’s request to travel to Asheville, NC for treatment. Christy explains to Neil that although the pain is great he can’t just wish her away, they’re married to each other. She knows that Neil will never give her up unless he forgives her.

As John Spencer arrives to the mission it’s revealed that Theodore Harland is stealing Aunt Hattie’s songs, by authoring them under his own name. Taking advantage of a blind woman stoops pretty low. At her cabin, John gives him a piece of his mind. A fight ensues between the two and David arrives just in time to break it up.

Even after all this, Mr. Harland is still determined to take the songs with him, no matter what. David won’t let him, and you can see that with fire in his eyes. David isn’t bluffing. Whether it’s the workplace or any group of people, there’s usually someone there to step on someone else. Like wolves they steal one’s hard work and are determined to take credit for it. Nevertheless Aunt Hattie turns the other cheek as an incredible example. John and her depart to the mission for a singing performance.

As she sings Amazing Grace, her copied song lyrics burn in a cabin fireplace. Neil is heartbroken for a second time as he reads Margaret’s letter. Similar to Margaret’s appearance, Miss Alice is drawn to look outside. It’s that feeling you must move or take action. Just as soon as she appeared in the cove, she fades into the distance. A husband and mother’s heart are broken yet again. There is still hope for Margaret. By changing our heart and mind to God’s righteousness we will be forgiven of our sins. Our spiteful attitude may have harmed our brothers, but we can ask for mercy and repay them with kindness. However something that we can never repay is God’s precious gift, of amazing grace.